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Before differentiating the Scrum and Kanban, it is necessary to get familiar about these terms.

• Scrum

Scrum is a type of agile process that is used to deliver the values generated by the business in the minimum timeframe. It is used for the rapid and repeated inspection of actual operating software. The main emphasis of Scrum is on the teamwork and iterative advancement of the software. The main aim of Scrum is to deliver the newly developed software within two to four weeks.

• Kanban

Kanban is another type of agile process which is used for the management of work through the visual system. The whole process is visualized and the actual work passes through the whole process. The implementation of Kanban is aimed for the proper identification of current or potential bottlenecks in the process. This system not only identifies the bottlenecks bit also take remedies to remove them. The main objective of Kanban is to work at optimum speed with smooth workflow processes.

Kanban is a visual system for managing work. It visualizes both the process and the actual work passing through that process. The main objective of implementing Kanban is to identify potential bottlenecks in the process and fix them. Kanban’s goal is that the workflow should proceed smoothly at an optimal speed.

• Why Scum is used?

The application of scum methodology ranges from general business to a specific business. It can offer project management for every type of business as well as for every course of life. Under the methodology of scum, the development team becomes proactive and more agile. The team discovers how it can react to sudden changes quickly and to respond to the changes quickly. The transparent information pattern enables the scum to deal with and to address the complexity of the business. Scum assist the team members in inspection and adaption of new conditions, instead of the predicted ones. This is very helpful for the team in addressing the common pitfalls and chaos generated due to constantly changing conditions.

• Why Kanban is used? 

While on the other hand, Kanban methodology is used in meeting the minimal resistance. Kanban allows the changing condition to prevail in the existing system through small increments. It allows the continuous addition of incremental and evolutionary changes in the existing process. There will improvement in the throughput, lead time, and quality due to Kanban application.

• When is Scrum used?

When you are required to change the entire project immediately, then you have to apply Scrum methodology. Scrum is suitable for the cross-functional and self-organized teams who are likely to work without leaders. The main notion in the Scrum methodology is that the change happens quickly and the after-effects of the change are not known at the start of the project. The changes in the methodology, optimizations of products, requirements, and procedures are integral elements of the project under Scrum methodology. The low-level of requirements can only be defined at the start of the project.

• When is Kanban used?

While Kanban boards are based on the visual management of the software, so it allows the visual management for the project work. It is helpful for having a watch over the work progress and work in process by the team members. The visual aspect of the project helps the team members to assess the associated risk with the work and also to track the work time. Kanban board is considered effective as it is helpful in the reduction of the work stress level of the team members. The amount of workload is divided among the project managers and team members for the project lifecycle. Kanban is only applicable where the work process is already determined and the only optimization is required. Kanban only helps the existing process to cover its loopholes and improvement in all its tried and tested processes.

• The Scrum process

In the process of the Scrum, team members are encouraged to evaluate on-going work. They can determine what is under work and what is not working. Communication is the key element in the process of the Scrum. For effective communication, meetings called events are held. A usual Scrum event consists of the following elements.

Daily Scrum: it is a small meeting that will be held at the same place daily at a pre-determined time. At the end of the meeting, the completed work is reviewed by the team and what work is to be done in the next twenty-four hours, is decided and allocated to the respective team member. The daily work-related problems are discussed which might become a hurdle in the project development.

Sprint Planning Meeting: this type of event refers to the time frame which is required for the completion of work; generally, it consists of 30 days. In this planning meeting, goals are set by the team members to produce at least one increment of the product.

Sprint Retrospective:  this meeting is held after completion of the sprint. In this event or meeting, everyone reflects over the production or development process. The main aim of this sprint is continuous improvement.

• Kanban process

Whether it is software development, staffing, marketing, sales, or procurement in the Kanban process, everything is continuously improved. A set of principles is followed by the Kanban process for the management and improvement of the workflow. The basic four principles followed by the Kanban method are discussed below.

Visualization of Work: through the creation of a visual model of the on-going work model, Kanban helps in the observation of on-going workflow.

Limit work in process: the time taken by item to travel across the system is reduced by Kanban.

Focus on flow: work-in-process limits are set by Kanban. This causes an optimization and smooth flow of the work.

Continuous Improvement: it is the main objective of this system. The flow of work is tracked and analyzed through Kanban under continuous improvement principles

Conclusion

The Scrum system helps in the implementation of a new or changed system. While Kanban helps in increasing the productivity and efficiency of the on-going work.