Scrum Vs. Kanban: Weighing Their Pros and Cons

These two are the best project management methodologies that we have today, and they both have their pros and cons to them. There’s no way that you’ll seek the best agile frameworks, and you look past these two. While these two are similar in many ways, there are also a lot of differences. It is worth knowing how both works, so you know which is ideal for your company.

 

WHAT IS SCRUM?

Scrum is a powerful project management technology created for cross-functional teams with fewer than ten members working towards completing complex projects. This methodology’s primary goal is for the team members to bring their skills together to create a product or solution for the customer.

If your organization needs to look for a more efficient way in its processes and needs that fundamental shift, Scrum is appropriate. It is a well-defined framework for your operations to keep your work structured. If you don’t already use the Agile software development method in your company, then Scrum might be a good idea. With the Scrum methodology, your team will be able to work in/with:

  • Sprint reviews
  • Iterations
  • Iteration planning
  • Product owner
  • Cross-functional team
  • Regular meetings
  • A scrum master

 

WHAT IS KANBAN?

The Kanban project management methodology doesn’t have as much structure as Scrum does. It lacks a process framework but improves your process incrementally. If your organization already has a working process and you are looking to improve on this process without having to shake the development system, the assignment help of this methodology is ideal for your organization.

One thing about Kanban is that you can apply it to other methodologies that you’re using already. The work in Kanban is organized on a Kanban board, and the process runs as:

  • Testing
  • Preparing for release, and
  • Released columns

Kanban’s management criteria are WIP (Work in Progress), and work item flows can be optimized with the management and monitoring of WIP.

 

SIMILARITIES BETWEEN SCRUM AND KANBAN

As we mentioned earlier, there are similarities between Scrum and Kanban methodologies.

  • They are both Lean and Agile.
  • Self-organizing teams are their basis.
  • You have to breakdown the work into pieces.
  • Process improvement works by transparency.
  • They use pull-scheduling.
  • The two methodologies limit WIP.
  • The focus is to release deliverables regularly and early.

Benefits of Scrum

  • It prescribes time-boxed iterations.
  • Cross-functional Scrum team.
  • Velocity is the default metric for process improvement and planning.
  • The scrum team faces a particular workload in an iteration.
  • Break down of items so that you can complete them in one sprint.
  • After every sprint, the board rests.
  • One can’t add new items to ongoing iterations.
  • A specific team owns the sprint backlog.
  • The product backlog is prioritized as prescribed in Scrum.

Benefits of Kanban

  • Timeboxed iteration is not compulsory.
  • Rather than being time-boxed, Kanban is event-driven.
  • There are different cadences for release, process improvement, and planning.
  • Commitment is optional.
  • Lead time is the default metric for process improvement and planning.
  • Optional cross-functional team, but teams allow specialists.
  • No particular diagram or item size is prescribed in Kanban.
  • Kanban has a natural workflow state with limited WIP.
  • Estimation is optional
  • You can always add new items whenever there’s the capacity to do that.
  • Individuals and multiples teams can share the Kanban board.
  • It doesn’t prescribe specific roles.
  • Persistency in Kanban board.
  • Prioritization is optional

 

PROS AND CONS OF SCRUM AND KANBAN

Like everything, these methodologies have their merits and demerits that make them necessary at specific points and in certain situations over the other.

Pros of Scrum

The framework for Scrum is highly perspective, and it has some specific ceremonies and roles. Some of the advantages of Scrum are:

  • It is the most transparent and visible of all project management methodologies.
  • It increases accountability within the team.
  • It accommodates plenty of changes with ease.
  • This development methodology saves costs.

Cons of Scrum

Scrum also has its cons and disadvantages worth proofreading and reading out form assignment writing service as loud as the benefits and pros. This methodology is for experienced and high-level persons, and some of the disadvantages are:

  • It requires a high level and experience from the person running it. If it is run by an inexperienced person, the process risk having scope creep.
  • The Scrum team not only has to be experienced but very committed.
  • An inexperienced Scrum master can ruin the development process.
  • The project will have inaccuracies if the task definition is flawed.

Pros of Kanban

  • This methodology increases flexibility in the process.
  • Waste from this process is very minimal.
  • It is easy to understand
  • Improvement in delivery flow.
  • The process time cycle reduces

Cons of Kanban

  • The board has to be up-to-date because an outdated Kanban board may cause issues in the process of development.
  • Sometimes, the board can become too complicated for the Kanban team.
  • There is no timing, so the different phases don’t have timeframes attached to them.

 

Conclusion

Choosing between either of these methodologies or deciding to use an agile framework for your project management depends on your specific business’s requirements. But the summary is: choose Scrum if you want to work fast. But if you’re looking to improve the process of production, then choose Kanban.

Take charge of 2025

IT is no longer a back-office function—it’s a driver of growth and innovation. By tackling this checklist, you can ensure your business is ready to thrive in the face of challenges and opportunities alike.

Ready to transform your IT strategy? Schedule a free consultation with Techvera today.

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Written by Team Techvera

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December 5, 2020

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