KCP flashcards
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31 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- KMM maturity levels
- Seven levels from ML0 to ML6 describing organizational capability, from ad hoc hero-driven work to enterprise-wide fitness for purpose and customer-focused value networks.
- ML0 characteristics
- Ad hoc, unpredictable work with no explicit policies; success depends on individual heroics and firefighting rather than on a defined system of work.
- ML2 characteristics
- Team-level Kanban is in place with a visualized workflow, explicit policies, WIP limits, and basic flow metrics; predictability improves within the team's scope.
- ML3 characteristics
- Multiple teams use Kanban with feedback loops and cadences; classes of service, delivery planning, and service delivery reviews are established and used to guide improvement.
- ML4 characteristics
- Enterprise-level fitness for purpose emerges: value networks are visualized, risk and governance are managed, and customer outcomes drive prioritization across the organization.
- ML5 and ML6
- ML5 shows organization-wide agility with adaptive strategy; ML6 shows sustained fitness for purpose and continuous evolutionary adaptation across the whole value network.
- KMM assessment dimensions
- Maturity is evaluated across customer experience, workflow, delivery, risk, governance, and culture; a level is claimed only when practices are consistently evidenced.
- Evolutionary change principle
- Improvement proceeds in small, incremental steps at the organization's own pace; skipping maturity levels is treated as risky because underlying capability is not built.
- Maturity gap analysis
- Comparing the assessed current level with a target level produces a transition plan and an improvement backlog that drives the next evolutionary steps.
- Maturity versus ceremonies
- Adopting Kanban ceremonies alone does not raise maturity; levels require corresponding values, behaviors, policies, and measurable outcomes to be present.
- Hero-driven work
- A pattern typical of low maturity where outcomes depend on individual effort and escalation rather than on a stable, visible, and managed system of work.
- Fitness for purpose
- The degree to which a service meets customer needs and expectations; it is a central outcome at higher KMM levels and is measured from the customer's perspective.
- Value network visualization
- Mapping the interconnected services and workflows that together deliver customer value; it is a hallmark of enterprise-level maturity beyond single-team Kanban.
- KMM transition plan
- A sequenced set of changes derived from the gap between current and target maturity, executed incrementally and reviewed through the Kanban cadences.
- Maturity evidence
- Observable, consistent practices and metrics such as lead time distribution, flow efficiency, and customer satisfaction that justify claiming a maturity level.
- Risk and governance maturity
- Higher levels require explicit policies for risk, compliance, and decision rights integrated into the workflow rather than handled as after-the-fact gates.
- Start with what you do now
- The first Kanban change principle: understand and visualize the current process and roles before changing anything, rather than redesigning from scratch.
- Kanban cadences
- Recurring feedback meetings including standup, replenishment, delivery planning, service delivery review, operations review, risk review, and strategy review, each with a distinct coaching purpose.
- Service delivery review
- A cadence where the team reviews flow metrics, classes of service, and customer outcomes to decide on improvements to policies and the system of work.
- Operations review
- A cross-team cadence focused on systemic constraints, dependencies, and capacity allocation; it is the coaching surface for changing the wider system.
- Replenishment cadence
- A meeting where new work items are selected and prioritized into the ready queue according to policies and classes of service, keeping commitments realistic.
- Kanban lens
- A coaching perspective that examines workflow, policies, classes of service, blockers, and metrics to diagnose problems before prescribing any change.
- Explicit policies
- Written rules governing how work moves, who decides, and what done means; making policies explicit is a core Kanban practice and a primary coaching lever.
- Classes of service
- Policies that differentiate how work items are treated, such as expedited, fixed date, standard, and intangible, affecting prioritization and flow rules.
- Flow efficiency
- The ratio of active work time to total lead time; a low value signals waiting and is a common target for coaching interventions.
- Lead time distribution
- A histogram or percentile view of lead times used to forecast delivery and to coach teams toward predictable, data-informed commitments.
- Powerful questions
- Open questions that prompt reflection and self-discovery, enabling the team to identify impediments and design its own experiments rather than receiving solutions.
- Servant leadership stance
- A coaching posture that removes impediments and enables others; the coach works through the team and managers rather than directing the work.
- Make work visible
- Visualizing workflow, blockers, and policies so the system itself reveals problems; visibility is the primary mechanism for handling resistance to change.
- Coaching via experiments
- Interventions framed as small, measurable trials with a hypothesis and review point, evaluated through flow metrics rather than opinion or authority.
- Leadership at all levels
- A Kanban change principle encouraging initiative and improvement from anyone in the organization, supporting distributed ownership of the system of work.