As I said, it is management speak, coming from Lean. I didn't make this up. In my country Lean is hugely influential in all kinds of domains, not just in softwa

As I said, it is management speak, coming from Lean. I didn't make this up. In my country Lean is hugely influential in all kinds of domains, not just in software development. Probably rivaling or surpassing Scrum. Maybe this isn't the case everywhere? This is merely a semantic play though, let me quote something: "Muda means wastefulness, uselessness and futility, which is contradicting value-addition. Value-added work is a process that adds value to the product or service that the customer is willing to pay for. There are two types of Muda, Type 1 and Type 2. Muda Type 1 includes non-value-added activities in the processes that are necessary for the end customer. For example, inspection and safety testing does not directly add value to the final product; however, they are necessary activities to ensure a safe product for customers. Muda Type 2 includes non-value added activities in the processes, but these activities are unnecessary for the customer. As a result, Muda Type 2 should be eliminated." - https://theleanway.net/muda-mura-muri https://theleanway.net/muda-mura-muri Muda is usually translated as Waste. Perhaps 'overhead' would be more accurate for Type 1 Muda. However this distinction between value-adding and 'required but not value-adding' is central to the way lean approaches optimization. Actually I don't really know why it isn't just translated as overhead, the term waste is bit offensive I think for some. Maybe that is the goal though.