Kanban boards: operations
The two configuration factors
Work sequence
Must the tasks shown on the board be carried out in a specific order, or can they be done in any order?
A programming team, where testing cannot be carried out until the functionality has been programmed, is not the same as an IT maintenance team, where installing a printer or upgrading a server are independent tasks that can be done in any order.
Team versatility
Can any team member perform any task, or are there specialists in specific types of work?
A maintenance team may have hardware technicians and software technicians. A development team may include designers, programmers, testers, and integrators who are not interchangeable. The level of specialization determines how bottlenecks are managed.
The four operations patterns
1. Multi-skilled team + free-order work (no sequence)
The simplest environment to manage. Anyone can do any task, and tasks can be picked up in any order. To resolve overload or idle time problems, adjusting the team's sizing or optimizing the system is enough.
2. Team of specialists + free-order work
Specialization makes resolving bottlenecks and idle time more complex. The possible strategies are:
- Sizing: adjust the number of people qualified for that type of task, the number of committed tasks of that type, or the customer response time.
- Optimization: improve the process for carrying out the type of task that is causing the bottleneck.
In this configuration, idle time signals problems with demand sizing or its uneven distribution.
3. Multi-skilled team + sequential work
Dependency between tasks is the main cause of strain in the flow. The first line of improvement is adjusting the WIP limit for each phase, before considering changes to the team's sizing.
Example: if the testing area frequently has more work than it can absorb, the immediate response is to limit how many tasks can enter that phase simultaneously (reduce the WIP), not to add testers.
4. Specialist team + sequential work
The most complex environment. It requires adjustment and review along every possible line: the size and balance of specialists, the size or balance of committed response times, and the adjustment of WIP limits in each phase. The board makes problems visible; the team must act on every available lever.
Reading the board to take action
In any of the four patterns, the board brings problems to the surface. The usual warning signs are:
- Saturated column: an accumulation of cards in a phase that exceeds or approaches the WIP limit. It indicates a bottleneck that should be resolved before adding more work to the system.
- Empty column: a phase with no work may indicate idle time due to a lack of incoming work or to blockages in the previous phase.
- Cards that don't move forward: a card that has been in the same column for days indicates an impediment that hasn't been resolved.
Common mistake
Applying the same board design to every team without analyzing its type of work and its composition. A three-column board (to do / in progress / done) works well for multi-skilled teams with free-order work, but it falls short for teams of specialists with sequential work, where the stages must be visible separately and have their own WIP limits. The board should be designed for the team, not the team for the board.
Resources
🔧 Kanban Flow SimulatorTool · Scrum Manager
See also
Want to advance in agility? You can look for course and exam calls, or go at your own pace by becoming a member of the Agile Club. This membership includes exclusive resources, e-learning classrooms, and access to Skill Arena: a space to practice and measure your agile skills at your own pace.