A kanban board is a mission administration device that manages workflows and processes utilizing two key components: kanban playing cards, which symbolize duties, and kanban columns which divide the kanban board vertically to symbolize steps or levels of completion for them.
When first invented in 1940, kanban boards had been analog instruments that could possibly be made with pen and paper. Now, kanban boards might be discovered in lots of mission administration software program instruments, although one can even use spreadsheet software program corresponding to Excel or Google Sheets.
Whereas mission administration software program presents essentially the most superior kanban mission administration options from these choices, Google Sheets continues to be an honest and free various, which might be particularly useful when working with a distant staff that should collaborate on-line.
Why Make a Kanban Board in Google Sheets?
Use Google Sheets to make a kanban board that may do a few of the fundamental actions of kanban software program. Create kanban columns and kanban playing cards, assign duties to staff members and observe mission progress. Kanban playing cards can add detailed mission activity info, corresponding to activity description, due dates and estimated period.
Nonetheless, Google Sheets kanban boards aren’t the very best kanban device you should utilize. For superior kanban software program options, use ProjectManager as an alternative. With ProjectManager’s kanban boards, you’ll be able to observe prices, monitor their proportion of completion, automate kanban workflows and recurring duties, share information and rather more. Get began with ProjectManager as we speak without cost.
Google Sheets Kanban Board: Execs & Cons
Let’s now analyze Google Sheets kanban boards extra carefully to determine the advantages and downsides of utilizing them. It will present a greater concept of what they’ll and might’t do for a company.
Execs of Making a Kanban Board in Google Sheets
A Google Sheets kanban board is right for customers who’re getting began because of its simplicity and ease of use. Listed below are a few of the primary advantages of utilizing Google Sheets to create a kanban board to handle duties.
- It’s a free various to project management software
- Many individuals are aware of Google Sheets’ spreadsheet interface, which is extra user-friendly than Excel
- Google Sheets kanban boards are cloud-based so there’s no must obtain or save information on a pc
- Kanban boards, columns and playing cards are customizable, which isn’t potential with most kanban software program
Cons of Making a Kanban Board in Google Sheets
Whereas a kanban board might be made in Google Sheets, it received’t have the mission administration options present in most kanban software alternatives. Listed below are a few of the primary drawbacks of utilizing Google Sheets kanban boards.
- Making a kanban board in Google Sheets is a labor-intensive and time-consuming course of
- As a result of they’re manually edited, Google Sheets kanban boards are liable to human error
- Complementary mission administration instruments, corresponding to Gantt charts, mission dashboards, mission calendars and extra, are wanted
- Google Sheets kanban boards don’t have workflow automation options
Kanban Board Template for Google Sheets
There’s no higher option to study Google Sheets kanban boards than utilizing one. This free kanban board template for Google Sheets has pre-made kanban columns and kanban playing cards with pattern mission info that may be simply edited and customised as wanted. Simply comply with the steps under.
Google Sheets templates might be useful for some areas of mission administration, however they’ll’t provide the planning, scheduling and monitoring instruments {that a} mission administration software program like ProjectManager has. Let’s evaluate a few of the key options that make ProjectManager’s kanban boards a significantly better mission administration device than a Google Sheets kanban board.
ProjectManager’s Kanban View Is Higher Than a Google Sheets Kanban Board
ProjectManager’s kanban boards are geared up with superior kanban software program options that may assist handle any sort of course of together with workflow automation, with activity approval settings to make sure high quality management, price administration and useful resource monitoring.
Illustrated within the picture under, ProjecManager’s kanban cards give a way more detailed view of mission duties than any Google Sheets kanban board can, which helps to make knowledgeable choices about tasks.
Listed below are a few of the key activity particulars that you would be able to observe with ProjectManager’s kanban playing cards.
- Activity description
- Class tags
- Due dates
- Precedence stage
- Share of completion
- Estimated vs. precise prices
- Estimated vs. precise activity period
- Assignees
- Task recurrence
- Subtasks
- Feedback & file attachments,
Along with these sturdy kanban boards, ProjectManager has a collection of mission administration instruments that will help you handle all mission areas corresponding to Gantt charts, timesheets, workload administration charts, project dashboards and extra.
Learn how to Use This Kanban Board Template
Earlier than beginning, make sure you make a replica of this template so it may be edited. When you create a replica, comply with these easy steps.
1. Rename the Kanban Columns
This kanban board template comes with 5 pattern kanban columns, which might be renamed to replicate the levels of any workflow. To delete a kanban column, right-click on its heading and choose delete columns as proven within the picture under.
So as to add extra kanban columns, merely choose a column heading, copy and paste it on the proper finish of your board after which use the border function to format it.
Should you’re unsure of what kanban columns to create, you can begin with the usual kanban board columns, “to-do,” “in progress” and “achieved,” that are generally utilized by kanban software.
2. Edit the Kanban Playing cards’ Data
Edit the duty title, description, assignee and due date from every kanban card and color-code them relying on their precedence stage. They will also be personalized by task priority colours.
3. Transfer Kanban Playing cards From One Column to One other
Reduce and paste kanban playing cards to maneuver mission duties from one column to a different. First, choose all of the cells for a kanban card, right-click that choice after which choose reduce.
Then choose the column to stick the kanban card, right-click it and click on “Paste.”
These two easy steps allow kanban playing cards to maneuver from one column to a different, displaying their present stage of completion. On this case, we’ve moved this activity from the “evaluate” column to the “achieved” column, which implies this activity has been accomplished.
Groups can comply with these easy steps to make use of this kanban board to handle their work.
Extra Venture Administration Templates for Google Sheets
As we’ve acknowledged, different complementary mission administration instruments corresponding to Gantt charts, activity lists or mission calendars assist handle tasks from a distinct perspective than kanban boards. That’s why we’ve created dozens of project management templates for Google Sheets, Excel and Phrase, which you’ll obtain without cost. Listed below are a few of them.
Gantt Chart Template for Google Sheets
This Gantt chart template for Google Sheets can create a listing of mission duties, their estimated period and due dates, which then routinely generates a visible mission timeline based mostly on that info.
Google Sheets Budget Template
This Google Sheets price range template helps estimate the prices of the organizational assets every enterprise division must function for a yr. The very best half is that this Google Sheets price range template can examine estimated prices in opposition to precise prices to assist decide whether or not the staff is over or underneath price range.
Google Sheets Inventory Template
This Google Sheets stock template can checklist stock objects, their unit price, amount in inventory, stock value, reorder stage and different particulars to assist handle stock ranges.
Associated Kanban Content material
There’s lots to study kanban in addition to kanban boards, which is why we’ve created dozens of blogs, templates and guides about totally different points of the kanban mission administration methodology.
ProjectManager is on-line mission and portfolio administration software program that connects groups within the workplace, out within the area and wherever in between. They will share information, remark on the activity stage and keep updated with electronic mail and in-app notifications. Be a part of groups at Avis, Nestle and Siemens who’re utilizing our device to ship profitable tasks. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.
