The Kanban method is now used to support agile workflows and rapid operations. Many companies, big and small, turn to Kanban and digital Kanban boards to operate more efficiently. In IT development, for instance, the Kanban board is regularly used as part of a rapid development and deployment cycle.

Kanban is a method useful in various situations and departments, including in human resource management. In today’s market, the HR department needs to be as agile and effective as other departments. Only then can the entire company be agile enough to overcome market challenges. The use of Kanban in HR brings a lot of benefits too, and that is what we are going to discuss in this article.

Better Recruitment Process

Kanban boards are highly customizable. You don’t have to stick to the traditional to-do, doing, and done phases to use the Kanban board.

In fact, tools like Kanbanize lets you customize your Kanban board to the last detail.

Kanbanize even lets you set your own parameters and define specific workflows, making it perfect for HR needs.

You can use Kanban to manage the recruitment of new team members. Each candidate is represented by a Kanban card, with details about that candidate added to the card. Each phase, on the other hand, represents the phases in the company’s recruitment process, from submission of resume to induction. You can then move candidates across the board as they go through the recruitment process.

The use of Kanban cards to record details about the candidates means you don’t have to read multiple documents or rely on complex spreadsheets. Everything you need to know about the candidate, including notes from interviewers, can be detailed on the card. The entire recruitment process is a lot more streamlined thanks to the use of the Kanban method.

Improve Employee Engagement

HR needs to have programs designed to boost employee engagement, particularly since employee engagement is a key ingredient to sustainable growth. Boosting employee engagement often means running multiple training programs, introducing stand-up sessions, and other programs to keep employees engaged.

These programs need to be managed meticulously. Remember that consistency and continuous development are crucial for the company, and the only way the two goals can be achieved is by aligning multiple development programs and HR activities for the benefit of the organization.

In this instance, the Kanban board serves its natural project management function. HR specialists can use a Kanban board with multiple phases to organize projects, assign tasks, and make sure that everything runs smoothly from start to finish. Progress can be monitored in real-time and the entire effort is represented visually on the board.

Task Management

HR can also use the Kanban board for internal task management. Instead of using phases, each phase represents a member of the HR department. Cards, on the other hand, represents the tasks that need to be completed. The HR team can then use Kanban to assign tasks to an individual team member.

With this Kanban setup, the workload of each team member is always visible.

Visualization of the workload allows the HR manager to assign tasks in different ways depending on factors like the number of existing work items, their urgency, as well as the time required to complete each one of them. Using a Kanban board for general task management also makes automating certain tasks and solving bottlenecks easier.

That last part is important. The visual nature of Kanban allows for bottlenecks to be spotted early. After enough insights are gathered, you can also use Kanban estimation and planning to your advantage. Kanban estimation is much more detailed than a Gantt chart, which means you can plan ahead for different loads in an effective way.

Employee Development

Speaking of Kanban estimation and tracking, the Kanban approach can also be used to track employee development. Rather than manually updating a spreadsheet about courses taken by employees and the progress of each employee, the HR department can switch to a Kanban board instead. You’ll be surprised by how easy keeping track of employee development is when everything is represented visually.

Each employee is represented by a card, with phases set to how far along employees are in their training and education.

You can then update the Kanban board accordingly, giving you a real-time view of employee status at any time. You also have a clear view of employees who are falling behind in their development program, which means you can act quickly in adjusting their program.The result is a truly efficient employee development program.

In fact, the entire HR operation can be made more effective and efficient with the adoption of the Kanban method. No more bottlenecks hampering operations. No more dependent tasks not getting completed on time due to mismanagement. The Kanban approach is helping other departments stay agile; it can certainly be used to make the HR department equally agile and ready for more challenges.

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