What is a WIP limit and why is it important?

A WIP (Work in Progress) limit is the maximum number of items allowed in a workflow stage at any given time. WIP limits are important because they prevent overloading team members, reduce context switching, force the team to finish work before starting new work, and make bottlenecks visible (if a column is constantly at its WIP limit, it is a constraint).

When should you use Kanban instead of Scrum?

Kanban is well-suited for continuous flow work (support, maintenance, operations), teams that need to respond to ad-hoc requests, situations where sprint commitments are difficult to maintain, teams transitioning to Agile (Kanban is less prescriptive), and work with highly variable item sizes. Scrum works better for product development with clear sprint goals and stable teams.

What is cycle time and how do you improve it?

Cycle time is the time from when work starts to when it is completed. To improve cycle time: reduce WIP limits (less work in progress means faster completion), identify and resolve bottlenecks, reduce wait times between stages, break work into smaller items, and improve handoff processes between team members or stages.

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Kanban

Also known as:kanban methodpull systemvisual workflow

A visual workflow management method that uses boards and cards to visualise work, limit work in progress, and maximise flow efficiency through continuous delivery.

In-Depth Explanation

Kanban (Japanese for "visual signal" or "card") is a method for managing and improving work across various systems. It visualises work, limits work in progress (WIP), and focuses on maximising the flow of value delivery.

Kanban principles:

Start with what you do now: Do not prescribe a specific process
Agree to pursue incremental, evolutionary change: Improve gradually
Respect the current process, roles, and responsibilities: Do not overhaul everything
Encourage acts of leadership at every level: Everyone can drive improvement

Kanban practices:

Visualise the workflow: Map work stages on a board (e.g., To Do → In Progress → Review → Done)
Limit Work in Progress (WIP): Set maximum items per column to prevent overload
Manage flow: Monitor and optimise the movement of items through the system
Make policies explicit: Document and display team agreements about how work flows
Implement feedback loops: Regular review points (daily standup, replenishment, delivery planning)
Improve collaboratively, evolve experimentally: Use data to drive process improvements

Kanban metrics:

Lead time: Total time from request to delivery
Cycle time: Time from work starting to completion
Throughput: Number of items completed per time period
WIP age: How long items have been in progress
Cumulative flow diagram (CFD): Visual showing work in each state over time

Kanban vs Scrum:

Kanban is flow-based (continuous); Scrum is sprint-based (time-boxed)
Kanban has no prescribed roles; Scrum defines roles (PO, SM, Dev Team)
Kanban limits WIP per column; Scrum limits WIP per sprint
Kanban allows priority changes at any time; Scrum protects the sprint commitment
Both are Agile; they can be combined (Scrumban)

Business Context

Kanban improves delivery efficiency by making workflow visible, reducing multitasking overhead, and providing data-driven insights for continuous process improvement.

How Clever Ops Uses This

Clever Ops uses Kanban practices to manage operational work and support services for Australian clients. We implement Kanban boards, WIP limits, and flow metrics that provide visibility and drive efficiency improvements in both technology delivery and business operations.

Example Use Case

"A support team implements a Kanban board with WIP limits of 3 items per person, reducing context switching and improving average resolution time from 5 days to 3 days."