Kanban is a method for managing knowledge work by making it visible and improving how it flows. Where Scrum prescribes roles and timeboxed events, Kanban starts with what you do now and evolves it gradually, which makes it one of the easiest ways to introduce agility without a disruptive reorganization.
You'll start with the principles and practices of Kanban, then learn to visualize work on a board and use WIP limits to build a pull system. Next come the flow metrics, including cycle time, lead time, throughput, and work item age, and the tools for reading them, such as cumulative flow diagrams and scatterplots. The module closes with coaching teams with Kanban, including Scrumban and the anti-patterns that keep a board from delivering real improvement.
With Scrum and Kanban both in hand, you'll be ready for the next module, Product Ownership & Backlogs, where you look at how product value is defined, ordered, and kept flowing to the team.
An introduction to Kanban: its origins, the foundational principles of starting with what you do now and pursuing evolutionary change, and the core practices that guide a team.
How to map a team's real workflow onto a board, with columns, swimlanes, cards, and policies, so that work and its state become transparent to everyone.
Why limiting work in progress improves flow, how to set and adjust WIP limits, and how pull replaces push so that the team finishes work before starting more.
The key measures of flow, what each one tells you, and how to use them to understand predictability instead of tracking individual busyness.
How to read a cumulative flow diagram and cycle time scatterplot, spot bottlenecks and aging work, and handle blockers and expedite requests without wrecking flow.
How a coach helps teams adopt Kanban, when Scrumban makes sense, and how to recognize recurring dysfunctions such as ignored WIP limits and boards that only decorate the wall.