V1.0 © Avarteq GmbH 2016

KANBAN

culture of continuous improvementKAIZEN

Task structure

Kanban board

Kanban policyMake process policies explicit!The Kanban policy includes the responsibilities and rules for theclasses of service, board and columns and the WIP. The policy hasto be kept up to date.

Template for Kanban meetingsA template is used to ensure continuous improvement of theworkflow:o view the tasks, dissolve blocker and bottleneckso analyze the riskso measure improvemento keep-watch-change

GENERALGENERALKey features of Kanbano visualize the workflowo limit the Work In Progresso measure and manage flowo make process policies explicito use models to recognize improvement opportunities

Values of Kanbano optimize predictabilityo creation of transparencyo flexible reaction to incoming variabilityo focus of the current worko significant and continuous quality improvement

Classes of serviceEach class of service has its own rules for prioritization in the Kanban workflow. All classes of serviceallow self organization as well value and risk assessment of the classes. Every class of service hasits own rules for the lead and cycle time.

The common classes of service are:Very importantThe class has to be treated with the highest priority and it is notallowed to be interrupted. Only one task of this class can existin the workflow.

TimelineThe tasks of the timeline class have to be completed at adefined date. There should be less than 20% of this classassigned to a release.

BugBugs are faulty implementations in the live system and have tobe corrected as soon as possible. Bugs have no specific releaseassignment.

FeatureThis class contains normal tasks which are treated by the FIFO(First in, First out) principle. They have no timeline and could beup to 50% of the release.

ChoreChore class are assisting tasks and have no prioritization and norelease assignment (e.g. update of the system). These taskscould be up to 30% of the release.

Prioritization

Process of visualizationKanban board - columnThe structure of the board is separately defined and can be optimized as needed. The common usedcolumns are:Backlog I Analysis I Coding I Testing I Deploy I DoneMany of the columns are limited by the amount of work (Work In Progress - WIP).

Task structureThe structure of the tasks is important for the transparency and smooth running of the tasks.The structure needs the following attributes:

o title and description (User Story and acceptance criteria)o task numbero ownero classes of serviceo timeline (optional)o estimation (exclusively for the prioritization of tasks)

With these information everyone can make independent decisions on the processing of the tasks,based on the risk and classes of service. The explicit rules are defined in the Kanban policy.

VISUALIZATION

Cumulative Flow Diagram (CFD)The Cumulative Flow Diagram shows theamount of Work In Progress (WIP) for aspecified period and condition.From the diagram can be read the number oftasks, bottlenecks and lead times.

BottlenecksBottlenecks are stations in the Kanban systemwhere too many tasks are accumulated.They arise when too many tasks vary theprocessing times of tasks between the stations.Bottlenecks caused by blockers or temporalevents and are fixed with the theory ofconstraints.

Work in Progress (WIP)The WIP limits the number of begun work foreach column, person and the whole board.The WIP should be kept as low as possible.Exceeding the WIP points out problems in thesystem that need to be immediately examinedand treated.A tool for optimization is the consideration ofsource of variability.

Lead timeKanban aims at a short lead time. This can beachieved by high quality. The condition is a lowerror.The lead time begins with the backlog and endswith the done column.The pure coding time is called cycle time.Target: lead time has to be kept constant overtime.

MEASUREMENTIn the Kanban system areas can be measured, which provide information about thequality of the process.

WIP

lead time

error rate

delivery time

Interrelationship:

OPTIMIZATION

Source of variabilityExternal variations with assignable cause can bemanaged, reduced and eliminated by using theRoot Cause Analysis. Irregular incoming andvarying requirements can be handled.Internal (random) variations can be defined byrules control, e.g. with classes of service andtheir rules.High variability reduces the predictability.

Theory of constraints

To optimize the bottlenecks use the fivefocusing steps:1.identify the constraint2.decide how to exploit the constraint3.subordinate everything else in the system to

the decision made in step 24.elevate the constraint5.avoid inertia, identify the next constraint

and return to step 2

Kaizen - the culture of continuous improvement - is the main component of theKanban system.There is no clearly defined procedure for the optimization. There are several options tooptimize the Kanban system.

MeetingsDaily standupA daily brief analysis of the project process. Problems are identified faster, discussed indetail and dissolved in the connecting meeting.Kanban meetingThe Kanban meeting can be conducted weekly or as needed. It includes a detailed viewon the board, dissolving problems and prioritization of the current and future tasks ofthe next releases. Customer involvement is always aspired. The meetings support thecontinuous improvement for the work, quality and keep up the focus.

There are other meeting types: follow-up meeting, release planning meeting, operationmeeting and many more.