The document discusses using Kanban and mindfulness to address chronic work disorders. It describes treating symptoms as signals of underlying systemic problems rather than blaming individuals. Workers are encouraged to see their work as a system using Kanban methods like visualization, work-in-progress limits, and feedback loops to understand flow. This allows addressing root causes through small experiments. Mindfulness of work involves paying attention to current patterns without judgement to understand the system of work. Kanban thus applies mindfulness principles to optimize work interactions and manage systemic performance.

1. Understand
(and fix) your
Chronic Work
Disorder
with Kanban
Janice Linden-Reed
Ready Option

2. A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
MINDFULNESS
AT WORK
3 ELEMENTS
OF
MINDFULNESS
KNOW
YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!
DEAL WITH
YOUR CHRONIC
WORK DISORDER
THE
KANBAN
METHOD
A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM

3. What are
your chronic
complaints?
WORK DELIVERED
LATE
CUSTOMERS
CHANGE THEIR
MINDS
OVERWHELMED
WITH TOO MUCH
WORK
DEPENDENCIES ARE
UNPREDICTABLE
SPECIALISTS ARE
NOT AVAILABLE
WHEN NEEDED
PULLED IN TOO
MANY DIRECTIONS
– CAN’T FOCUS

4. CHRONIC
WORK
DISORDER
It starts with a SYMPTOM

5. Investigating
the problem
• Observe
• Inquire
• Run tests
• Apply knowledge of systems
• Follow professional guidance
• Re-test

6. WHAT IF YOU ONLY
TREATED THE
SYMPTOM?

7. Symptom:
You’re Late
Immediate action, no investigation
• Deliver it anyway
• Set new delivery dates
• Blame others: colleagues, management,
customers, vendors…
• Fire someone or re-organize
• Hire reinforcements
• Demand a process change

8. The first step is admitting
you have a problem
(not just a symptom)
The symptom signals an underlying problem

9. Who can make a diagnosis?
The person who
understands the
underlying system is
qualified to diagnose
the problem

10. Who can diagnose the problem?
The people most
qualified to
understand the
system of work
are the workers

11. Systems within
you
• Skeletal system
• Cardiovascular system
• Digestive system
• Pulmonary system
• Etc
SYSTEMS WORK TOGETHER

12. You have a
System of
Work!
• patterns
• rules
• customer demand
• capabilities
You need to step back
and discover
“how your work works”

13. What is
needed to
see your own
System of
Work?
Focus Clarity

14. A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
MINDFULNESS
AT WORK
3 ELEMENTS
OF
MINDFULNESS
KNOW
YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!
DEAL WITH
YOUR CHRONIC
WORK DISORDER
THE
KANBAN
METHOD
THE USEFULNESS
OF
MINDFULNESS
A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM

15. MINDFULNESS
for Focus and
Clarity
Mindfulness is the psychological process of
bringing one's attention to experiences
occurring in the present moment

16. Mindfulness at work
Meditation Reflection
Active listening Taking walks
Purposeful pauses while eating

17. Mindfulness at work
Improved focus Stress reduction
Better communication Clarity
Tranquility Happiness Creativity

18. Mindfulness at work:
practices applied to
individuals and teams,
done in the workplace
This has clear benefits,
but…

19. A different approach
APPLY
MINDFULNESS
TO THE WORK
(NOT THE WORKERS)

20. A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
MINDFULNESS
AT WORK
3 ELEMENTS
OF
MINDFULNESS
KNOW
YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!
DEAL WITH
YOUR CHRONIC
WORK DISORDER
THE
KANBAN
METHOD
APPLYING
MINDFULNESS
TO WORK
THE
USEFULNESS
OF
MINDFULNESS
A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM

21. MINDFULNESS
Pay attention in a
deliberate way
1
Pay attention to
what is happening
NOW
2
Observe without
judgement
3
AWAY OF PAYING ATTENTION
THAT CREATES SPACE FOR INSIGHT

22. MINDFULNESS
Pay attention in a
deliberate way
1
AWAY OF PAYING ATTENTION
THAT CREATES SPACE FOR INSIGHT
Making the choice to
step back and look at
the work.
Take on a project:
to define the system
of work.

23. MINDFULNESS
Pay attention to
what is happening
NOW
2
AWAY OF PAYING ATTENTION
THAT CREATES SPACE FOR INSIGHT
Observe what is
happening now, not
what happened last
year, not what
someone says should
be happening…
Pay attention to
patterns.

24. MINDFULNESS
Observe without
judgement
3
AWAY OF PAYING ATTENTION
THAT CREATES SPACE FOR INSIGHT
Start with an attitude
that your colleagues,
executives, customers,
are professionals who
act professionally.
In the absence of an
investigation, don’t let a
negative attitude cloud
your judgement.

25. RESIST A CULTURE OF BLAME

26. MINDFULNESS
Pay attention in a
deliberate way
1
Pay attention to
what is happening
NOW
2
Observe without
judgement
3
APPLY THESE ASWE DISCOVER OUR SYSTEM OF WORK
AWAY OF PAYING ATTENTION
THAT CREATES SPACE FOR INSIGHT

27. A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
MINDFULNESS
AT WORK
3 ELEMENTS
OF
MINDFULNESS
KNOW
YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!
DEAL WITH
YOUR CHRONIC
WORK DISORDER
THE
KANBAN
METHOD
THE KANBAN
METHOD
THE
USEFULNESS
OF
MINDFULNESS
A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
APPLYING
MINDFULNESS
TO WORK

28. THE
KANBAN
METHOD

29. WHAT IS KANBAN?
• Kanban is a management method
• Applies to knowledge work and service work – “hidden” work and high
variability
• With Kanban, you model the system of work and use this to manage it
• Every Kanban initiative is unique
KANBAN BRINGS FOCUS AND CLARITYTOYOURWORK

30. THE KANBAN METHOD:
CHANGE MANAGEMENT
PRINCIPLES
1) Start with what you do now
▪ Understanding current processes, as actually
practiced
▪ Respecting existing roles, responsibilities, and
job titles
2) Gain agreement to pursue
improvement through evolutionary change
3) Encourage acts of leadership at all levels

31. THE KANBAN METHOD:
GENERAL PRACTICES
1. Visualize
2. Limit work-in-progress
3. Manage flow
4. Make policies explicit
5. Implement feedback loops
6. Improve collaboratively, evolve experimentally
(using models & the scientific method)

32. BUILD A
MODEL OF
YOUR SYSTEM
OF WORK
VISUALIZATION
• What work is in progress?
• Are there patterns to the work?
• What activities are applied to complete it?

33. CREATE A VISUAL MODEL
A SINGLE
POINT OF TRUTH
Identifies
patterns, dynamics,
and interdependencies
of the work
Once you see the patterns, you can
refine this visual model and the way
you work

34. To Do DoneIn progress
VISUALIZATION CAN BE BASIC

35. VISUALIZATION CAN BE COMPLEX

36. BUILD A
MODEL OF
YOUR SYSTEM
OF WORK
WIP LIMITS
• How much work can your group handle at once, at any
stage of activity?

37. WORK IN PROGRESS LIMITS
• Focus and Clarity
– Fewer work items competing for attention
– Most important work items in progress
– Reduced “noise” = situational awareness
– Pull system – only work within capacity
Customer
Demand
Capability
to DeliverKANBAN
SYSTEM

38. Test
Ready
EVENNESS IN FLOW
Ideas
Dev
Ready
5
Ongoing
Development Testing
Done
3 35
UAT
Delivery
Ready
∞ ∞

39. Test
Ready
DISRUPTION IN FLOW
Ideas
Dev
Ready
5
Ongoing
Development Testing
Done
3 35
UAT
Delivery
Ready
∞∞ ∞

40. BUILD A
MODEL OF
YOUR SYSTEM
OF WORK
EXPLICIT POLICIES
• What rules are applied to the work?
• Is there work that is more, or less, important?
• Do different rules apply to different types of work?
• Do rules change throughout the year?

41. CLASS OF SERVICE
IS A SET OF POLICIES
APPLIED TO A CATEGORY
•By work item type, customer,
size….
Policies include:
•WIP limits
•SLA
•Pull criteria
•Queuing

42. • Expedite
– Swarm to guide through workflow
– WIP limit of 1
• Tax Updates
– Fixed delivery date
– with 12 days advance notice
• Change Requests
– Typically FIFO queued
– SLA 30 days
– 98% on-time guarantee
• Text & Graphic Changes
– SLA 20 days
– 85% on-time guarantee
CLASS OF SERVICE
IS A SET OF
POLICIES APPLIED
TO A CATEGORY

43. CAPACITY ALLOCATION POLICY
The scheme above shows Capacity Allocation implemented
with swim lanes.The system-levelWIP is split and allocated to
different categories.
20
Selected
Category A
Category B
Category C
System-level WIP
10
5
5
“We will spend
half of our
capacity for
category A, and
25% for categories
B and C.”
Customer
Demand
Capability
to Deliver
KANBAN
SYSTEM

44. BUILD A
MODEL OF
YOUR SYSTEM
OF WORK
MEASURE AND
MANAGE FLOW
• How long does it take for a single work item to travel
through the system? (not how long should it take)
• Does that number vary by the type of work? By the
customer? By the time of year? By the work item size?

45. FLOW
•Movement of the work
through the system
…through all activities, not
handoffs
•Limits constrain the flow –
consistent number of items
in the system
•Disruptions in flow might be
hidden!

46. FLOW
is the key to
predictability
FLOW
Flow = predictability. What does your Flow look like?
OPTIMAL FLOW
✓ Good visibility
✓ Clear policies
✓ Low traffic (WIP)
✓ Low variability
✓ Risk mitigation

47. FLOW
Flow = predictability. What does your Flow look like?
POOR FLOW EFFICIENCY
❑ Task switching
❑ Dependencies
❑ Interruptions
❑ Quality issues
❑ Poor visibility
❑ Bottlenecks
❑ Confusion or disagreement
❑ Internal and external variability

48. Test
Ready
FLOW EFFICIENCY
Waiting Waiting WaitingWorking
Ideas
Dev
Ready
5
Ongoing
Development Testing
Done
3 35
UAT
Delivery
Ready
∞ ∞
Working WaitingWorking
Lead Time
Work Time
Flow efficiency % = * 100%
”Work in Progress”
can often be stalled
waiting for
approvals, quality
issues, interruptions,
etc. This can result
in hidden delay that
slows the entire
system.

49. BUILD A
MODEL OF
YOUR SYSTEM
OF WORK
FEEDBACK LOOPS
• Are we delivering according to customer expectations?
• What checkpoints do we have to know if we are still on
track?
• Does our board have enough detail to know if there is a
bottleneck or other issue?

50. FEEDBACK LOOPS
KANBAN BOARD
• the system of work
METRICS
• performance
COMMUNICATION
• meetings, surveys
Are we meeting
customer needs? Have
those needs changed?
What is our actual
performance through
the system?
What is the status of
work in flight now?
What is coming up
soon for delivery?

51. ALIGNMENT THROUGH COMMUNICATION
Kanban Cadences, Lean Kanban University

52. RUSSELL ACKOFF
“The system is not the sum
of the behavior of its parts,
it is the product of their
interactions”
A heart and a lung can each be perfect,
but if they do not interact, they are
useless.

53. BUILD A
MODEL OF
YOUR SYSTEM
OF WORK
IMPROVE
COLLABORATIVELY,
EVOLVE
EXPERIMENTALLY
Using models and the Scientific Method

54. WHAT IS THE
FIRST STEP
OF THE
SCIENTIFIC
METHOD?
OBSERVE THE
CURRENT STATE

55. Evolving
Process
Initial
Process
Future
process
is
emergent
Evaluate
Fitness
Evaluate
Fitness
Evaluate
Fitness
Evaluate
Fitness
Evaluate
Fitness
EVOLUTIONARY CHANGE
Roll back
Roll
forward

56. A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
MINDFULNESS
AT WORK
3 ELEMENTS
OF
MINDFULNESS
KNOW
YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!
DEAL WITH
YOUR CHRONIC
WORK DISORDER
THE
KANBAN
METHOD
KNOW YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!
THE
USEFULNESS
OF
MINDFULNESS
A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
APPLYING
MINDFULNESS
TO WORK THE
KANBAN
METHOD

57. DoneNext
5 ∞
Ongoing
Development Testing
Done Ongoing Done
3 3
Deploy
Work Items
Who is
working on
what?
How
work
exits the
system
How work FLOWS through the system
How work
enters the
system
Explicit
rules for
how to
handle the
work
The activities
applied to the
work
(workflow)
A KANBAN SYSTEM MODELS THE SYSTEM OF WORK

58. PHASE 1: SEEING YOUR WORK AS
A SYSTEM - KNOW YOUR HEALTH
• avoid the culture of blame and shame
• focus on the interaction between the parts
• realize that problems are symptoms

59. PHASE 2: CREATING A CULTURE OF
IMPROVEMENT – GET HEALTHIER
• optimize the interactions between the parts of
the system
• encourage acts of leadership at all levels
• run deliberate experiments on improvement
initiatives

60. PHASE 3: MANAGING THROUGH
AWARENESS – MONITOR WELLNESS
• the system changes all the time!
• feedback loops: board, metrics, meetings
• remember customers and dependencies are
part of the system

61. FEEDBACK LOOPS
KANBAN BOARD
• the system of work
METRICS
• performance
COMMUNICATION
• meetings, surveys
Are we meeting
customer needs? Have
those needs changed?
What is our actual
performance through
the system?
What is the status of
work in flight now?
What is coming up
soon for delivery?

62. A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
MINDFULNESS
AT WORK
3 ELEMENTS
OF
MINDFULNESS
KNOW
YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!
DEAL WITH
YOUR CHRONIC
WORK DISORDER
THE
KANBAN
METHOD
DEAL WITH YOUR
CHRONIC WORK
DISORDER
THE
USEFULNESS
OF
MINDFULNESS
A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
APPLYING
MINDFULNESS
TO WORK THE
KANBAN
METHOD
KNOW
YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!

63. Symptom:
You’re Late
Now you have the
information to
make informed
decisions and take
real action

64. SEE YOUR WORK AS A SYSTEM

65. SEE YOUR WORK AS A SYSTEM
WORKFLOW ACTIVITIES
CUSTOMER REQUESTS (DEMAND)
SPEED OFVALIDATION
STATUS
ALERTS
WORK IN PROGRESS
Customer
Demand
Capability
to Deliver
SPEED OF DELIVERY
CAPACITY LIMITS

66. Kanban System
Shape Demand Optimize Flow
STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
Add Capacity
Allocation
policies
Motivate
change
through
visibility of
explicit work
types
Eliminate root causes of failure
demand, disruptive demand, and
speculative demand
Use WIP
Limits, Flow
Efficiency,
Focus on
disruptions and
sources of delay

67. “Mindfulness is the practice of
paying attention
in a way
that creates space for insight.”
- Sharon Salzberg,
teacher and author on Buddhist
insight and meditation
APPLY FOCUS AND CLARITY TO YOUR WORK

68. “PAYING ATTENTION IN A WAY THAT
CREATES SPACE FOR INSIGHT”

69. KANBAN IS MINDFULNESS APPLIED TO WORK
“Mindfulness has many synonyms. You could call it
awareness, attention, focus, presence,
or vigilance.
The opposite, then, is not just mindlessness,
but also distractedness,
inattention,
and lack of engagement.”- Melanie Pinola,
writer for LifeHacker

70. A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
MINDFULNESS
AT WORK
3 ELEMENTS
OF
MINDFULNESS
KNOW
YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!
DEAL WITH
YOUR CHRONIC
WORK DISORDER
THE
KANBAN
METHOD
THANK YOU!
THE
USEFULNESS
OF
MINDFULNESS
A CHRONIC
SYMPTOM
APPLYING
MINDFULNESS
TO WORK THE
KANBAN
METHOD
KNOW
YOUR
SYSTEM OF
WORK!
DEAL WITH
YOUR CHRONIC
WORK DISORDER

71. Resources
• Lean Kanban http://www.leankanban.com
• Lean Kanban University certified Kanban classes
• Materials like Essential Upstream Kanban ebook
• Ready Option http://www.readyoption.com

72. LKNA19.leankanban.com

73. LeanKanbanIndia.com

74. THANK YOU!
Janice Linden-Reed
• Janice@readyoption.com
• www.linkedin.com/in/janicelr