Why We Need Kanban: An Overview !

Kanban is a popular method for managing work in a visual and organized way. It has been widely adopted by teams in various industries, from software development to manufacturing and healthcare, to improve their productivity and efficiency.

Here are some reasons why we need Kanban:

1. Visualization: Kanban boards provide a visual representation of work, which makes it easy to understand the current status of tasks and projects.
2. Flexibility: Kanban boards are flexible and can be easily adapted to the changing needs of a team or project.
3. Collaboration: Kanban boards facilitate collaboration and communication among team members, making it easier to coordinate and prioritize work.
4. Increased efficiency: By visualizing work, prioritizing tasks, and reducing waste, teams using Kanban can increase their efficiency and productivity.
5. Improved decision-making: Kanban boards provide real-time information that can be used to make informed decisions about work and projects.
6. Reduced lead time: By streamlining processes and reducing waste, Kanban can help teams to reduce the lead time for projects and tasks.

Cons of Kanban

1. Limited scalability: It may not be suitable for large projects with multiple teams working on multiple tasks.
2. Can lead to delays: Overloading a workflow stage can cause delays, which can impact overall project progress.
3. Difficult to measure progress: Since tasks are prioritized as they arrive, it can be difficult to track progress against a project plan.
4. Overreliance on manual processes: The manual nature of the board can lead to errors and decreased efficiency.
5. Resistance to change: Some team members may resist the new way of working and not embrace the process.

When to use Kanban model ?

1. When work is highly variable: Suitable for projects where the work to be done is unpredictable, and requires the team to be flexible and responsive to change.
2. When the team is already familiar with Agile: The team is already familiar with Agile methodology, and wants to try a more visual and flexible approach.
3. When you need to prioritize work: Kanban boards can help the team see what tasks need to be done, prioritize them, and make decisions based on that information.
4. When you have multiple teams working together: Kanban boards can help multiple teams collaborate effectively on shared projects.
5. When you need to improve work processes: Kanban boards can help you identify bottlenecks in your work processes and find ways to improve them.

Metrics

1. Lead time: The time it takes from when work is started to when it is delivered to the customer.
2. Cycle time: The time it takes for a task to move from one stage of the workflow to the next.
3. Work in progress (WIP) limit: The maximum number of tasks that can be in a given stage of the workflow at any given time.
4. Throughput: The number of tasks completed per unit of time.
5. Blocked or stalled tasks: Tasks that are blocked or stalled because of external dependencies or lack of resources.
6. Average time per stage: The average time a task spends in each stage of the workflow.
7. Feedback loop time: The time it takes to receive and incorporate feedback into the work process.

In conclusion, Kanban is a powerful tool that can help teams to manage work more efficiently, increase productivity, and make better decisions. Whether you’re working on a software development project or managing a manufacturing operation, Kanban can provide the visualization and collaboration tools you need to get the job done.