Read this before you add yet another state to your task board!
How Adding More States Can Create Confusion and Reduce Effectiveness for Software Development Teams
Task boards are a popular tool used by software development teams to visualize the progress of their projects. However, some teams have a tendency to add more and more states to their task boards, which can create confusion and reduce the effectiveness of the tool. In this blog, we will explore why teams might be adding more states to their task boards, and why it's important to keep it simple with just three states - todo, doing, and done.
keep it simple with just three states - todo, doing, and done
The agile manifesto emphasizes the importance of "individuals and interactions over processes and tools." When it comes to task boards, this means that teams should prioritize communication and collaboration over adding more states to the board. Instead of relying on a tool to communicate, teams should strive to have more face-to-face conversations and ensure that everyone is on the same page.
One of the reasons teams might be adding more states to their task boards is a lack of collaboration. When team members are not communicating effectively with each other, they might add more states to try to make up for it. For example, they might add a "waiting" state to indicate that a task is waiting on another team member. While this can be helpful in some cases, it can also make the task board more complex and difficult to use.
Another reason teams might be adding more states is a misunderstanding of the purpose of the tool. Task boards are meant to be a simple and visual way to track progress and identify roadblocks. When teams add more states, they can lose sight of this goal and create a more complicated system that is harder to use.
While it might be tempting to add more states to a task board, it's important to keep it simple with just three states - todo, doing, and done. Here are a few reasons why:
Simplicity - With just three states, the task board is easy to understand and use. Everyone on the team knows what each state means, and there is no confusion about how to move tasks from one state to another.
Visibility - The three states provide a clear picture of progress on the project. Team members can quickly see what tasks are still outstanding, what tasks are in progress, and what tasks are complete.
Focus - By keeping the task board simple, teams can focus on the work that needs to be done. There are no distractions or unnecessary states to worry about, which helps keep the team focused on the most important tasks.
While tools like task boards can be helpful, they should never replace the importance of human interactions. By keeping the task board simple and focusing on communication, teams can create a culture of collaboration and achieve better results.
Conclusion
Task boards are a valuable tool for software development teams, but it's important to use them correctly. While some teams might be tempted to add more states to their task boards, it's best to keep it simple with just three states - todo, doing, and done. By doing so, teams can improve collaboration, reduce confusion, and stay focused on the work that needs to be done.