Kanban vs. Scrum: Why This Argument is Futile
Brian "Ponch" Rivera
Co-creator of The Flow System? | No Way Out Podcast Co-Host | AGLX NA MD
Kanban is a Group Tool or Group Methodology.
Scrum is a Team Framework.
Confused about the difference? It all has to do with the definition of a team. The Agile community loves to talk about teamwork and teams but does not share a common definition of a team. Is this a problem? It is if you are trying to coach a group of people to function as a team when their work/tasks have a low level of interdependency.
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Team
A distinguishable set of two or more people who interact dynamically, interdependently, and adaptively toward a common and valued goal/ objective/ mission [1].
Kanban
Kanban is a great group methodology that allows you to start where you are and focus on flow. However, Kanban is not time-boxed like a sprint in Scrum. Why does this matter? Look at the second part of the above definition of a team: “…shared and valued goals/objective/mission” imply time. Think back to SMART goals (by-the-way I hate SMART goals). Can you have a goal to lose 10 lbs without a time-box? You can in Kanban. I’m on that diet now and I have not lost a pound.
Video from Scrum Gathering Munich
Scrum
Scrum is a great team framework that exists in its entirety and is a container for other practices, techniques, and methodologies. You can use elements of Kanban in Scrum without renaming Scrum as long as Scrum exists in its entirety (three roles, five events, three artifacts).
Scrum is ideal for a set of two or more people who work interdependently toward a common goal. But hold on a minute, we all know that there are three roles in Scrum. So does a two-person Scrum team violate the definition of Scrum?
But there’s more…
According to research conducted by R. Wageman, placing a team framework on people whose work or tasks have a low-level of interdependency is a bad idea [2]. There is danger in thinking a pull system designed for the simple domain can be applied as a framework for teams who work in the complicated, complex and chaotic domains.
Bottom line
Kanban is a great group methodology and Scrum is a great team framework. They are not perfect, they have flaws, but knowing where to use them is as simple as understanding what a team is and what a team is not.
Brian “Ponch” Rivera is a recovering naval aviator, co-founder of AGLX Consulting, LLC, and co-creator of High-Performance Teaming? – an evidence-based, human systems solution to rapidly build and develop networks of high-performing teams. Contact Brian at [email protected].
References
[1] Salas, Eduardo; Stephen M. Fiore; Letsky, Michael P. (2013-06-17). Theories of Team Cognition: Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives (Applied Psychology Series) (Kindle Locations 7794-7796). Taylor and Francis. Kindle Edition.
[2] “But if managers inadvertently create hybrid groups by importing group processes into a high-performing system with individual tasks and reward systems, they may find that what they have actually have brought in is a Trojan Horse.” Wageman, R. (1995). Interdependence and
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4 年Both Scrum and Kanban belongs to the same methodology i.e. Agile. Though both these terms have subtle differences between them, the principles are the same, meaning both will help to build better products and services. Also, there is this one thing that they have in common, that is, both are known as pull systems. This pull system makes sure that the work gets from the product backlog to customers in the shortest period time. But both the scrum and the Kanban implement the pull system in two different ways. CSM Certification practice tests: https://www.takethiscourse.net/csm-exam/
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7 年Individuals and interactions over processes and tools. the details of Scrum and Kanban or any other approach are in the process/tool space. They are self imposed rules that are available so teams can have a better chance of gaining the benefits of the Agile mindset. Do not be fooled into thinking the benefits come directly from the rules./ Following the rules blindly will make yo a Zealot. Use Scrum or kanban or variants of them within your organisational context with ongoing adaptation to improve your people and your delivery. Stop getting hung up on the rules.
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7 年The argument is also futile for additional reasons. Kanban and Scrum both need supplementation - or in other words are incomplete; Scrum recognises that, as it is a framework. As said, most successful Scrum teams I have seen actually incorporate certain Kanban practices - especially limiting WIP. We could also call them Lean principles. While Scrum has some Lean foundation, -e.g. limiting hand-off- , it easily can benefit more from Lean and for SW, Lean SW Development. Sametime, Kanban benefits from cross-functionality, T-shaping (not mentioned in Scrum, but a Scrum pattern), retrospectives, daily Xs (Scrum, standup, Kanban, inspect and adapt, synch) and a coach. So kanban exor Scrum is a futile dicussion. It is kanban + Scrum + XP (for sw) + Org Change +...+...+..... And part of those plusses is high performance teams.
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7 年Bravo Dimitar, well explained.
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7 年The sprint in Scrum serves two purposes: 1) Limit work in progress (WIP) using the "sprint backlog". This way of doing it is called CONWIP. 2) Put stress on the team using time as constraint. Research shows constraints foster innovation. Many people know that intuitively and even have it in proverbs. Kanban method has six practices. One is "Limit WIP". As we showed above that is a Scrum practice too. Difference is that in Scrum the only one way to limit WIP is CONWIP while in Kanban method multiple ways are acceptable - kanban system, CONWIP, DBR, DBR+CONWIP.