Shore Leave

A dedicated period for innovation, learning, and catching up on status reports

Between convoys, teams are granted Shore Leave: a brief period where Code Engineers are free to explore new technologies, reduce technical debt, and pursue innovative ideas. This ensures the organization maintains a culture of continuous learning and creativity.

Approved Shore Leave Activities

To ensure Shore Leave time is used productively, the Admiral’s Transformation Office maintains an approved activity list. Activities not on this list require a Shore Leave Exemption Request (SLER) approved by the Commodore.

Approved activities include:

Innovation Proposals

Code Engineers who wish to pursue innovative ideas during Shore Leave must submit an Innovation Proposal Package (IPP) containing:

  • A business case with projected ROI over 8 quarters
  • Architectural approval from the EARB
  • A risk assessment reviewed by the CRAP
  • Sign-off from at least three Feature Captains confirming the innovation will not impact their features
  • A rollback plan in case the innovation succeeds and causes organizational disruption

Innovation Proposals are reviewed on a quarterly cadence. Approved proposals may be scheduled for implementation in a future convoy, subject to WSVF prioritization.

Shore Leave Duration

Shore Leave is nominally one week between convoy cycles. However, any overdue Convoy Manifest documentation, incomplete status reports, or pending Tribunal follow-up actions must be completed first. In practice, most teams begin their next Convoy Alignment preparation on Shore Leave day two.

See Also