Kanban
Kanban is a visual workflow management method that tracks work items as cards moving through columns representing stages of progress, using work-in-progress limits to expose bottlenecks and improve flow.
Definition
Kanban is a visual workflow management method that tracks work items as cards moving through columns representing stages of progress, using work-in-progress limits to expose bottlenecks and improve flow.
Overview
Kanban originated in Toyota's manufacturing system, where physical cards signaled when a workstation needed more materials, pulling work through the process rather than pushing it based on a fixed schedule. Software teams adapted this into a board — physical or digital — with columns like "To Do," "In Progress," and "Done," where each work item is a card that moves left to right as it advances. The key mechanism that distinguishes Kanban from a simple task board is the work-in-progress (WIP) limit: each column caps how many cards can sit in it at once. When a column hits its limit, no new work can enter until something moves out, which forces the team to finish work before starting more and quickly surfaces bottlenecks — a column that's perpetually full reveals exactly where flow is breaking down. Unlike Scrum, Kanban has no fixed iterations, sprint planning, or prescribed roles; work is pulled continuously as capacity allows, which makes it well suited to support queues, maintenance work, and other continuous-flow environments where fixed-length sprints add overhead without benefit. Many teams blend the two, using a Kanban board to visualize a product backlog inside an otherwise Scrum-based process. It is often mentioned alongside Agile Methodology in this space.
Key Concepts
- Visual board with columns representing distinct stages of work
- Work-in-progress (WIP) limits that cap items per column and expose bottlenecks
- Pull-based system — new work starts only when capacity frees up
- No fixed iterations or prescribed roles, unlike Scrum
- Continuous delivery rather than batched, sprint-based releases
- Cycle time and lead time metrics used to measure and improve flow
- Easily combined with other agile frameworks for backlog visualization
Use Cases
Frequently Asked Questions
From the Blog
Build a Kanban Board With React
Build a Kanban board in React with columns, draggable cards, and drag-and-drop between lists. Learn component structure, state lifting, and persistence for a real productivity app.
Read More ProgrammingWhat Is Agile? A Beginner's Guide
Agile is a software development approach that breaks work into short, iterative cycles with continuous feedback, instead of planning an entire project upfront. This guide explains Agile's principles, Scrum and Kanban, and how teams apply them daily.
Read More