KANBAN BOARD POLICY
Original fictional SaaS workflow plus blank template. Checked 2026-10-27.
The initial limits are examples, not a universal staffing formula.

PURPOSE
Make unfinished delivery work and its next action visible.
Cards represent one bounded result, not every tiny activity.
Do not put private customer records on a public board.

STATES
Backlog: a need or request exists. Clarify before selecting.
Ready: outcome, boundary, completion check, and question owner are clear.
Doing: an owner has started within the active-work limit.
Review: implementation exists and a named reviewer has a defined checklist.
Done: required checks pass and availability in the intended environment is
confirmed. A help update is available if the change requires one.

INITIAL LIMITS
Doing: at most 2 cards.
Review: at most 1 card.
Blocked cards remain in their current state and count toward that state's limit.
Do not pull more work just because a review is blocked.
Review capacity with the team after observing the actual workflow.

COMPLETED FICTIONAL SNAPSHOT
Backlog: K1 saved report presets.
Ready: K2 explain empty export.
Doing: K3 add export filter.
Review: K4 verify permission checks; BLOCKED.
Done: K5 update help link.
K4's forbidden export test returned data in a test environment.
Engineering owns investigation before more work enters Review.
The CSV timestamps and accounts are synthetic teaching values.

BLOCKED WORK
Record reason, noticed time, next action, responsible owner, and review time.
Keep its age visible. Escalate an urgent current risk through the appropriate
response process; a board marker does not replace that response.
If work is explicitly suspended, record why and retain the historical state.

REVIEW AGENDA
1. Inspect urgent, blocked, and aging unfinished cards.
2. Identify the next concrete action and who can help finish it.
3. Check whether any state has room before pulling from Ready.
4. Review repeated exceptions to the limits.
5. Confirm that Done means the agreed result, not merely code merged.

SOLO FOUNDER VARIANT
Inbox -> Clarify -> Active -> Waiting -> Resolved.
Try an Active limit of 1 if it reflects available attention.
Waiting is unfinished; review daily and preserve the next action.
A support reply and a product fix can be linked but have separate completion
conditions. Record interruptions and what they pause.

YOUR POLICY
Purpose / card unit:
States / entry and exit conditions:
Active limits / rationale:
Blocked-card treatment / escalation:
Reviewer / completion checks:
Definition of Done:
Review cadence / aging-work rule:
Exception decision and owner:
Date to revisit the policy: