Category Archives: Kanban

A Short History of Kanban (and Lean) (Part 3)

The history of lean and kanban is a challenge to boil down, so inevitably, I know there are aspects that are missing here. The title says “short” because, while there is a lot of information here, it is short in terms of how more is out there! Additionally, there are often disagreements on certain aspects and points around the history, and we’ve sourced the various elements included in this outline. A key part of understanding kanban is going beyond the principles and practices, to understand what is behind it work. The history points us to a critical key.

Continue reading →

Kanban Principles for Success (Part 2)

by Jake Calabrese

The kanban principles we use and I mention in What is Kanban? are fairly straightforward, yet often ignored in organizations who say they are doing kanban. I want to dig into a bit more depth on each of the principles, for those are are less familiar with them (or perhaps even for some that are).

Continue reading →

What is Kanban (看板)? [Part 1]

by Jake Calabrese

This is a common question, since Kanban can have several word uses and meanings in the agile space. The term gets thrown around a lot, making it even more confusing. In order to understand Kanban and where it comes from, let’s start with some basic definitions and the foundations. We start with the basics, because there is often confusion around what kanban is.

Simple definitions of kanban:

a signboard or billboard in Japanese
a just-in-time method of inventory control, originally developed in Japanese automobile factories
a Japanese lean manufacturing system in which the supply of components is regulated through the use of an instruction card sent along the production line
an agile approach or framework

Continue reading →