Cutter IT Journal Call for Papers: The Viral Growth of Kanban in the Enterprise

Call for Papers

Below is the call for papers for the upcoming Cutter IT Journal issue The Viral Growth of Kanban in the Enterprise , guest edited by Masa K. Maeda.

* Abstract Submission Date: 20 December 2010
* Articles Due: 25 January 2011
* Guidelines for Contributors

The Viral Growth of Kanban in the Enterprise

The community of Kanban practitioners worldwide is aware of the benefits and impact of this relatively new methodology. But how aware are enterprises and the IT industry in general? With the current state of the world economy, the high rate of failing projects, the increasing levels of stress among knowledge workers, and other undesirable situations — it is important to accelerate the use of Kanban — which is virally spreading as we speak.

Last September I co-authored a Cutter Benchmark Review issue with the purpose of learning the current state of Kanban adoption worldwide. The results were beyond expectations. We found that it is being adopted in all regions of the world with improvements in productivity, quality, and customer satisfaction of between 60% and 70% over other agile methodologies such as Scrum. [1] And it seems that more senior executives are willing to try Kanban because its evolutionary approach poses no threat to current processes. Although Kanban is no silver bullet, its ability to improve communications, increase innovation, and enhance quality of work life is revolutionizing the way software development is being practiced.

Of course, Kanban doesn’t always get rave reviews as the software development tool of choice. Although it is an interesting option, some believe is has not yet proven itself to be a more valuable tool than Scrum or some other already established methodologies.

The March issue of Cutter IT Journal invites useful and thoughtful debate and analysis on the opportunities and challenges presented by implementing Kanban methodologies in the enterprise. We invite experts, IT professionals, consultants, customers, and all other Kanban practitioners to share their perspectives — either positive or negative — with Kanban implementation. We also encourage authors to go beyond Kanban as a methodology and address other related factors such as communication, collaboration, environment, end-user issues, and how Kanban has been used in conjunction with other methods to reach project success.

TOPICS OF INTEREST MAY INCLUDE (but are certainly not limited to) the following:

* What are the benefits of implementing Kanban in the enterprise?
* What are the business drivers for Kanban adoption?
* What approaches or strategies can be used for better Kanban adoption?
* Why are organizations reluctant to use Kanban methods?
* What are the effects of Kanban on Enterprise Maturity?
* How can Kanban improve product portfolio management?
* How has Kanban been used successfully in large (10,000+ employee) and very large (50,000+ employee) organizations?
* What are the disadvantages or risks of employing Kanban practices?
* What are some case studies of successful Kanban implementations?

TO SUBMIT AN ARTICLE IDEA

Please respond to the Guest Editor, Masa Maeda, mmaeda[dot]cutter[at]gmail[dot]com with a copy to itjournal[at]cutter[dot]com by 20 December 2010. Include an extended abstract and short outline showing the major discussion points.
ARTICLE DEADLINE

Accepted articles are due by 25 January 2011.
EDITORIAL GUIDELINES

Most Cutter IT Journal articles are approximately 2,500-3,500 words long, plus whatever graphics are appropriate. If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact CITJ’s Group Publisher, Christine Generali at cgenerali[at]cutter[dot]com or the Guest Editor, Masa Maeda, mmaeda[dot]cutter[at]gmail[dot]com. Editorial guidelines are available at http://www.cutter.com/content-and-analysis/journals-and-reports/cutter-it-journal/edguide.html

AUDIENCE

Typical readers of Cutter IT Journal range from CIOs and vice presidents of software organizations to IT managers, directors, project leaders, and very senior technical staff. Most work in fairly large organizations: Fortune 500 IT shops, large computer vendors (IBM, HP, etc.), and government agencies. 48% of our readership is outside of the US (15% from Canada, 14% Europe, 5% Australia/NZ, 14% elsewhere). Please avoid introductory-level, tutorial coverage of a topic. Assume you’re writing for someone who has been in the industry for 10 to 20 years, is very busy, and very impatient. Assume he or she will be asking, “What’s the point? What do I do with this information?” Apply the “So what?” test to everything you write.

PROMOTIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

We are pleased to offer Journal authors a year’s complimentary subscription and five copies of the issue in which they are published. In addition, we occasionally pull excerpts, along with the author’s bio, to include in our weekly Cutter Edge e-mail bulletin, which reaches another 8,000 readers. We’d also be pleased to quote you, or passages from your article, in Cutter press releases. If you plan to be speaking at industry conferences, we can arrange to make copies of your article or the entire issue available for attendees of those speaking engagements — furthering your own promotional efforts.

ABOUT Cutter IT Journal

No other journal brings together so many cutting-edge thinkers, and lets them speak so bluntly and frankly. We strive to maintain the Journal’s reputation as the “Harvard Business Review of IT.” Our goal is to present well-grounded opinion (based on real, accountable experiences), research, and animated debate about each topic the Journal explores.

PLEASE FORWARD THIS CALL FOR PAPERS TO ANYONE WHO MIGHT HAVE AN APPROPRIATE SUBMISSION.
NOTE

1. “Kanban for Project Management: Should We Buy In?” Cutter Benchmark Review, Vol. 10, No. 9; September 2010.