Scrumban: The Perfect Hybrid Agile Framework for Teams Who Need Flexibility and Efficiency

Using Kanban for projects helps you and your project team visualize workflow, set clear priorities, focus on completing tasks before starting new ones, and quickly spot bottlenecks. Kanban boards are indeed a fantastic tool for task management and project management workflows.

Additionally, Scrum is an agile framework for project management that helps teams structure and manage their work through a set of values, principles, and practices.

Scrumban is a hybrid approach that combines elements of Scrum and Kanban, blending the structure and iterative approach of Scrum with flow-based, continuous improvement principles of Kanban. This agile project management methodology was initially created by Corey Ladas to address the flexibility concerns of Scrum in certain environments. Unlike Scrum, Scrumban does not prescribe fixed roles or ceremonies (e.g. Scrum Master, Product Owner, daily standups, sprint reviews e.t.c.). However, teams can implement these elements as needed for their context.�

Scrumban is primarily a workflow that merges Scrum’s structure with Kanban’s flow-based principles. It emphasizes continuous delivery and flexibility, adapting work based on the team’s capacity and needs rather than relying on rigid sprint cycles.

This article introduces a general flow that developers and project managers can follow to become more efficient by visualizing and improving workflows. First, let’s look at some popular tools for creating and managing Kanban boards, which are a vital piece in the puzzle.

Tools

Below are some popular tools for creating and managing Kanban boards:

Jira: Offers customizable Kanban boards and integrates well with other development tools¹. Here is a link to product: https://www.atlassian.com/software/jira
Trello: Simple and intuitive, great for smaller teams. Here is a link to product: https://trello.com/b/lVWhoXQx/demo-kanban-template
Azure DevOps Board (chef kiss): Provides robust Kanban board features along with other project management tools. Here is a link to product: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/products/devops/boards
Github Issue board: Here is a link to product: https://github.com/features/issues
Gitlab Issue board: Here is a link to product: https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/user/project/issue_board.html

Generic workflow for task (feature) management

Backlog: Collect all tasks, user stories, and issues (bugs).
To Do: Prioritize tasks for the next sprint or iteration.
In Progress: Developers pick tasks and start working on them.
Code Review: Completed code is reviewed by peers.
Testing: Code is tested for bugs and performance issues.
Done: Successfully tested code is deployed or merged into the main branch.

Example: Workflow for task (feature) management

Let’s consider a sample task and walk through the workflow from the perspectives of both a project manager and a developer.

Sample Task: Implement User Authentication

1. Backlog – Creating tasks

Project Manager: Adds the task to the backlog with a detailed description.

Task: Implement User Authentication
Description: Develop a user authentication system that includes registration, login, and password recovery features.

2. To Do

Project Manager: Prioritizes the task and moves it to the “To Do” column.

Priority: High/Med/Low
Due Date: 2 weeks

3. In Progress

Developer: Picks up the task from the “To Do” column and moves it to “In Progress“.

Subtasks:
- Set up the authentication framework (e.g., OAuth, JWT).
- Create registration form and backend logic.
- Implement login functionality.
- Develop password recovery feature.
- Write unit tests for authentication components.

4. Code Review

Developer: Completes the implementation and moves the task to the Code Review column. It is helpful to attach a bug or task number to the pull/merge requests. See section below for more details.

Pull Request: Submits a pull request for peer review.
Reviewers: Assigns team members to review the code.

Project Manager: Ensures that the code review process is progressing and addresses any blockers.

5. Testing

Developer: After code review approval, moves the task to the Testing column.

Testing: Conducts integration and user acceptance testing.
Bug Fixes: Addresses any issues found during testing.

Project Manager: Monitors the testing phase and ensures timely resolution of any bugs.

6. Done

Developer: Once testing is complete and the task meets all acceptance criteria, move it to the Done column.

Deployment: Deploys the authentication system to the production environment.

Project Manager: Confirms the task is completed and updates any related documentation.

Generic workflow for issue (bug) management

Backlog: An issue is reported and added with a detailed description.
To Do: Issue is prioritized and ready to be picked up.
In Progress: Developer works on fixing the issue.
Code Review: Fix for issue is reviewed by peers.
Testing: Fix for issue undergoes thorough testing.
Done: Fix for issue is completed and deployed.

Tip: Create a separate issue (bug) Board

Consider having a separate Kanban board specifically for bugs to avoid cluttering the main board.

Example: Workflow for issue (bug) management

Managing issues effectively is crucial to maintaining a smooth development process. In this section, let’s consider how to integrate Issue (bug) management into the workflow.

Generally, the issue (bug) tasks follow a similar workflow as the task (feature) Management workflow discussed earlier.

Sample Task: Fix login issue

1. Backlog – Reporting Bugs

Project Manager: When an issue (bug) is identified, it is reported and added to the Backlog column with a detailed description.

Task: Fix login issue
Description: Users are unable to log in with valid credentials. Investigate and resolve the issue. Include information on how to reproduce the issue, if known.

Subtasks:
- Reproduce the bug
- Identify the root cause
- Implement the fix
- Write tests to prevent regression

2. To Do

Project Manager: Prioritizes the task and moves it to the “To Do” column.

Priority: High/Med/Low

3. In Progress

Developer: Works on the bug fix and completes the implementation.
Subtasks: Write code, perform initial testing, and prepare for review.

4. Code Review

Developer: Submits a pull request (PR) or merge request (MR) and moves the task to the Code Review column. It is helpful to attach a bug or task number to the pull/merge requests. See section below for more details.
Reviewers: Assigned team members review the code for quality, adherence to standards, and potential issues.
Feedback: Reviewers provide feedback, and the developer makes necessary changes.

5. Approval

Reviewers: Once the code meets all criteria, reviewers approve the PR/MR.
Developer: Merges the code into the main branch after approval.

6. Testing

Developer: Moves the task to the Testing column for further testing.
QA Team: Conducts thorough testing to ensure the fix or feature works as expected.

7. Done

Developer: Once testing is complete and successful, the task is moved to the Done column.
Deployment: The code is deployed to the production environment.

Bonus: Attach an issue (bug) or task number to Pull or Merge Requests

It is a best practice to attach the issue (bug) ticket or task number to the merge request. This helps track the work and maintain a clear link between the code changes and the corresponding work items.

How-To:

Commit Messages: Include the issue (bug) ticket or task number in your commit messages. For example, “Fix login issue #123”.
Pull Request Description: Mention the bug or task number in the PR description. For example, “This PR fixes the login issue described in task #123”.
Branch Naming: Use the bug or task number in your branch names. For example, “[feature/defect]/<bug_or_task_number>-<simple_description>”. (e.g. defect/123-user-authentication)

Using these practices ensures that everyone on the team can easily trace the changes back to the specific tasks or bugs, improving transparency and accountability.

Implement Scumban in 5 steps:

Step 1: Assess Your Team’s Needs

Before jumping into Scrumban, evaluate the pain points in your current process. Is your Scrum team finding it hard to manage work during sprints? Or is your Kanban team struggling with the lack of defined goals and time frames? Or is your team currently struggling with unstable or changing workloads? Scrumban can help if you need both flexibility and structure.

Step 2: Define WIP Limits

Set WIP limits for each stage of your workflow (e.g., “In Progress” or “Testing”). This will help the team focus on finishing tasks before starting new ones and avoid overloading any single part of the workflow.

Step 3: Adapt Scrum Ceremonies as Needed

Keep your Sprint Planning and Sprint Review but introduce Kanban-style flow between sprints. You can also hold regular retrospectives to continuously improve the way the team works.

Step 4: Use a Kanban Board

Visualize the team’s workflow on a Kanban board (physical or digital) with columns like “Backlog,” “To Do,” “In Progress,” “Testing,” and “Done.” This allows the team and project stakeholders to easily see the status of work at a glance and track bottlenecks.

Step 5: Measure and Adjust

Keep track of key metrics like cycle time, lead time and throughput. These metrics will help you adjust WIP limits, identify bottlenecks, and optimize your workflow.

Scrumban is a powerful hybrid agile framework that brings together the best of both Scrum and Kanban, allowing teams to benefit from structure and flexibility simultaneously. Whether you’re looking to reduce bottlenecks, improve flow, or maintain iteration-based work with greater adaptability, Scrumban offers a dynamic approach to modern agile development. If you’re finding Scrum too rigid or Kanban too loose, Scrumban could be your perfect middle ground. It’s a framework that’s flexible, scalable, and capable of evolving as your team grows and your projects change.

Interested in implementing Scrumban? Check out the resources below.

What’s your experience with hybrid agile methodologies or agile project management frameworks? Drop a comment or connect with me on LinkedIn to share your thoughts!

Resources:

Demo Kanban Template: https://trello.com/b/lVWhoXQx/demo-kanban-template
Scrum to Scrumban in 6 Steps: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgT4AaKcBUA
What is scrum and how to get started: https://www.atlassian.com/agile/scrum
What is Scrum?: https://www.scrum.org/resources/what-scrum-module
Kanban: https://www.atlassian.com/agile/kanban
What is Kanban? – Agile Coach (2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVaFVa7HYj4
What is a kanban board? : https://www.atlassian.com/agile/kanban/boards
Putting the ‘flow’ back in workflow with WIP limits: https://www.atlassian.com/agile/kanban/wip-limits