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Lean Principles

5 minutes 5 Questions

Lean principles, originating from manufacturing, offer a useful approach to minimize waste and optimize resources in software development. These principles include defining value from the customer's perspective, identifying the value stream, making the value flow without interruptions, letting the customer pull value, and pursuing perfection. These principles provide a framework for creating more efficient processes, continually improving, and enhancing the ability to adapt to change.

Guide on Lean Principles

Lean Principles are a critical part of the PMI-ACP adaptive planning course.

What it is: Lean Principles stem from a management philosophy derived mainly from the Toyota Production System often considered synonymous with 'Lean Manufacturing'. In the context of project management, Lean Principles are about learning to optimize efficiency and minimize waste in the process.

Why it is important: Understanding Lean Principles helps project managers to deliver while using the least resources. Utilizing these principles, managers can identify what is truly important, prioritize tasks, eliminate process waste, and foster a culture of continuous improvement.

How it works: Lean uses a system of techniques and tools to identify and eliminate waste. The goal is to increase customer value by improving process flow and concentrating on the key aspects that bring value.

Answering Questions on an exam: When answering questions on Lean Principles during exams, you must understand the five key principles of Lean: identify value, map the value stream, create flow, establish pull, and seek perfection.

Exam Tips: Remember the five principles and know what each one implies. Be prepared to apply these principles to academic project scenarios, and be able to recognize and eliminate waste. Understanding how these principles fit into the wider Agile Philosophy may also be very helpful.

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PMI-ACP - Adaptive Planning Example Questions

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Question 1

You are leading a Scrum Team which is currently facing issues with a complex development project running behind schedule. What Lean principle would you apply to tackle the situation?

Correct Answer: Apply the principle of delivering as fast as possible to identify and address issues early, enhancing learning and enabling quick adjustments.

While empowering the team and improving planning sessions are beneficial practices, applying the lean principle of delivering as fast as possible directly addresses the issue of a project running behind schedule by enabling quicker feedback loops. This approach promotes the identification of blocks and inefficiencies early on, ensuring the team can adapt and respond promptly. Prioritizing work is also essential but does not directly leverage a lean principle focused on addressing project delays through accelerated learning and adjustments.

Question 2

The Scrum Team often identifies issues only at the end of the sprint, which leads to costly late-stage modifications. Which Lean principle can be utilized to intervene and rectify this issue early?

Correct Answer: Build Incrementally with Fast, Integrated Learning Cycles

The correct answer, 'Build Incrementally with Fast, Integrated Learning Cycles,' fits the scenario as it emphasizes the importance of rapid learning and adjustments throughout the Sprint, rather than waiting until the end to identify issues. This Lean principle allows the Scrum Team to make quicker corrections and promotes continuous improvement. 'Empower the Team' and 'Limit Work in Progress' are related to enhancing team effectiveness and efficiency but don't directly address the issue of late-stage problem identification. 'Encourage Act of Leadership at All Levels' though a beneficial practice, is more about fostering a collaborative and proactive culture rather than a direct intervention method for early issue identification and resolution within the Sprint framework.

Question 3

As a Scrum Master, you observe increasing wastage in terms of time and resources, which is affecting the productivity of your team. The team is seldom able to deliver shippable increments at the end of the Sprint. Which Lean principle would you suggest to rectify this?

Correct Answer: Adopt 'Just-In-Time' principle to eliminate waste and improve process efficiency.

The 'Just-In-Time' principle refers to a strategy where production only happens based on demand, eliminating waste and increasing efficiency. This will help in reducing the observed wastage in terms of time and resources by ensuring that work is only done when needed, helping the team to deliver shippable increments at the end of the Sprint. The other options such as increasing the team size, asking the team to work overtime, or adding more budget might not solve the problem of wastage or inefficiency, as they don't directly address these issues. They may even increase waste and inefficiency by introducing complexity, overhead, and burnout.

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