Kanban tips for your Kanban exam preparation

There are only a few working and management methods that are known worldwide. The ability to master one of these methods is sometimes a sought-after additional qualification that can offer a career advantage not only in job applications, but also in the context of internal training. One of these methods is Kanban, which has its origins in the production of the Japanese car manufacturer Toyota.

As early as 1947, managers noted self-critically that Toyota was working uneconomically in many areas compared to its international competitors. In particular, the supply of necessary materials to the production plants was often slow and had a negative impact on output. The inventor of Kanban finally reorganised production, including material supply:

From now on, the production sites were to be supplied with materials much more efficiently. Similar to a supermarket, once materials have been taken out, they should be quickly replenished so that all the required parts are available at all times.

What sounds simple, however, first had to be initiated and implemented in a large corporation like Toyota. The Kanban method as a production process control method was born. It was not only consistently developed further, but also adopted in whole or in part by Japanese and eventually international companies. A first Kanban tip that is useful for understanding, is to distinguish the method from others. A characteristic of Kanban is that it does not rely on centralized planning but uses demand-oriented planning.

Kanban tips from intensive courses to resilient practical knowledge

The Kanban method is particularly suitable for use in manufacturing companies. However, the extent to which Kanban is used varies considerably and of course other established procedures exist. A Kanban tip for the selection of a Kanban training course is therefore to orientate oneself on the actual situation. Another Kanban tip: If Kanban is already being used in whole or in part, it is important to provide all employees with a level of knowledge as uniformly as possible. If, on the other hand, a change of production processes in the sense of the method is planned, the theoretical basics should be taught in addition to practical contents.

Professional training companies usually offer a wide range of courses that are oriented towards the previous knowledge of the participants and are usually structured in several stages. Usually, participants should be offered the opportunity to take a Kanban exam afterwards. This is done by a neutral certification body such as IFAAI and successful exams are recognised accordingly.

An important Kanban tip is to take the exam as soon as possible after the training. Due to this Kanban tip, the chances are extremely good that an exam will be passed successfully. In the following, we will go into more detail about Kanban exam questions. In examples, we show which Kanban certification questions you might be confronted with as a Kanban tip.

However, thanks to good preparation, the success rate is high and, with a little diligence, not an insurmountable hurdle! Our Kanban tips help.

Kanban exam questions: sample questions from past exams

If you were able to familiarise yourself with the theoretical basics of Kanban and learn how to apply it by means of suitable practical examples, you are usually well-prepared for the Kanban Certification questions. If you are not able to answer one of the following Kanban exam questions, this is no reason to worry. The Kanban Certification questions for the Kanban Expert certification may differ from those for the Kanban Project Manager certification.

Usually, Kanban exam questions are multiple-choice questions. Whether one or more answers have to be selected is indicated in the question. Let’s start with a simple Kanban exam question that has only one correct answer. How does Kanban prevent working beyond the capacity limit? Correct answer: By using a Work in Progress (WIP) limit.

A Kanban tip for the exam is to read the answer choices carefully. Often the correct answer can already be deduced by logical reasoning. Besides simple questions, there are of course also more difficult Kanban exam questions.

If more than one correct answer is required, the answer options often provide guidance. A possible answer could be “Answer 2 and 3 are correct”.

Use such answer choices to logically conclude again and confidently rule out wrong answer choices.

For more information on the Kanban certificates and kanban tips, please visit our IFAAI website, Agile Certification Institute.