WIP limits

5 minutes 5 Questions

Work in Progress (WIP) limits are a key element of the Kanban methodology. They mandate that only a specific number of work items can exist within a particular stage of the workflow at any given time. The primary goal of implementing WIP limits is to prevent overloading team members and to ensure t…

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Question 1

A team member is on vacation, and others are struggling to pick up the additional workload. What WIP limit adjustment should be made?

Increase the WIP limit to force the team to handle more tasks Hire a temporary team member to cover the workload Assign tasks to non-development team members to distribute the workload Temporarily lower the WIP limit and then restore it when the team member returns Do not change the WIP limit and expect the team to catch up Permanently lower the WIP limit even after the team member returns

Correct Answer: Temporarily lower the WIP limit and then restore it when the team member returns

Temporarily lowering the WIP limit and restoring it once the team member returns helps the remaining team members maintain a manageable workload and avoids overburdening them.

Question 2

In a development team of five members using Kanban, they're currently experiencing a bottleneck in the 'In Progress' stage. What would be the best solution to alleviate this?

Increase the number of tasks in the 'In Progress' stage Increase the team size to expedite the process Decrease the quality standards to finish tasks faster Reduce the WIP limit on other stages Implement a WIP limit on the 'In Progress' stage Ignore the problem and hope the team can catch up

Correct Answer: Implement a WIP limit on the 'In Progress' stage

By adding a WIP limit on the 'In Progress' stage, the team can focus on completing their current tasks before adding more work. It helps prevent further bottlenecks and maintain a healthy workflow.

Question 3

A newly formed team is doing their first Kanban board setup. Which WIP limit setting approach would be the most practical?

Copy the WIP limits from another team that seems successful Choose an arbitrary WIP limit and stick to it without adjustments Start without WIP limits and add them when problems arise Start with an estimated WIP limit and adjust it based on ongoing observations and data Ask the team members what they think the WIP limit should be without data-driven observations Set the WIP limits extremely low to force efficiency

Correct Answer: Start with an estimated WIP limit and adjust it based on ongoing observations and data

Starting with an estimated WIP limit and adjusting it based on observations and data allows for flexibility and continuous improvement in the workflow.

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WIP limits

Guide to Understanding Work-in-Progress (WIP) Limits in Kanban Methodology

Agile Project Management - WIP limits Example Questions

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