What this resource covers
Kanban manages the flow of work through a defined system. It is useful for support, maintenance, integration queues, product development, and mixed operational work where continuous prioritization is needed.
- Visualize actual workflow states rather than generic to-do lists
- Set work-in-progress limits based on team capability
- Define entry and exit policies for each state
- Make blocked work and aging visible
- Measure lead time, cycle time, throughput, and work-item age carefully
- Use service expectations and regular reviews to improve flow
- Pull new work only when capacity is available
Information to prepare
Prepare workflow stages, entry and exit policies, item types, demand sources, service expectations, blockers, expedite rules, current work, and baseline flow data.
- Current workflow and queues
- Work types and priority rules
- Team capacity and specialist constraints
- Definition of blocked and completed work
- Historical flow data when available
Expected planning outputs
Create a visual workflow with explicit policies, work-in-progress limits, blocked-item handling, replenishment and delivery reviews, and flow measures such as cycle time and throughput.
- Visible workflow board
- Explicit policies and WIP limits
- Blocked and aging work visibility
- Flow measurements
- Improvement experiments
Practical example
How it can be applied
An application support team may use Ready, Analysis, Development, Review, Testing, and Release states with limits on Development and Testing. When Testing reaches its limit, the team helps complete or unblock work instead of starting more development.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Using a board without WIP limits or policies
- Creating columns that do not match real workflow
- Starting urgent work without showing what it displaced
- Comparing teams using raw throughput without context
- Optimizing one stage while work waits elsewhere
FAQ
Common questions
Does Kanban require sprints?
No. It can operate continuously, though teams may still use regular planning, review, and release cadences.
What is a WIP limit?
It limits how many items can be active in a workflow state, encouraging completion and exposing bottlenecks.
Can Scrum and Kanban be combined?
Teams can use flow practices within a sprint framework, but policies and measures should remain clear rather than mixing terminology without purpose.