How Does Kanban Facilitate Workflow Optimization?

As the industry shifts from traditional ways to more interactive ways of managing projects, there is a huge need for project professionals who can use visual tools like Kanban to execute the workflow. This is because of the flexibility and user-friendly interface of Kanban, which allow users to easily manage their tasks.

In this article, we will learn about how Kanban optimizes your workflow. This will help you to gain a clear understanding of why it is a popular tool among project professionals.

Introduction to Kanban

Derived from Japan, Kanban is a project management tool that focuses on the visual approach of managing a project. It is different from other Agile methods like Scrum in which a project is managed using iterations (called Sprint).

1. In Kanban, tasks are managed using a digital board called the Kanban Board.
2. It includes multiple columns to manage tasks like ‘In-progress,’ ‘On-hold,’ ‘Done,’ etc. Also, you can easily move these tasks using drag-and-drop features.
3. This visual board is user-friendly for users to manage their workflow. Hence, it has gained popularity in the field of project management.

How does Kanban facilitate workflow optimization?

1. Kanban uses a Visual Approach

The visual approach in the Kanban is game-changing for managing workflow management. It is user-interactive with features such as WIP Limits, Cover Image for Issue Card, and assigning labels and flags to the issues to highlight them. All these features simplify workflow management so that the experts do not face any hurdles while using Kanban. In other words, it is simple enough and does not require complex workflow creation.

For example, if the project is broken down into multiple workflows, we can create columns such as On-hold, In-Progress, In-Review, Done, and Archived. These columns contain swimlanes inside, in which the task or issue is defined with its timeline, task owner, and dependencies. In this way, Kanban simplifies the workflow.

2. Kanban Prevents Overload with WIP Limits

Many a time, the team takes up tasks that are out of the team’s capacity. In such cases, the Kanban Board provides the feature of Work In Progress Limits. It is the maximum number of tasks for each column. Thus, the team cannot exceed the tasks more than this limit. This allows the project managers to maintain the team’s efficiency without putting on the workload.

Suppose, you want to execute a project plan and your team has a limited number of people. In this case, you have to be aware of the limits of your workflow so that the team does not take the tasks that cannot be completed. Thus, Kanban prevents the team from doing unnecessary work that creates pressure.

3. Kanban Focuses on Continuous Delivery

Generally, Agile methods like Scrum deliver the project outcomes at the end of the Sprint. The sprint lasts for 2-4 weeks, but in Kanban, the changes or updates are delivered as soon as they are completed. Hence, it focuses on continuous delivery. Therefore, the project managers do not have any overhead of managing the deadline of the deliverables.

For example, if you get new requirements from the stakeholders, you have to plan the delivery of these updates but Kanban allows you to ship the changes or updates continuously. You do not need to create a separate plan for the release updates or changes in the product.

4. Kanban has Flexible Roles and Responsibilities

When working with Kanban, it is not compulsory to strictly assign roles and responsibilities to the team members. In Kanban, there is a Service Request Manager who manages the product. Then, there is a Kanban team and service delivery manager, who delegates the task to the team members. When it comes to project execution, Kanban does not specify rigid roles and responsibilities for the project activities.

Let us understand using an example. While managing the project, if you encounter an issue or bug that carries high priority. You can assign it to a senior member so that it can be fixed before it becomes a severe project risk. Thus, if you think that someone with a better skillset can perform the task, you can easily assign it to him.

5. Kanban Allocates Resources Optimally

Kanban uses the pull system to manage the workflow. It means that tasks are moved into the workflow only when they are needed or when the team can take on the task. Thus, project experts allocate the resources to the tasks in an efficient manner. Also, the resources are allocated as per the expertise and availability of the team members.

Kanban does not focus on the predefined schedules of the project and allows us to dynamically allocate the resources. Hence, the allocation of resources in the workflow becomes efficient. For example, if there is an immediate need for the resource, they can be easily allocated as and when needed.

Example of Workflow Optimization using Kanban

Let us practically understand the above points on workflow optimization using Kanban. Suppose, that we have to manage a software product development which is a large project. We can optimize the workflow using Kanban as follows:

1. Breaking down the tasks, instead of processing it as a whole: The project is broken down into multiple subtasks. We can manage these in the form of Backlog, Analysis, Development, Testing, Review, and Done or Completed. Here, the backlog includes the upcoming tasks, The Analysis part is for the requirement gathering, development, testing, and review for actual product development.
2. Assign tasks based on the skillset: Now, various tasks are created and assigned to the team members according to their skills and availability. Also, the WIP Limits are defined for each column.
3. Take tasks only when needed: Workflow is implemented using the continuous flow of tasks from the backlog to the current task. Tasks are moved in progress only when the requirement comes.
4. Monitor the Workflow: Then, Kanban provides various tools to monitor the workflow, adapt to changes, and asses the project using various metrics and reports such as Control Charts, Burnup and Burndown Charts, Cumulative Flow Diagrams, etc. Also, feedback from the stakeholders is taken frequently to avoid any risk.

In this way, Kanban optimizes the workflow with its flexible agile principles.

Conclusion

Kanban is really helpful for optimizing the workflow. With features such as a pull system, work in progress, and continuous delivery, managing the workflow becomes pretty simple. Project professionals can easily save critical project resources and focus only on the required tasks or issues. In terms of Customer Satisfaction, it enhances our workflow by keeping the stakeholders informed about the project.