The document describes a Kanban software game that is used to teach Kanban principles. The goal of the game is to deliver the highest amount of business value. Players use a Kanban board with work in progress limits and story cards to simulate workflow. Dice are rolled to simulate progress, and measurements like lead time, cycle time, and business value delivered are calculated and tracked throughout the game. The game aims to teach Kanban concepts in a fun and engaging way through simulated practice.

1. Kanban Software Game
BestBrains
29. oktober
2013
Søren Weiss
Agile Coach
@sorenweiss

2. Agile Games
¤ The gamification trend
¤ Conferences
¤ Boot camps
¤ Certification programs
¤ Agile Games Nights
¤ Game types and complexity
¤ "Tell me, I'll forget. Show me,
I'll remember. Involve me, I'll
understand”
¤ And It’s fun J
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3. Gaming examples
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4. What is Kanban?
Agile Framework
Manifesto – principles - values
Agile is a conceptual framework for undertaking software engineering projects
Extreme
Programming
(XP)
Unified Process
SCRUM
Dynamic
Systems
Development
Method (DSDM)
Crystal
Feature Driven
Development
Adaptive
Kanban
Source: IBM
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5. Kanban practices
Visualise
Work
5
Limit Work In
Progress
Explicit
Policies
Measurement
and Manage
Flow
Continuous
collaborative
improvement

6. Kanban software game
Goal: To deliver the highest amount of business value
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7. Kanban board layout
WIP limit
WIP limit
WIP limit
3
3
4
Backlog
Planned
Analysis
Doing
Policy
”Planned in
Round” is
filled
7
Policy
”Started in
round” is
filled
Done
Development
Doing
Done
Test
Doing
Deploy
Done
Done
Policy
”Completed in
round” and
Score field is
filled

8. Story types
Regular story (white cards):
4 rounds (cycle time = 3) = 100% business value
5 rounds (cycle time = 4) = 75 % business value
6 rounds (cycle time = 5) = 50 % business value
7 rounds (cycle time = 6) = 25 % business value
> 7 rounds (cycle time >6) = 0 business value
Fixed date story (yellow cards):
• Must complete before or on a deadline
• Only value when delivered on time
• Lead and cycle time is irrelevant for gaining
business value
Expedite story (red cards):
• Must complete in 4 rounds
• Can break WIP limits
• Only value when on time
• Must be done even if no value
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Notice
Minimum number of rounds to
complete a story is 4
(round 1 + round 2 + round 3 + round 4).
When you calculate cycle time, you
will get the cycle time of 3 cycles
(round 4 – round 1).
Flow measurements
Lead time = Completed – Planned
Cycle time = Completed – Started

9. Dice and flow
1.
Daily meeting (start of each round) decides
¤ Placement of dice
¤ What to work on
2.
When rolling dice you roll for one column at a time.
3.
Dice can be moved from (home) column to another column. Dice score is reduced to half
the score if dice is moved from home column to another column. Hence a dice roll of value 1
or 2 = value 1, a value 3 or 4 = value 2 and value 5 or 6 = value 3.
4.
When counting dice score, count each dice by themselves. Do not add all dices together
and then divide, it will give the wrong result when many dices are moved.
5.
Unused dice score is lost.
6.
In one round you can only work a story in one column (state). Hence a story cannot be
worked on in several columns in the same round.
7.
Place stories at the bottom of the a column if team decides not to complete it (e.g. if the
team thinks that it is not possible to gain business value). This is not possible for expedite stories.
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10. Measurements
¤ Lead time
¤ is calculated as = Done round – Planned round
¤ Cycle time
¤ is calculated as = Done round – Analysis round
¤ Accumulated Earned Business value
¤ is calculated based on cycle time.
¤ Cumulative flow diagram
¤ Is calculated by counting number of story cards per state.
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11. Round flow
1.
Do a daily coordination
meeting to decide on
strategy
7.
Update measurement chart
6.
Update story card values
and move story cards
5.
Roll dice to produce
progress
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2.
Move stories from backlog
into planned to decide
what is queued to work on
3.
Update board (moving
stories) to reflect status on
progress
4.
Redistribute dice to decide
on ressource allocation