Kanban System is a method of optimizing business workflows through visualization and reduction of work-in-progress.
Kanban will help you understand where you are now and continually improve your work processes to reduce waste and increase your work value.
This article tells what Kanban is, what its pluses are, and whether you should implement it in your work.
What does Kanban mean?
Kanban is a model that helps you visualize and control work. Its purpose is to visually track the working process using a Kanban Board and task cards. The board is usually divided into several columns such as “to do,” “in progress,” “done.”
But more columns can be displayed depending on the needs of a particular team (for example, testing, deploying, code review, etc.). The cards are usually moved to the appropriate section on completion of tasks.
What does Kanban change?
It optimizes the speed of work, brings clarity to all processes: it is always clear what to do now and why. It makes the work consistent and predictable and allows you to deliver finished work faster. Moreover, it reduces the amount of “almost completed work”, which has zero value for the business and the customer, in favor of real work.
What are the benefits of Kanban boards?
Planning flexibility. The team concentrates only on the current work; the priority of the task is set by the manager.
High team involvement in the development process. Through constant meetings, transparency of processes, and self-organization opportunities, employees unite and show genuine interest in work.
Shorter cycle times. If several people have similar skills, the duration is reduced, but if only one, a bottleneck appears. Therefore, employees must share knowledge and thereby optimize cycle times. Then the whole team can take on the work that stalled and restore a smooth flow.
Fewer bottlenecks. WIP limits allow you to quickly find bottlenecks and problem areas that have appeared due to a lack of attention, people, or skills.
Visibility. When all performers have access to the data, bottlenecks are easier to spot. Kanban teams, in addition to the cards themselves, usually use two general reports: management charts and cumulative flow charts.
Should you implement a Kanban board in your business?
It is important to understand that the implementation of any system must be justified by the tasks that the company solves. Kanban can help where there is a continuous stream of urgent tasks.
Kanban also allows you to clarify the processes – in a timely manner to detect where activities are engaged in unnecessary processing and where additional resources are lacking.
Kanban’s ultimate goal is to bring clarity to the processes taking place in the company and optimize work so that what is needed is done, and exactly when it is needed – “just in time.”
Conclusion
Kanban is the perfect tool for managing the flow of tasks and ensuring the most reliable and efficient process possible. Kanban is great for ongoing projects where new challenges and changes go hand-in-hand.