While most agile learners are familiar with Scrum and Kanban, Scrumban (a combination of the two) is rarely known. The middle manager tries to bring the best of both worlds together. What aspects of these two methods are taken into account? How do they cooperate? I will be walking you through all of these aspects in this blog, so for starters let’s look at where it all started!
It’s hard to talk about the history of Scrumban without mentioning how Scrum and Kanban relate to Agile. Two overarching Scrumban structures have been introduced to the management of the development team to increase efficiency and create value.
Jeff Sutherland and Ken Schwaber developed Scrum in 1995 to manage small and efficient teams. The Agile Manifesto, published in 2001, explains the four values and twelve principles that all agile applications must adhere to. As a result, there has been an increase in teams using Scrum as their primary Agile methodology.
Then, in 2004, David J. Anderson advocated applying Kanban principles to software development projects. This technique has proven helpful in a production environment, and now the same concept is applied to software distribution. Kanban provides a visible task board to manage processes, identify bottlenecks, and maintain business continuity.
The teams that used Scrum were more interested in Kanban, which allowed for fewer constraints and more freedom, and then the Scrumban method was discovered for the first time. It has been suggested that teams moving from Scrum to Kanban need a transformative approach. It was created to meet this need.
Scrumban aimed to bridge the gap between the two but soon discovered that it could operate independently as an agile framework. This provides a good compromise between Scrum and Kanban, so it is still a viable option for agile practitioners.
What is Scrumban?
Scrumban is a strategy that combines an iterative Scrum framework with a focus on ongoing Kanban work. To understand how Scrumban works, let’s start by understanding its ancestors, Scrum and Kanban. These two structures are compared with each other but are entirely different in other systems.
Scrum is an agile method that divides the project into sprints that last one to four weeks. The team plans, leads and reviews these parts of the work while holding well-planned meetings to ensure continued progress.
On the other hand, Kanban is like a strategy in which only what is needed at a given point in time is provided, and fewer employees are paid attention to at a given end in time. The team organizes and evaluates work based on needs, not titles or deadlines.
How do Scrum and Kanban collaborate?
How do these two cooperate? Scrumban uses Scrum iterations and meeting structures to visualize the work on the Kanban board. These two structures must be coherent and flexible.
Scrum, Kanban, and Scrumban were designed from the ground up to improve software delivery. However, similar structures have proven their value in many industries requiring a structured but transparent approach.
How do Scrumban projects run?
Combining these two most famous quick methods is easy to understand but can be challenging to practice. To make sure everything is clear, let’s look at the roles, tools, and processes used in the Scrumban project. This will tell you about all the ingredients.
The Roles of Scrumban
When you come from Scrum, you can expect specific roles. At this stage, the professional kanban method was replaced. Although the team can retain their current Scrum responsibilities, it does not require a Product Owner or a Scrum Master.
On the other hand, the Scrumban team should be experts who can independently select and carry out outstanding tasks. If your team structure works well, you don’t need to change it. Briefly describe your team’s responsibilities and make sure they can work independently to achieve the ultimate goal.
Tools used by Scrumban
Scrumban uses a Scrumban table with WIP restrictions, task maps, and execution times to organize and manage processes. All of them are designed to visualize and control the process to maximize its efficiency.
Processes used in Scrumban Project
Scrumban Board
First, let’s see what a Scrumban table is. The primary purpose of this kanban-based framework is to display the entire workflow. From left to right, the life cycle of each project is tracked from initial planning to completion.
Each Scrumban board consists of three main elements, and the team can modify these elements to suit their needs.
Backlog
To begin, the Backlog lists all of the planned tasks in order of importance. This might be a single column or a collection of columns used to segregate and prioritize operations. In this, the team members pull tasks from this section when they become available in the WIP.
Work in Progress
In contrast, the WIP section illustrates how tasks progress through the process steps. This is usually the most extended section, with as many columns needed to describe the whole operation. The team’s goal is to build a board that depicts the entire lifecycle of each activity, rather than simply a simple one making it easier to monitor progress. A WIP limit governs the progress section, ensuring that each team member is only working on one project at a time.
Done
The last part, “Done”, contains all completed project tasks. It provides easy access to information and visualization of the workloads performed during the project. This is an example of a general Scrumban Board.
Scrumban WIP Limits
Scrumban also uses Work In Progress (WIP) to limit the number of tasks a team can drag and drop onto the schedule to ensure a stable workflow. This varies from team to team, but typically there is one task per team member.
This method of work item constraint ensures that each project is completed before moving on to the next. This will allow the group to identify and solve problems faster. It also provides a stable workflow and improves the accuracy of project estimation.
Scrumban Tasks
Although the Scrumban method does not define a task format, it works best when all tasks are the same size. Because the framework tracks lead times and cycles, orders of comparable size can better use these metrics. This allows the team to calculate speed and predict when new features and projects will be completed.
Scrumban Metrics Lead & Time
The last two tools in the Scrumban structure are run time and cycle time. It uses Kanban analysis to determine the average time required for team members to complete each task. The deadline is set when the job is added to the queue. The time it takes team members to bring their duties to the execution zone is called the cycle time.
This information helps evaluate whether your team is using tasks of a similar size. A sudden increase in processing time and processing time may indicate a problem or bottleneck that needs to be addressed and provides real-time design updates.
The Practices of Scrumban
Now that you understand the roles and tools let’s see how to start a Scrumban project. The work is divided into 1 to 4-week iterations, which are evaluated and reviewed over time. However, there is no daily meeting, and all plans are completed as needed.
Scrumban Iterations and Scrumban Meetings
Although the recommended repetition period is 1 to 4 weeks, most Scrumban teams try to shorten the repetition period to two weeks. This can achieve faster response time and less hassle. Just like Scrum, when you start an iteration, you must end it. However, the team does not have to prepare work for each iteration; instead, tasks are extracted from the Backlog based on priority. Scrumban iterations are also included in the Scrumban repetitions listed below.
Any of the following three situations can occur in any cycle. One only occurs when the scheduling trigger is triggered, so it may not happen in many consecutive cycles.
Scrumban Planning
Scrumban uses demand-based planning. This means that you have configured a schedule trigger to track how much work is still in the queue. If the number of tasks falls below a certain level, a planning meeting is held, and the new functions are added to the to-do list.
Moreover, teams have multiple options for scheduling meetings. You can set the plan trigger to fire after each iteration or less, depending on the group’s speed (the number of tasks performed in each iteration) and the frequency of requests. The team must determine what is best for them. This allows you to plan more or less.
Scrumban Iteration Review
Because this method does not require daily meetings, evaluation is the next high point in each cycle. At the end of the iteration process, the Scrumban team delivers the final product to the customer. The goal here is to review your score and gather feedback to improve your performance in the next cycle.
Compared with Scrum, the team does not have to participate. It provides one or more representations. Usually, project managers will attend Scrumban meetings to communicate and set future goals.
Scrumban Iteration Retrospective
Finally, before the new cycle begins, the group meets to discuss. Like Scrum, Scrumban meetings are designed to improve teams and collaboration processes. Team members resolve and discuss any process issues that arise during the iteration. The review must lead to at least one action in the next iteration.
When should a team use Scrumban?
Scrumban technology can help teams in many situations. Consider the following example:
For maintenance of ongoing projects
These may be companies that do not have a fixed end date, unlike new product releases.
For a team facing troubles with Scrum
Many reasons can cause it. For example, your business may not run a Scrum environment, or your team may find your Scrum requirements are too strict.
When a company wants to give its team more flexibility
In Scrum, a team typically assigns people specific tasks for each sprint. On the other hand, Scrumban creates many projects and then hands them over to the team to determine the best use of their resources. This encourages collaboration and allows employees to find initiatives that suit their skills and interests.
Differences between Scrum, Kanban and Scrumban.
Scrumban is a hybrid approach that combines the best aspects of Scrum and Kanban. It combines Kanban elements with the Scrum framework to make it more flexible and responsive to changes. Scrumban was initially created as a stepping stone for Scrum users who wanted to integrate Kanban but has evolved into a freelance framework for rapidly changing and ever-changing projects.
Scrumban is different from Scrum, which is best for long term projects. It can react quickly to changes and adapt. Compared to Kanban, it has a larger structure and more accurate iterations, making it easier to track and predict team performance. This can be unclear at first as it is a combination of both, but it quickly becomes second nature to each participant.
Scrumban Software
With the growing popularity of various agile frameworks, more and more project management software supports agile methodologies. Scrumban is no exception, as the team now has a lot of options to choose from. These technologies simplify and speed up project management, providing a better understanding of the process and reducing the need to store project information in multiple locations.
When looking for a Scrumban solution, look adaptable and meet your current and future needs.
The Scrumban method was developed mainly to familiarize Scrum users with Kanban. However, over time, it became a good choice, and Scrumban developed its structure.
Although Scrum and Kanban are more popular with agile practitioners, Scrumban also has its users. This is ideal for those who want to build themselves but don’t want to get caught up in paperwork. It is also suitable for those who wish to study their process in detail and follow up the project from start to finish.
Scrumban is best suited for projects with unclear priorities or projects which are constantly changing. This is very helpful for activities such as the help desk. It is also beneficial for teams dedicated to improving and maintaining existing products. In all, it is a modern approach to Project Management. And you should definitely try it out once.
Also Read: Best Online Kanban Board Software
