This presentation from the Lean Kanban UK Conference in London, 2013, was a challenge to summarise the essence of the Kanban methodthe same definition to apply at multiple scales from personal through to portfolio Kanban.

1. Shortest Possible
Kanban Definition
and why it matters for scaling
Andy Carmichael
xprocess.blogspot.co.uk
@andycarmich
#lkuk13

2. What is Kanban?
Idea
Idea
ProcessIdea
Value
Δ
Value
Δ
An approach for managing and improving the
flow of value from knowledge work?
Va
Δ

3. Principal Sources
kanban: Lean / TPS concept
The Kanban Method: Anderson
(Blue Book)
Personal Kanban:
Benson
Other Kanbans?

4. What is Kanban?
Really 3 questions:
1. What is a kanban?
a visual signal
2. What is a kanban system?
system that manages work using (real or virtual)
kanbans to control the flow.
3. What is the Kanban method?
approach to defining and improving kanban
systems

5. … so what’s the
Kanban method?

6. Starting Point:
Foundational Principles
(Anderson)
1. Start with what you do now
2. Agree to pursue incremental, evolutionary
change
3. Initially, respect current roles, responsibilities &
job titles
4. Encourage acts of leadership at all levels from
individual contributor to senior management

7. Starting Point:
Foundational Principles
1. Start with what you do now ...
(including the current roles, responsibilities & job titles)
2. Agree to pursue ... evolutionary change
(incremental, validated by experiment)
3. Encourage acts of leadership at all levels ...
(from individual contributor to senior management)

8. Starting Point:
Foundational Principles
1. Start with what you do now ...
(including the current roles, responsibilities & job titles)
2. Agree to pursue ... evolutionary change
(incremental, validated by experiment)
3. Encourage acts of leadership at all levels ...
(from individual contributor to senior management)

9. Core Practices
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
(Anderson)
Visualize
Limit Work-in-Progress
Manage Flow
Make Process Policies Explicit
Implement feedback mechanisms
Improve Collaboratively,
Evolve Experimentally
(using models & the scientific method)

10. Core Practices
(Benson,(Anderson)
Anderson)

11. Core Practices
Make work and policies visible;
1. Visualize
4. Make Process Policies Explicit (including policies for limiting WIP)
Make validated improvements
Optimise
2. Limit Work-in-Progress (WIP)
3. Manage Flow
5. Implement feedback mechanisms
6. Improve Collaboratively, Evolve Experimentally (using models & the scientific method)

12. What's missing?
The "Lean Flow Paradigm"
Anderson: The Kanban Lens

13. How to adopt Kanban
1. Change your viewpoint (lean flow paradigm / kanban lens):
See work as flow
2. Change your mindset (foundational principles):
Start from here and evolve
3. Change your process continually (core practices):
Make work and policies visible;
Make validated improvements

14. How to adopt Kanban
Twitter version:
see flow
start here
with visible work & policies,
validate improvements
Also see: "How to Adopt Kanban"
@andycarmich

15. 2 scaling mechanisms
● Scaling by “not scaling”
○ use service-orientation concept to balance work
flowing between different kanban systems
● Scale through “scale-free” understanding
○ same approach applied to different units of flow at
different time scales

16. 3 Typical Scales of Kanban
● portfolio / organisation
● unit of flow: Project, Epic or
Minimum Releasable Increment
● time scale: weeks/months
● project / product
● unit of flow: Requirement, User Story or
Valued Work Item
● time scale: days
● personal / small team
● unit of flow: Task, To-do item
● time scale: hours

17. #LKUK13
Essence of Kanban
see flow (Lean Flow Paradigm / The Kanban Lens)
start here (The Foundation Principles)
with visible work & policies,
validate improvements (The Core Practices]
Also see: "How to Adopt Kanban"
@andycarmich

18. Stop starting...
Start finishing