Scrum and Kanban boards perform similar functions for project managers.
Yet, they have clear differences worth knowing about.
What are their respective characteristics, and how can I differentiate one from the other?
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This article will answer these questions.
Read on as we explore Scrum and Kanban boards and their distinctness.
What is a Scrub Board?
A scrum board has a clear structure that fosters effective communication, transparent workflow, and efficient task management.
Many organizations use scrum boards to manage their workflow effectively.
Pros and Cons of Scrum boards
Scrum Boards Pros
1.
It fosters collaboration
The Scrum board is a collaborative tool that helps employees stay on track with project goals.
Everyone can view the board to see their allocated work and those assigned to other team members.
It gives a complete picture of how everyones tasks fit into the workflow.
It creates clarity across the organization and encourages employees to do their best.
Scrum Boards Cons
1.
It requires extensive training
Many people aren’t used to working within a Scrum-based setting.
Hence, your team might need extensive training to work under this framework.
It can be challenging to scale
Applying the Scrum framework to large projects is often challenging.
Too many tasks can cause instability and slow things down.
Communication is another problem for massive Scrum projects, especially for team members across different time zones.
However, this issue can be mitigated by minimizing time zone differences when hiring employees.
What is a Kanban Board?
A Kanban board is another tool that helps teams visualize and manage their workflow.
Unlike a Scrum board, work items on Kanban bounds arent strictly time-bound.
In this model, team members dont work in Sprints.
Instead, the workflow is continuous, and the only time limits are business deadlines.
Pros and Cons of Kanban boards
Kanban Boards Pros
1.
However, these columns can be customized for your organizational workflow.
you’re able to also have more than three columns on your Kanban board.
This flexibility makes it easier for organizations to track and fulfill project objectives.
This simplicity helps both full-time employees and contractors who need to understand the workflow during their temporary attachment.
Kanban Boards Cons
1.
Complexity limitations
Using Kanban boards for massive, complex projects can be challenging.
A massive project with too many tasks can make a Kanban board difficult to understand.
Scrum boards also have this limitation.
However, project managers can mitigate this issue by simplifying the workflow as much as possible.
Core differences between Scrum and Kanban boards
1.
Ownership
A scrum board usually has one owner: a Scrum team chaired by a leader or Scrum Master.
The Scrum team can include employees from different departments working on a single project.
A single team can own the board, but that isnt always the case.
Instead, the team must give permission before the workflow gets tweaked.
Understandably, the Scrum framework is team-based, and any slight change can throw a team off base.
A project owner must first dialogue with the team before changing items on the board.
In contrast, a Kanban board is easier to change.
The project owner/manager can change several items without disrupting the workflow.
Prioritization
Prioritization is essential in Scrum boards.
Tasks should be sorted and prioritized for the current sprint.
This prioritization helps each team member know what to do and how fast they should do it.
However, prioritization isnt necessary for Kanban boards.
Origin
Its worth noting where the Scrum and Kanban frameworks emerged from.
The Scrum collaboration framework was built primarily for software development.
Software is a fast-moving industry wherecreative destructionis encouraged, so the Sprint-heavy Scrum model fits perfectly.
Kanban boards were created for lean manufacturing and pioneered by an engineer at the Japanese automaker Toyota.
This model is best suited for manufacturing companies that deliver products continuously, such as automakers or smartphone manufacturers.
Software companies can also use Kanban to manage their projects effectively.
However, Kanban boards do not have defined roles.
you could assign whatever roles you decide to different employees, but there is no rigid rule.
Reports
Scrum teams can use reports to review project performance, with velocity as the primary metric to monitor.
In contrast, no specific reports are described for monitoring Kanban-based projects.
It works well with projects that require frequent changes and adaptation to feedback.
Suppose you run a firm contracted to build an identity management system for a state government.
This system will require constant testing and feedback from end users.
In Kanban, when one objective is completed, the team takes up another objective.
This model is your best choice if the work is routine and doesn’t require frequent stakeholder engagement.
It merges Scrum’s prioritization, rapid iteration, and Sprints with Kanbans intuitive workflow visualization and continuous improvement.
Scrumban was initially developed to help organizations transition from Scrum to Kanban or vice versa.
However, many organizations found this combined framework beneficial and stuck to it.
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