Dead or duplicated code in a bounded area
Suitable when the scope and expected result can be made explicit before implementation.
Codebase Cleanup Sprint
Clean up the part that is actually slowing the team down.
We define a narrow cleanup target, prove the current baseline, make the smallest maintainable changes that satisfy the brief, run the evidence, and separately review for accidental scope creep.
Good fit
Bounded work with a visible finish line.
Small maintainability refactors
Suitable when the scope and expected result can be made explicit before implementation.
Developer-experience cleanup
Suitable when the scope and expected result can be made explicit before implementation.
Documentation / configuration drift
Suitable when the scope and expected result can be made explicit before implementation.
Read-only preflight
What we verify first.
Preflight gathers evidence. It does not authorize implementation.
Exact files/modules or issue
Captured as evidence for qualification and the Sprint Brief before implementation begins.
Why the cleanup matters
Captured as evidence for qualification and the Sprint Brief before implementation begins.
Behavior that must not change
Captured as evidence for qualification and the Sprint Brief before implementation begins.
Build/test evidence and exclusions
Captured as evidence for qualification and the Sprint Brief before implementation begins.
Lane use
Implementation stays inside the approved brief.
Cleanup work is especially scope-sensitive. The lane may touch only the approved area and must escalate when a broader architectural change becomes necessary.
Definition of done
Evidence before handoff.
The agreed cleanup is complete, behavior remains stable unless explicitly authorized, and the diff is smaller and easier to understand than an unbounded rewrite.
Client controls merge. Deploy remains off by default.