Daniel Lagerwaard 2023003268 MGT719 Discussion Activity 2 B

The chosen project

The chosen Project to manage is a bespoke software for a specific customer. For the sake of this
Deliverable the software is well-established and mature. The choice for which framework is the most
suitable, either Scrum or Kanban, will be discussed in the text that follows.

Characteristics of Kanban

Kanban finds its origins in manufacturing and was developed by Toyota to improve manufacturing
efficiency, cutting back on waste (Kanban Tool, 2022).

A very apt definition of Kanban as given by Kanbanize (2023) states that “Kanban is a Lean workflow
management method for defining, managing, and improving services that deliver knowledge work. It
helps you visualize work, maximize efficiency, and improve continuously.” and it is optimally geared
to meet customer demand just in time rather than pushing goods to the market (Macwan, 2023). It
is particularly well suited for providing the optimum response to dynamic demands and
unpredictable work requirements. By virtue that kanban is a pull system (Kissflow Inc, 2022),
replacing completed work with new work to be done it enhances the workflow and allows for better,
quicker dealing with higher priority work whilst getting the best result with the resources available.

One of its main features is the visual representation of the work on, what is called, Kanban (kan =
sign, ban = board). Past, present and upcoming work is visualised and can easily be updated to show
what work is in progress or has been done as well identifying possible bottlenecks.

Characteristics of Scrum

Scrum had originally been conceived withing product development with a focus on teamwork as
driving force. It was not long before the principles were translated into use as project management
framework for software development.

Scrum can be defined as a framework for project management that emphasizes teamwork,
accountability and iterative progress toward a well-defined goal (Lutkevich, 2021). The technique
helps teams to deliver valued products iteratively and incrementally, while continually inspecting
and adapting the process. All the while the focus is on the empirical process and the use of regular,
typically short meetings in order to deliver the best value to the customer (Sliger, 2011).

The choice

Many are the similarities between the two techniques and so it seems no explicitly wrong choice can
be made, but a rationale can be applied as suggested by Kashyap (2022) which states:

 Choose Kanban if you’re looking for project flexibility

 Choose Scrum if you’re up for continuous devotion to projects
 Go for Kanban if you prefer visualization of workflow through metrics
 Scrum is recommended in case of intense human collaboration and rapid feedback

Provided that the software in our scenario is an established, stable software the preference would
be given for the more steady-paced update cycle with set intervals of Scrum. This would allow for a
Daniel Lagerwaard 2023003268 MGT719 Discussion Activity 2 B

more stable development process and greater focus on human collaboration versus the more ad hoc
style of Kanban and provides easier planning of implementation.

References:

 Kissflow Inc., (2022). What is Kanban Methodology | Introduction to Kanban Framework.

Kissflow Inc., https://kissflow.com/project/agile/kanban-methodology/
 Kanban Tool. (2022, August 16). History of Kanban.
https://kanbantool.com/kanban-guide/kanban-history
 Lutkevich, B. (2021). Scrum. Software Quality.
https://www.techtarget.com/searchsoftwarequality/definition/Scrum
 Macwan, V. (2023). What is KANBAN: Does It Guarantee Efficiency in 2023? [Updated].
Henry Harvin Blog. https://www.henryharvin.com/blog/what-is-kanban-does-it-guarantee-
efficiency-in-2020/
 What Is Kanban? Explained in 10 Minutes | Kanbanize. (n.d.). Kanban Software for Agile
Project Management. https://kanbanize.com/kanban-resources/getting-started/what-is-
kanban
 Sliger, M. (2011). Agile project management with Scrum. Paper presented at PMI® Global
Congress 2011—North America, Dallas, TX. Newtown Square, PA: Project Management
Institute.