CompTIA Project+ (PK0-005)Project Management ConceptsEasy
A project team is using a Kanban board to manage their workflow. They notice a specific column, 'Under Review', is consistently accumulating a large number of tasks, causing delays in the overall flow. What is this situation commonly referred to in Kanban?
- ABottleneck
- BThroughput
- CLead Time
- DWork In Progress (WIP) Limit
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Bottleneck
A bottleneck occurs when a stage in a process, like the 'Under Review' column, becomes a constraint, causing work to pile up and slow down the entire workflow.
Why the other options are wrong
- B. Throughput is the rate at which work is completed, not the congestion itself.
- C. Lead time is the total time from start to finish for a task, not the cause of delay.
- D. WIP Limit is a control mechanism to prevent bottlenecks, not the bottleneck itself.
Kanban Bottleneck
A stage in a Kanban workflow that becomes overloaded with tasks, slowing down the entire process and preventing new work from entering or completing.
- Indicates a constraint in the value stream.
- Causes work to pile up before that stage.
- Requires intervention to smooth the flow.
Memory trick: Kanban flow is like a river; a bottleneck is a dam.