Best Kanban Tools: An Overview For 2021

Introduction

As a project or a product manager who is looking at improving the efficiency of work, it is always the right tools that come to your disposal. You may work on improving the work culture and the soft skills of your team. However, if you have the right tools to incorporate and measure these improvements, then this is how you can visualize and measure your success.

The Kanban tool helps to upgrade your processes and work easily and quickly. Before we delve deeper, let us first understand what Kanban is.

In this article let us look at:

1. What Is Kanban?
2. Different Types of Kanban Tools
3. Overview of Each Kanban Tool
4. Advantages of Kanban Tools

1. What Is Kanban?

Kanban is a Japanese word that means SIGN or BILLBOARD. The Kanban system was created by an engineer who was working for Toyota in the late 1940s. His name was Taiichi Ohno. From manufacturing to information technology, Kanban today has been embraced by all industries.

Here is what a Kanban setup will offer to you.

• It depicts the progress of the work visibly.
• The task is limited in number at every phase, which increases quality, efficiency, and concentration. This does not overload the person who also is not an effective strategy.
• Once the team is ready to take on any additional task, then they pull an assignment without the assignment getting pushed to them by a team member who, in turn, must have completed his previous section.

It was in the latter part of 2000 that additional parts were added to Kanban. These include managing the workflow, making explicit policies implementing the feedback loops, improving the project collaboratively, and evolving as a team through experiments.

2. Different Types of Kanban Tools

Let us now find out what the different Kanban project management tools are.

• Old School

While online tools have gained a lot of popularity recently, the hands-on approach is still classic and is often what you need. A bulletin board or a whiteboard lets you keep a tab of the three major sections of any project activity. These are the to-do list, the things that are in progress, and the work that is done.

A bin system can be used to update when the item gets restocked in the production line or the supply environment. This is a system that keeps track of the inventory. Sticky notes work to keep a tab of the work items, and cardholders can be used to ensure proper communication and project flow.

• Online

The Kanban tools available online enhances the methodology of Kanban in various ways. It lets you work from anywhere in the world and stay connected to your team and guide the work activity. These are tools that mimic the bulletin and the whiteboard and can be effective and efficient. It can also be tailored to meet your workflow needs.

3. Overview of Each Kanban Tool

Here is the list of the best Kanban tools that are used by project and product managers.

• Jira

This project management and bug tracking tool helps in software development and is influenced by the agile and Kanban project management techniques. It allows developing a custom workflow that works for the team.

• Trello

This is a simple yet beautiful tool that offers cards, board, checklists, and lists in infinite quantities. Some additional benefits of this tool include integration with Box, Slack, and Google Drive. It also offers the flexibility to add files. The tools can be customized and are free for all.

• Kanban Tool

This is a minimalistic and straightforward management tool that is mostly used to ensure team cooperation in real-time, which improves the flow of work. The tool can be hosted on the company’s serves as it is available on the cloud.

• ZenHub

The project management tool is agile and exists in GitHub. It is integrated with Slack and Gitter. The tool includes burndown charts, estimates, and limit cards for WIPs.

• Monday.com

This app is perfect for you if you are looking for less conventional work. It offers projects with a Kanban perspective and also offers many viewing options like files, maps, calendars, and charts.

4. Advantages of Kanban Tools 

The Kanban tool has been widely accepted because of its various advantages.

The project board can be accessed by the team from anywhere. All that they need is a proper internet connection. The team can be connected in real-time. The Kanban tool also lets the team take task ownership. The online Kanban tool is more efficient than using a post-it note or whiteboard as it allows efficient updating and easy transfer of information. You can also mark the item as “done” when completed.

The online Kanban board offers the benefits of letting you notice any mistakes and issues, so you are capable of taking appropriate actions and detecting the best response to it.

Conclusion

The online Kanban tools for project managers and product managers are highly beneficial. One should not hesitate in trying out this new system. It is time to start using these Kanban tools if you are not using them already. These tools help to enhance your work process further. It is recommended to get trained on the Kanban tools to know the latest techniques and gain in-depth and valuable knowledge about the same.

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Also read

• All You Need To Know About Kanban Board in 2021