🏃‍♂️Agile Project Management Unit 3 – Kanban Method

What's Kanban?

• Kanban is a lean method for managing and improving work across human systems
• Utilizes visual signaling to communicate what to produce, when to produce it, and how much to produce
• Focuses on continuous improvement and optimizing flow of work through a system
• Originated in manufacturing but has been adapted for knowledge work and software development
• Kanban board is the central tool used to visualize work, limit work-in-progress, and maximize efficiency
  • Board is divided into columns, each representing a stage in the workflow (Backlog, In Progress, Testing, Done)
  • Cards represent individual work items as they flow through the process
• Emphasizes just-in-time delivery while not overloading the team members

Origins and History

• Kanban has its roots in the Toyota Production System developed by Taiichi Ohno in the late 1940s
  • Inspired by the supermarket model of restocking inventory as it runs low
• The term "kanban" is Japanese for "visual signal" or "card"
• In 2004, David J. Anderson introduced Kanban to IT and software development
  • Recognized the need for a more flexible approach to knowledge work
• Anderson's book "Kanban: Successful Evolutionary Change for Your Technology Business" popularized the method
• Since then, Kanban has been widely adopted across various industries beyond IT and software
• Kanban has continued to evolve, with newer derivatives like Scrumban and Enterprise Services Planning

Core Principles

• Start with what you do now
  • Kanban is an evolutionary method that respects current processes, roles, and responsibilities
• Agree to pursue incremental, evolutionary change
  • Organizations should make small, incremental changes rather than radical, sweeping changes
• Respect the current process, roles, responsibilities, and titles
• Leadership at all levels should encourage acts of leadership at all levels
• Limit work-in-progress (WIP)
  • Kanban systems use WIP limits to manage flow and prevent overloading
• Manage flow
  • The goal is to create a smooth, healthy flow of work through the system
• Make process policies explicit
  • Policies should be well-defined, visible, and understood by all
• Improve collaboratively, evolve experimentally
  • Teams should collaborate to continuously improve their process through small, controlled experiments

Key Components

• Kanban board for visualizing workflow
  • Each column represents a stage in the workflow
  • Cards represent individual work items
• Work-in-progress (WIP) limits to manage capacity and flow
  • Each column has a defined limit of cards allowed
  • Prevents overloading and improves throughput
• Continuous flow of work through the system
  • Work is pulled into the next stage as capacity becomes available
• Feedback loops for continuous improvement
  • Team reflects on process and makes incremental improvements
• Lead time and cycle time metrics for tracking performance
  • Lead time measures time from request to delivery
  • Cycle time measures time from start of work to completion
• Explicit process policies for transparency and consistency
  • Policies are documented, visible, and followed by all

Implementing Kanban

• Identify the value stream and map current workflow
  • Understand how work currently flows through the system
• Visualize the workflow on a Kanban board
  • Define columns for each stage and set initial WIP limits
• Start managing flow and gathering data
  • Monitor key metrics like lead time, cycle time, and throughput
• Continuously improve based on empirical data and team feedback
  • Conduct regular retrospectives to identify opportunities for improvement
  • Make incremental changes and measure impact
• Evolve process policies and WIP limits as needed
  • Adjust policies and limits based on learning and changing needs
• Scale Kanban across the organization
  • Apply Kanban principles to higher-level workflows and value streams

Benefits and Challenges

• Benefits:
  • Increased visibility and transparency of work
  • Improved flow and reduced lead times
  • Better management of capacity and workload
  • Continuous improvement based on empirical data
  • Flexibility to adapt to changing priorities
• Challenges:
  • Requires a culture shift towards collaboration and continuous improvement
  • May be met with resistance from those accustomed to traditional project management
  • Difficulty in defining and optimizing WIP limits
  • Lack of prescribed roles and ceremonies may be uncomfortable for some teams
  • Kanban metrics may be challenging to interpret and act upon

Kanban vs. Other Agile Methods

• Kanban is often compared to Scrum, another popular Agile method
  • Scrum prescribes specific roles, ceremonies, and artifacts
  • Kanban is less prescriptive and focuses on evolutionary change
• Kanban can be used to enhance existing Scrum implementations
  • This hybrid approach is known as Scrumban
• Kanban is well-suited for teams with frequent changing priorities or continuous maintenance work
  • Scrum is often preferred for new product development work
• Kanban emphasizes flow and cycle time, while Scrum emphasizes velocity and burndown
• Both methods share a focus on transparency, collaboration, and continuous improvement

Real-World Applications

• Software development and IT operations
  • Managing feature development, bug fixes, and support tasks
• Manufacturing and production
  • Controlling inventory levels and optimizing production flow
• Healthcare and medical services
  • Managing patient flow and improving quality of care
• Legal and professional services
  • Tracking cases and matters through various stages of completion
• Marketing and creative agencies
  • Managing campaigns, projects, and deliverables across multiple clients
• Education and research
  • Organizing and tracking student projects, assignments, and research activities