Sonya has over a decade of experience in software development, process optimization and product management. She is the founder and product manager at Nave, a Kanban analytics suite that helps managers across the world optimize their workflows using a data-driven approach. A goal of spotting bottlenecks and performance trends evolved into a data-visualization solution that helps Kanban teams rely on numbers, not guesswork, to deliver value to their customers quickly and efficiently. Today, teams spanning across many industries have become more productive and self-managed and Nave helped them get there.

Cumulative Flow Diagram Patterns: The State of Your Workflows

In a fast-paced market where customer needs change frequently, quick response to demand is critical. Fast, stable and predictable service delivery starts with workflow optimization - a pursuit of continuous improvement based on data-driven decisions.

The Kanban Method suggests adopting analytical tools to evaluate workflows. This talk will revolve around the use of a simple yet powerful tool - the Cumulative Flow Diagram (CFD). As work progresses and the amount of data grows, CFD plots a visual history of your workflow. It enables you to track the main flow metrics and spot bottlenecks brewing at a glance. We will explore several CFD patterns and their effect on your system efficiency and predictability while touching upon the advanced Kanban practices to help you optimize that effect.

By the end of the talk, you will learn how to recognize the most common CFD patterns and what they mean for your process. You will be able to instantly detect work entering the stream faster than team capacity allows it, increasing WIP as well as upstream and downstream blockages. Discover how to achieve more consistent and predictable workflows.