KanBo as a Kanban Tool for Work Coordination in Large Organizations

When you put Enterprise Kanban up against conventional enterprise workflows and systems, you can observe right away that Kanban brings a more comprehensive and organized structure for greater operational efficiency (Kanban definition from Wikipedia is here). 

It encourages an adaptive, versatile, and learning-oriented approach to complicated value stream and project management in large organizations. When relying on Kanban Boards, independent cross-functional teams can work, adapt, improve, and learn over time becoming a high-impact asset for the company.

Teams using Kanban Boards are in a much better position to understand their unique roles and the ways in which they interact with and impact the rest of the enterprise. They know how to add value to the whole enterprise. Here’s what Enterprise Kanban can help you accomplish.

1. It is a versatile and impactful approach for large matrix organizations that enables operations to be restructured and organized in a dynamic way by linking both processes and products to solve complex business challenges.
2. It allows management to focus on the processes and create customer value through operational excellence.
3. It enables teams to collaborate in real-time to reduce project complexity and dependencies while enhancing work efficiency.
4. It equips agile teams and large organizations with twenty-first-century management tools that help them grow, scale, and evolve.
5. It can become a part of agile approaches in an enterprise and provide organizations with the best way to understand how to do business in a fast-paced market.

KanBo – The Most Efficient Project Manager

Relying on KanBo software, large organizations can easily deploy Enterprise Kanban and transform complex projects into well-organized and adaptive processes.

Providing agile teams with a dedicated information source, KanBo enables team members along with knowledge workers to progress quickly through efficient two-way communication. Enterprise Kanban boards allow team members to be aware of each other’s and overall progress by displaying the most relevant and updated information for every ongoing project. This doesn’t only simplify strategic planning but empowers members in each Kanban team to identify where work is enabling them to completely eliminate the delay between starting a job and taking it to completion.

KanBo as an Enterprise Kanban

Project visibility	→	Views in KanBo Board
Strategic planning	→	KanBo Board
Work coordination	→	KanBo Board
Operations	→	KanBo Board
Tasks	→	KanBo Cards
Teammates	→	KanBo Members

Good Practices for Enterprise Kanban

• Highly visible scope of work/progress
• Manage the flow of work in a seamless manner
• Clearly defined and visible process policies
• Communication within the context of work
• Regular feedback structure
• Continuous improvement for enhanced efficiency
• Asynchronous work

Using KanBo Software to Scale-up Kanban to Enterprise Kanban

• Define purpose
• Define the value stream
• Create independent cross-functional teams
• Create project boards and a Board of boards. 3 or more Kanban tier structure (Kanban flight levels)
• Strategic projects level
• Coordination Board level
• Daily work operations
• Define links and dependencies between boards and tasks
• Measure and analyze as more as possible

An Example of Enterprise Kanban

Klaus Leopold created Kanban Flight Level which serves as an effective example and use-cases of Enterprise Kanban (more information about Klaus Leopold and Flight Levels is here). According to him, the Flight Level model is a structured thought process that can be applied to any large organization. The simplicity and effectiveness of this approach lie in its compatibility at all levels with the deployment of existing methods. It isn’t necessarily a new or another method for project management. Flight Levels Model provides a great tool for reflection within the enterprise. It enables team members to ask questions such as what can we leverage within the organization to enhance business agility and achieve the desired direction in the market. Here is a brief guide.

Define Purpose

• Define the primary purpose of your product or service along with key metrics.
• Identify key milestones that’ll enable you to scale and ensure every relevant team member is aware of the critical milestones.
• Go to Board General Info in KanBo Board and add Responsible for the project, start-end date, purpose with clear processes and key metrics.

Define Value Stream

• Define process steps using KanBo List. You can use standard Kanban flow that involves To Do, Doing, Done, or create your own KanBo Flow.
• Create KanBo Card to define procedural steps. If there’s more complexity in procedural steps than necessary, add KanBo Card relations (Parent, Child, Previous, Next).

Create Independent Cross-Functional Teams

• Gather talent and engage employees across the entire organization.
• Make strategies and discuss priorities of the project to work on along with the tasks and links in a central hub.
• Add relevant individuals to KanBo as members and then add them to their specific project or projects.
• Add portfolios for their profiles and details about their skills that make them fit for their roles.

Create project Boards and Board of Boards

• 3 or more Kanban tier structure (Kanban Flight Levels)
• Define key projects you want to work on.
• Participate and work with different teams to have a deeper understanding and learn new approaches.
• Ensure maintenance of high-priority tasks.
• To accomplish this seamlessly, use KanBo Board, Board Groups, and KanBo Board Collection.
• When you are working on a project(s), add each of them to KanBo as a KanBo Card.
• If there’s more complexity in procedural steps than necessary, add KanBo Card relations (Parent, Child, Previous, Next).

Strategic Projects Level

• This is the first and the top-tier level of an Enterprise Kanban team that involves the following roles: Project Lead
• Project Manager
• Technical Lead
• Project Coordination Lead

Coordination Board level

• Create project groups and add cross-functional team members to work on each project.
• Use KanBo Card to create key dependencies between the project’s tasks, and connections to other projects as well as processes.

Daily Work Operations

• Start working from this point to remove hurdles and bottlenecks and plan work paths for the project.
• Organize tasks according to their level of complexity.
• Work through a Kanban card for each level.

Define Links and Dependencies between Boards and Tasks

• Use KanBo dependencies (Parent, Child, Previous, Next) to develop an understanding of what should be done for each project
• Link up the boards that constitute the complex task.
• Add new dependencies to existing tasks if necessary.

Measure and Analyze As Much As Possible

• Measure key indicators, milestones, and goals of each project.
• Use KanBo analytics module for project control and to report key indicators.

Conclusion

Kanban is a contemporary, proven, and effective way to manage your agile teams for your organization. You can improve productivity, save time, and achieve success regardless of the industry you are operating in. Let the next level of Enterprise Kanban develop your business so you can work faster, smarter, and better to deliver enhanced value. With KanBo software and training, your cross-functional and independent team can become an essential part of the fabric of the organization implementing Enterprise Kanban for operational and financial efficiencies.