Specifically, for every work type send me what date it was changed to each stage in your workflow. I can help with some data analysis to figure out your team’s cycle time. Second – take the value stream map as we’ve drawn it and share it with the team. Validate if we’ve mapped the flow accurately and adjust where necessary. Then find out the information required at each step to minimize the wait times. Also, think about this – what impact will you achieve, if the team sets a goal to minimize the wait time at each step? Is there a better alternative?
Journey to becoming a lean & agile family
Having been a student of Lean and Agile for a number of years now, we started adopting it in bits and pieces within our family. Here’s some examples of lean and agile in action in our personal lives.
Kanban your way to breakthrough profitability
Kanbans are an unbelievably simple way to improve throughput. It does not require you to begin with significant change which most process improvement initiatives do. It helps you experiment within your span of control and learn through those simple non-threatening experiments.
My Project World Business Analyst World talk: from waterfall to agile
When I was invited to speak at the Project World Business Analyst World in Moncton this year, I chose to talk about my experiences adopting lean and agile tools and moving away from waterfall where it makes sense.
Transforming from waterfall to agile
Introducing agility into traditional systems development processes is never easy. Firstly, you have got to want to change. Secondly, you need to have a vision of what to change to. Finally, you need the tenacity to forge ahead in the face of stiff resistance. It is usually the third that is the most difficult journey to undertake. The hardest part of the journey is during the transition wherein you show how to bring agility into executing projects. You are walking the fine line between traditional methodology and incrementally introducing change.
The power of pull
Donald, the CEO, sat staring at the phone. He just got off the phone with one of the customers. The project team had missed the delivery for the third time. And this was not the only project that was in trouble. “This is crazy. What”, he thought, “were we doing wrong? Why can’t we seem to get our act together and deliver projects to the plan? We should plan better. I better find Smith and find out what’s going on.” This scenario plays out at countless organizations worldwide across a wide array of industries. Work either waits for people/resource or people/resource wait for work.