Project Management has progressed significantly in recent years and there are different project management tools and techniques supported to facilitate those changes. Kanban vs. Agile vs. Scrum these methodologies dominate the conversation but what’s the difference among them?

Kanban, Agile, and Scrum are three popular methodologies used in project management, each with its own principles, practices, and benefits. Today, we will explore the differences among Kanban vs. Agile vs. Scrum and how it used project management.

Project Management Methodologies Comparison: Kanban vs. Agile vs. Scrum

What is Kanban?

Kanban is the visual method of project management and framework used to develop the agile and DevOps software development. It needs the real time infrastructures of capacity and complete transparency of work. 

The heart of the Kanban method is the Kanban board where phases of the project are differentiated into columns. You can explore the functions and approaches of this via kanban professional certification.

Following are the top Kanban benefits:

• Enhanced visibility of flow.

• High speed of delivery or throughput.

• Enhanced predictability. 

• Enhanced alignment among the business objectives, major results and delivery of work.

What is Agile?

The Agile Manifesto emphasizes individuals and interactions over processes and tools, working software over comprehensive documentation, customer collaboration over contract negotiations, and responding to change over planning.

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Following are the top agile benefits:

• Increased employee input.

• Huge responsive to consumer feedback. 

• High job satisfaction.

• More cross functional collaboration 

• Strong risk management

• Customized company solutions. 

What is Scrum?

The scrum methodology is designed for complex projects where it’s often essential for adopting the changes. Scrum is based on short development cycles known as sprints which normally lasts from 1 to 4 weeks. 

A scrum team is self-organized, small and has one scrum master and one product owner. You can check Agile Scrum Master Certification. The rest of them are known as the development team.

Following are the top Scrum benefits:

• Fast release of usable products to users and consumers.

• Higher quality.

• Higher productivity.

• Lower costs. 

• Strong ability to incorporate changes as they occur.

• Better employee morale. 

As we understood, the definitions now explore the core parameters of  scrum vs kanban vs agile. 

Core Difference between Kanban vs. Agile vs. Scrum

Parameters	Agile	Scrum	Kanban
Key principle	Incremental progress and iteration.	Self-organizing teams and iterative development.	Task visualization working flow, continues improvement
Roles	Roles are based on specific agile methods used.	Scrum master product owner development team.	Service delivery manager and service request manager
Principle	Agile is the broad methodology or philosophy which emphasizes the incremental development, flexibility, collaboration and consumer response or feedback.	Scrum is the framework within the agile methodology and it mainly showcases the roles, events, artifacts and processes to structure the iterative development procedure.	Kanban is based on principles such as visualizing workflow, limiting work in progress, managing flow, making policies explicit, and continuously improving.
Roles and Responsibilities	Agile provides the flexibility in roles and involves self-organizing, cross functional groups. There are no specific roles mandated by agile itself, but different agile methodologies such as scrum showcases the specific roles.	Scrum showcases the three primary roles known as Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Development Team. Every single role has a diverse range of responsibilities within the Scrum framework.	Kanban doesn’t suggest specific roles. The groups typically contain the individuals who collectively manage the flow of work.
Working Management	Agile prioritizes iterative and incremental development providing value in short cycles, which adapt the change and foster the strong collaboration.	Scrum works with the fixed-length iterations known as sprints with the goal of delivering a potentially shippable product increment at the end of each sprint.	Kanban showcases the continuous flowThat limits the work in progress.
Continuous Improvement	Agile showcases the continuous improvement with the iterative development, feedback response cycle, and collaboration.	Scrum promotes the continuous enhancement through sprint retrospectives where the teams reflect on their procedure and showcases the areas for enhancement.	Kanban motivates for continuous improvement with the help of evolutionary change, making policies explicit, and regularly reviewing and refining processes.

Based on these parameters, Kanban, Agile, and Scrum can be differentiated according to their principles, structures, roles, and approaches. Each methodology offers its advantages and may be better suited to different contexts or project requirements.

How Does Kanban vs. Agile vs. Scrum Work?

How does Kanban work?

Kanban concentrates on transparency and clear communication with the help of Kanban boards to showcase the status of tasks they are working on. Here, the one communal feature of Kanban is effective, which is the option to have Work in Progress limits. 

If the more rigid structure of having the Scrum Master and regular meetings doesn’t appeal, the more fluid working methods cloud suit your business. Kanban removes the requirement to meet regularly and explore data in-depth. Its less structured nature is its great advantage. 

In which ways Scrum works?

Scrum framework is just one of many agile implementations. It is designed and developed to support professionals solutions to complex adaptive problems simultaneously providing products of high value. 

There is one core difference among the scrum and agile methodology is that Scrum teams are self-organized and cross functional. With the more traditional agile platform, the team leader plays a crucial role in complex projects. 

Scrum concentrates on providing the maximum business value and it normally stand-up meetings which is the key feature of the methodology.

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How Agile is Operational?

Agile outcomes by breaking projects into small, manageable increments, delivering value iteratively. Through frequent communication, cross-functional teams collaborate closely, adapting to changing demands and feedback. 

By prioritizing customer satisfaction, continuous improvement, and flexibility, agile methodologies allow teams to respond quickly to challenges and deliver high-quality products efficiently.

Among Kanban vs. Agile vs. Scrum, which one is better for your project management?

The choice among the Kanban, agile and scrum based on the specific requirement, context and feature of the project and team. The methodology provides distinct benefits and might be better suited to various scenarios. 

The debate will normally come down to how your business is structured and how you think visualization will support other organizational tasks. It’s not the zero sum game but it might make sense to use all these three with the complex projects and many sub-tasks. 

But Kanban is one of the great fit for the groups which benefits from visualizing tasks to keep them organized. Scrum can support groups to handle inherently complex tasks or meet goals through organizing them into short, flexible sprints. Agile projects work best for the groups with the broad goals by allowing them to develop to change the deadlines, needs and priorities. 

So, all these three are excellent in their own way and the use of them specifically depends on project complexity, team size, organizational culture, and customer needs. It may be beneficial to assess these factors and experiment with different methodologies to determine which one aligns best with your project management goals and objectives. 

Additionally, hybrid approaches that combine elements of Kanban, Agile, and Scrum can also be effective in addressing the unique requirements of specific projects or teams.

Conclusion:

Now you will have an in-depth idea about Kanban, Agile and Scurm. Through this blog you will also understand its working, benefits and other components. Whatever you decide, give it a short period. After completing a portion of the backlog, discuss with your team what went well and what didn’t. 

You are well on your way to agile happiness if you attempt scrum and kanban and ask these questions. Our agile scrum master certificate will help you to get higher professional growth and it will also have a positive impact on your salary.