Kanban Flashcards
Provide an overview of Kanban
• Visual management systems limiting no. of work items in circulation
• Should be seen as a way to increase agility through:
- Improved day-to-day decision making
- The deferral of commitment
- Reduced lead times
• In P2 Agile it is applicable in a project context to time boxes
Where does Kanban fit into the Prince2 Processes?
• Kanban & All Agile approaches fit into “ Managing Product Delivery”
• However affects the Start-Up & Initiation
At the end of a sprint what is shown to the Project Board?
Sprint Review
What are the effects on Prince2 processes by Agile sprint reviews and visual updates to the Project Board?
• The stage Boundary is less formal due to multiple sprint/product reviews in “Managing Product Delivery “
• Reduce need for documentation
What is another way of saying Visual Management Systems
Information Radiators
What are the 6 General Practices of Kanban?
- Visualise
- Limit ‘Work in Progress’ (WIP)
- Manage the flow
- Making policies explicit
- Implement feedback loops
- Improve collaboratively, evolve experimentally
Outline the general practice of 1.) “Visualise” in the Kanban Method
Visualise
• To show how work is progressing
• To show what is still to do
• To show what problems exist
• 4 main workstreams: Ready, Build, Test & Deploy
- Deploy maybe split into Ready & Done
• Shows Work In Progress Limits
On a Kanban Board, what are Work in Progress Limits? (WIP)
• Implemented in the Build & Test columns/workstreams
• Maximum no. of user stories that can be worked on.
• Highlights restrictions such as sickness etc
How can the Project Manager understand the reasons behind a drop in WIP limits on a Kanban Board?
• Doesn’t ask the team directly
• Attends Daily Scrum Meeting
On a Kanban Board what is it when work is blocked?
• Lack of resource
• Waiting to find something out etc.
• Some Teams may enforce rules/policies about this.
Outline the Kanban General Practice 2.) Limit ‘Work in Progress’ (WIP
• A fundamental concept in Kanban that may appear counterintuitive
• WIP limits underpin ‘pull’ system
• Avoids scheduling work at specific times
• It pulls work when capacity exists
• Reduces impact of task switching and multitasking
Outline the Kanban General Practice 3.) Manage the flow
• Team constantly looks at ways to maximise flow
• Waste removed asap
Outline the Kanban General Practice 4.) Making Policies Explicit
• Boundaries need to be clearly defined about how a team works
• Policies should evolve over time
Outline the Kanban General Practice 5.) Implement Feedback Loops
• Ultimately, value is judged by final consumer
• Quantitatively assessing this affects what is delivered
Outline the Kanban General Practice 6.) Improve collaboratively, evolve expirementally
• Builds on collaboration through experimental improvement
• Process involvement is everyone’s business daily
What is the application of Kanban where the underlying process is based on Scrum?
Scrumban
What can teams use in Kanban for similar work items
• Policies - Due to predictable flow
How can a team improve the Kanban system?
Experimentation in a controlled and objective way
Provide some Kanban hints
• A timebox can be run with or without sprints
• Aims to reduce delay cost
• Change to existing processes should be gradual
• “Little’s Law” used for forecasting
Define “Little’s Law” in Kanban
• Used for forecasting
Av No. of = Av Arrival rate
items in system ×
Av Time item
Spends in system
