LEARNING
L
Agile project management models
KANBAN
Japanese for ‘signboard’, Kanban
focuses on visualising the constant
flow of tasks and limiting work in
progress. ‘To do’ items move along a
series of vertical columns, which show
the current status of that task. New
work cannot be added until existing
work is moved to the next step. There
are no prescribed roles for the team.
Good for…
projects where the overall time taken
is less crucial; regular, steady output
such as a production line
Less good for…
projects with tight deadlines or tasks
subject to fluctuation or variation
SCRUM
Work is divided up into short time-
boxed iterations called sprints lasting
between one and three weeks. At the
end of the sprint, the cross-functional
sprint team meets to review the
completed work, how the sprint went,
and to plan the next sprint. Daily
planning and progress tracking is
visual, using tools like a scrum board
and sprint burndown charts. Scrum
has three roles: scrum master (team
‘coach’); product owner (responsible
for delivery) and team member
(typical five to seven per team).
Good for…
technically complex projects that
require multiple deliverables at speed,
such as software development
Less good for…
less complex projects that do not need
the Scrum infrastructure, or where
teams are larger or less experienced
DESIGN THINKING
A phase-based approach to problem
solving where the phases are not
necessarily linear and can be used in
parallel or iteratively. The five-stage
Design Thinking model proposed by
the Hasso-Plattner Institute of Design
at Stanford suggests the following
phases: empathising; defining;
ideating: prototyping; adopting and
testing.
Good for…
consumer product innovation where
customer engagement is key; simple
problems with no single right answer
Less good for…
more complex problems; where a
defined outcome is required
Waterfall project management models
PRINCE2
A process-based approach that
focuses on organisation and control
over the entire project, from start to
finish. Projects are thoroughly planned
and documented in advance and
each stage is clearly structured. It has
seven defined phases: start up;
initiation; direction; boundary
management; control; delivery;
closing. Project roles are strictly
defined.
Good for…
high-stakes and zero-tolerance
environments; close monitoring at
every stage
Less good for…
avoiding bottlenecks; less structured
or faster-moving cultures
SIX SIGMA
Developed by Motorola’s Bill Smith in
the 1980s, Six Sigma is based on a
cycle of continuous improvement and
eliminating defects in a product,
process or service. It has five defined
phases — define, measure, explore,
develop and control — and offers a
structure to plan, define goals, and
test for quality at each stage. Each
phase can be customised, the
measure and control phases providing
opportunities to review, learn and
improve.
Good for…
complex, data-driven processes;
processes that are continuous and
non-finite; learning and development
Less good for…
simpler, more finite projects; where
continuous learning would be
superfluous; less structured or smaller
organisations
CRITICAL PATH ANALYSIS
A technique that focuses on defining
and illustrating in diagram form the
interdependent and crucial sequence
of events. All tasks are clearly defined
and a minimum and maximum time
allocated to each, determining the
shortest possible time for those
critical path elements.
Good for…
complex, time-critical projects;
visibility on time constraints within an
overall schedule; identifying potential
slack in a schedule
Less good for…
flexible projects with less clear inputs
and outputs; teams with less-well-
developed project management
capabilities
February – May 2020 // 75