Do you want to better understand how your work works and what is happening on your team or in your workplace? Would you benefit from being able to focus on a few small things instead of constantly having to switch between multiple projects? Do your users and stakeholders want new features delivered now rather than some other day? Do you think that you and your coworkers need to keep improving and learning?
Then kanban is for you.
Do you want to get started with kanban as soon as possible, without spending too much time on abstract theory and history and splitting hairs about different methods? Do you want to know how people in the kanban community have used kanban in practice to face different challenges?
Then this book is for you.
This book is a down-to-earth, no-frills, get-to-know-the-ropes introduction to kanban. It’s based on lots of practice, many observations, and some hearsay (!) from two guys who have worked with and coached dozens of kanban teams. We’ve also talked and taught at conferences and actively participated in user groups and the kanban community over the last few years.
In this book, you’ll read about simple but powerful techniques to visualize work: how to design a kanban board, how to track work and its progress, how to visualize queues and buffers, and even such nitty-gritty details as how colors and other enhancements can help you to organize and track your work items.
You’ll also pick up a lot of practical advice about how to limit your work in process throughout the workflow, such as how to set the limit in different ways depending on context, and how to understand when and how to change it.
With these two tools in hand—kanban and this book—you’re ready to get down to business and help your work flow through the system as you learn and improve your process further and further. You’ll learn about things like classes of service, how planning and estimation are done in kanbanland, about queues and buffers and how to handle them, and—well, you’ll learn a lot of things that you’ll need to help your team become a little better every day.
But wait, there’s more. You’ll learn about metrics and how to use them to improve, and we’ll present several games and exercises you can use to understand the principles of kanban and get new people to join you on the kanban bus. Hey, we even throw in a small section on kanban pitfalls and common criticisms, just for good measure.
This is a practical book, and we won’t spend a lot of time on the underlying theory or the history behind kanban. There are already great books on these topics (hint: pick up some books about Lean, agile, and Toyota), and they do a much better job at that than we could ever dream of doing. But we won’t leave you high and dry; some theory will be needed to make good use of the practical advice we’re giving, and we’ll supply it to you.
But this book is not only for beginners. Judging from all the questions we receive about kanban, and from all the light bulbs that get turned on during our practically oriented talks and training courses for people who have been working with kanban for some time, as well as for novices, you’ll get a lot out of this book even if you’re far from new to kanban.
Let’s get started and see some kanban in action!
This book is divided into three parts, each with a different purpose, aimed at being your companion as you learn kanban:
- Part 1, “Learning kanban”—This is an introduction to kanban in the form of a short story. The idea is that you can quickly skim through this part to get a feeling for what kanban is and learn enough about it to get you up and running, just like the fictional team you’ll meet in chapter 1. After this introduction, you’ll have all the tools and knowledge you need to start using kanban in real life—you’ll be able to start learning by doing kanban. If stories aren’t your thing, or if you don’t like our storytelling style, you can skip this chapter and jump straight into the next part.
- Part 2, “Understanding kanban”—This part gives you deeper knowledge about the why (the principles and ideas behind kanban) and the how (lots of practical tips on applying the principles in your context). We’ll take a closer look at the core principles of kanban. There will be many commonly used solutions and variations on these, which people in the community have applied in different contexts. Our descriptions will be practical and will give you more tools and tips to continue to build your knowledge. The team from chapter 1 will pop in from time to time to ask questions.
- Part 3, “Advanced kanban”—OK, you’re up and running with your board, you’re familiar with how WIP limits work, and you’re focused on helping the work to flow. Now what? In chapters 8–12, you’ll learn how to use kanban principles to manage risk, facilitate self-organization, plan, and improve. We’ve also included a chapter on common pitfalls and how to avoid them. Don’t let the “advanced” scare you: it’s not that complicated, it’s just that these practices aren’t what you start with typically when you’re new to kanban.
We make no claim that you’ll come out a kanban master at the end of this book, but it will make a good companion on your learning journey. Matched with the practical experience you’ll gain from trying stuff out, this will be a great learning combination.
You can choose several ways to read this book:
- If you want to get started as fast as possible, spend an hour reading part 1 (“Learning kanban”), and implement some of the things you learn right away.
- When you need inspiration or get stuck, browse through part 2 (“Understanding kanban”) and steal ideas or be inspired by how others have approached similar challenges.
- If you want to know why things are how they are in kanban-land, read part 2 and learn where kanban comes from and the principles and ideas on which it’s based. You’ll get a hefty dose of practical tips along the way.
- If you’re already using kanban and are curious about the next step, take a closer look at the topics in part 3 (“Advanced kanban”). You’ll be sure to pick up something new that applies to your situation.
- When people ask you to teach them kanban, find fun and educational games in part 4 (“Teaching kanban”) to play with them, and tell them about your findings and experiences. And then get them a copy of this book!
You can also read the entire book from cover to cover. This will give you a gradually deeper and wider understanding of kanban. We believe that the best learning experience will come from combining the topics in this book with practical experience.
Purchase of Kanban in Action includes free access to a private web forum run by Manning Publications where you can make comments about the book, ask technical questions, and receive help from the authors and from other users. To access the forum and subscribe to it, go to www.manning.com/KanbaninAction. This page provides information on how to get on the forum once you’re registered, what kind of help is available, and the rules of conduct on the forum.
Manning’s commitment to our readers is to provide a venue where a meaningful dialog between individual readers and between readers and the authors can take place. It’s not a commitment to any specific amount of participation on the part of the authors, whose contribution to the forum remains voluntary (and unpaid). We suggest you try asking the authors some challenging questions lest their interest stray!
The Author Online forum and the archives of previous discussions will be accessible from the publisher’s website as long as the book is in print.
In this book
Appendix A. Recommended reading and other resources Appendix B. Kanban tools Index