<aside> <img src="/icons/list-indent_gray.svg" alt="/icons/list-indent_gray.svg" width="40px" /> Shared Models
The Delivery Board is a tactical synchronisation model at value stream level. It works well in different contexts and is recommended to at least learn from, if not directly use it.
The delivery board shows at a glance what has happened and will happen across the stream during the iteration. It summarises the key information each team needs.
Usually each team maintains their own delivery board, but for a small value stream a single board with swimlanes for the different teams can work.
The model must be compact and convey information at a glance. So use space sparingly!
Time is the most important dimension in a synchronisation model. Every board must share the same timeline and iterations.
At the value stream tactical level, divide the iteration in weeks, with space for 1-2 items in a week. Precise dates can be added on an item, otherwise the item is placed on the timeline to convey timing information.
Numbering weeks from 1 (or 0) in each iteration will help identify any patterns after a few iterations; some things will always happen in a certain week or around it, particularly towards the end of the iteration.
Make sure the actual dates for each week are represented, you can see a way in the examples. Add value stream-wide events in the base timeline. Teams will add their own events to their individual board or swimlane.
Add future iterations in a more compact, less detailed way. The iteration space should be shrunk by a factor of at least 4, so you can peek further in the future but without too much detail. You may not use the future space much to begin with, but as teams learn to plan and communicate better, the future iterations will become more useful.
We recommend to show the next 3 iterations.
Each board is organised in swimlanes. Each swimlane represents something meaningful. It could be a team, a product component, a customer or a sub-value stream. In all cases, team ownership has to be clear from the structure.
The delivery board details what the teams expect to output week by week. The board also extends by several iterations in the future. Information is more certain closer to today and becomes less certain and sparser as we move deeper in the future.
The level of detail to choose will depend on the context. If a swimlane does not have more than one ticket in an iteration, consider adding further detail or merging with other swimlanes to create a more meaningful one. If a swimlane contains dozens of items, consider splitting it or reducing the level of detail, or both.
Physical or electronic boards can be used. They both work well, as long as every person in the team has access to them at all times, and knows how to read and update them.
In all cases hand-drawn whiteboards, either physical or electronic, are the best. They are flexible so allowing new kinds of information to be represented as it happens. They also allow the model to be changed, depending on context and new ideas.