These days, businesses are evolving at a faster rate than ever before.
Thanks to digital transformation and a new technology revolution, companies are under increasing pressure to produce software and deliver innovation at a much faster rate. The question is, which methodology helps organizations to complete their projects as efficiently and accurately as possible?
Here, we’re going to look at the concept of three common terms in the project framework discussion. By the time you’ve finished reading, not only will you understand the difference between Kanban and Scrum, but you’ll also understand what “agile” is all about.
Table of Contents
What is Scrum?
If you’ve decided to check the difference between Kanban vs Scrum before you launch your next project, then the first thing you need to know is what each of these terms mean. Kanban and scrum frameworks are both designed to improve the work process, optimize efficiency, and improve productivity.
Scrum is perhaps the most widely-adopted framework in the software development space. When you work using a Scrum strategy, you complete projects in “sprints”, producing outcomes in around 2 to 4 weeks. During sprint-based planning sessions, teams select a small batch of directives from a list to guide them in their tasks. The group also has the support of a “Scrum Master“, and every day, the team comes together to assess their progress.
What is Kanban?
Similarly, to Scrum, Kanban is a tool intended to companies organize their working patterns more effectively. Kanban also works to break down targets and tasks into more manageable chunks. Most groups will place their Kanban chunks on a board so it’s easier to visualize progress.
Kanban boards come with columns that work tasks can pass through – including testing, in progress, and ready for release. There’s also a column for products that are already released. The difference between Kanban and Scrum lie in the limitations. While scrum restricts the amount of time allowed to accomplish each task, Kanban limits the degree of work allowed in each “column”. This means that only so many tasks can be in the “progress” stage at once.
The Benefits of Scrum vs Kanban
The decision of whether Kanban or Scrum is best for you will depend on the unique nature of your project. For instance, there are many benefits to using Scrum, including quicker production times, and a better strategy for working at a rapid pace. The concept of agility is at the heart of the Scrum framework.
On the other hand, the column-based design of Kanban illustrates where tams suffer from the biggest bottlenecks in their work process. Simply glancing at your Kanban board can be enough to show your team which tasks they need to work harder at accomplishing.
What is Agile?
“Agile” is a much bigger concept than either Kanban or Scrum. To put the idea into perspective, if Kanban was an orange, and Scrum was an apple, Agile would be the whole category of “fruit”. Agile is the overlying framework that both Scrum and Kanban attempt to serve. Agile development is based on a quick and incremental approach to development, and it ignores the in-depth planning stage that often takes place at the beginning of a traditional project.
Both Scrum and Kanban are forms of agile methodology. The best way to decide which one is right for your company, is to roll out a limited test to a specific group of people in your team. That way, you can assess how your top-performers respond to the specific stressors in both Scrum, and Kanban.
