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Kanban system

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Kanban is an Agile method for managing the flow of work in a project while minimizing the accumulation of unfinished tasks. The main idea is to visualize the work process on a Kanban board, which helps the team track progress and identify bottlenecks. Each piece of work (task or user story) is represented as a card, and the cards move through columns on the board, representing different stages of the process. The Kanban system encourages limiting work in progress (WIP), focusing on completing tasks before starting new ones, and continually improving the process. This method supports Agile change management because it fosters adaptability, allowing the team to quickly respond to change by adjusting the prioritization of work and reallocating resources.

Guide: Understanding and Mastering the Kanban System

Importance of the Kanban System:
The Kanban system is important in Agile Change Management as it helps visualize the work, limit work in progress, and maximize efficiency(or flow). It can aid in identifying potential bottlenecks in your process and fix them so work can flow through it cost-effectively at an optimal speed or throughput.

What is the Kanban System:
The Kanban System is a visual framework that applies the principles of Agile to improve business agility. It originated in the Japanese manufacturing sector and was later adapted for project management, specifically in the field of software development. The term 'Kanban' translates to 'billboard' or 'signboard' in English.

How it works:
The workflow under a Kanban system works by visualizing the work process on a kanban board. Each work item is represented as a separate card and placed in a column that represents the stage of the process. As work progresses, cards are moved from one column to the next. The goal is to have a continuous flow of work moving through the process.

Exam Tips: Answering Questions on the Kanban system:
Understanding the underlying principles of Kanban is crucial for answering related exam questions. Be familiar with terms such as 'Work in Progress (WIP)', 'Kanban board', 'Cards', and 'Columns'. When asked to explain the Kanban system, remember to discuss its visual nature and its origin. Examples can help to demonstrate your understanding. For instance, you could describe how a team might use a Kanban board to track and move tasks from the 'to-do' column to the 'completed' column.

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Agile Project Management - Agile Change Management Example Questions

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Question 1

A designer in your team feels overwhelmed by the number of tasks assigned. They ask you if there is any way to handle this effectively, what would you recommend in the context of the Kanban system?

Correct Answer: Start by limiting the Work In Progress and then identify bottlenecks.

Limiting WIP allows the designer to focus on a few tasks at a time without feeling overwhelmed. It also helps to identify bottlenecks and areas for improvement in the workflow.

Question 2

In a marketing team, there are constant delays in project completion. You suspect this is due to poor communication between team members. How can you facilitate better communication and collaboration using the Kanban approach?

Correct Answer: Conduct regular stand-up meetings and make the Kanban board visible to all team members.

By making the Kanban board visible and conducting regular stand-up meetings, all team members can have a clear view of the project's progress and discuss issues or bottlenecks promptly, improving communication.

Question 3

A team working on a mobile application uses Kanban system. They realize that items in the 'Development' stage are taking longer than expected which causes delays. What would be the most suitable solution?

Correct Answer: Re-evaluate the task sizes to ensure they are small enough to move smoothly through stages.

The most appropriate solution given in this scenario is to re-evaluate the task sizes to ensure they are small enough to move smoothly through stages. Kanban emphasizes uniformity in the size of tasks to ensure smooth flow of work items through different stages. If a task is too large, it may get stuck in a stage for a long time, causing a bottleneck. Whereas, other provided solutions could cause further imbalances in the system. Increasing the WIP limit of 'Development' stage to accommodate more tasks would not solve the problem if tasks are too large, but instead could lead to overcrowding and further delays. Adding more resources to the 'Development' stage without addressing the task sizes might add additional costs without essentially solving the core problem. Finally, adding an additional 'Development' stage to the Kanban board will complicate the process, and again doesn't address the root problem of task size causing delays. Instead, making sure tasks are appropriately sized will result in a consistent flow through the 'Development' stage and overall process pipeline.

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