Result
What should change, and who should benefit?
Lesson 1 · Team project management
Make a task clear enough to start
Turn one vague HRIS request into a task that all three of you understand in the same way.
A task can be on the board before it is ready. Move it to Ready only when the team agrees on the result, who is responsible, and how you will check that it is finished.
A board works only when its statuses have clear meanings
Without shared rules, a tracker is only a list. For example, Doing should mean that someone is working on the task now—not that they hope to begin this month. Done should mean that someone has checked the agreed result—not that the person doing the work feels finished.
Add itA short title is enough for the Inbox.
Discuss itAgree on the result, limits, and finish check.
Choose itName one responsible person and plan it for this week.
Work on itShow what is active and say when something is stuck.
Check itUse the agreed finish check before marking it Done.
Project-management guides give these rules formal names. The Kanban Guide calls the full set a Definition of Workflow. The Scrum Guide calls the team's shared completion standard a Definition of Done. The names matter less than everyone using the rules in the same way.
Sources: The Kanban Guide (2025); The Scrum Guide (2020); Linear's guide to reviewing new requests.
Answer five questions before work starts
Responsible person
Who will keep track of this task until it is finished?
Limits
What related work is not included in this task?
Finish check
What can someone see, test, or approve?
Small enough
Can we finish it or show a useful result this week?
Do not make people answer all five questions when they first add a request. A short title is enough for the Inbox. During the weekly review, the team answers these questions before moving the task to Ready.
Practice · Use a real HRIS request if possible
Make a vague request clear
“Build the employee directory.”
Self-review
- Would a coworker understand who this helps and what should change?
- Have you named at least one related thing that is not included?
- Could two people use your finish check and reach the same answer?
- Can the team finish it or show something useful this week?
Example: “HR coordinators can find a current employee's department, role, work contact, and manager without requesting a spreadsheet.” Not included: payroll, performance, and private contact data. Finish check: on the test site, HR checks five employee records and confirms that each type of user can see only the information they are allowed to see.
Keep your answer. Bring it to the team's next planning conversation and ask each person to explain what they think the task includes.
Apply it this week
- Select one real item currently described with a solution such as “build,” “add,” or “create.”
- With one coworker, write the result, what is not included, and how you will check that it is finished.
- Ask the third coworker to explain the task in their own words. If their answer is different, improve the task description.
- Only then decide whether it is Ready.
Primary reading: read pages 3–6 of The Kanban Guide. Pages 3–6 explain why a team needs clear rules for moving work and why starting too many tasks slows the team down.
Keep nearby
What each status means
What each status means
Next lesson
Choosing weekly priorities without overcommitting
Choosing weekly priorities without overcommitting
Questions are part of learning. Ask your teammates and team leader about anything that feels ambiguous, or share your exercise answer for feedback.