Ideas for fulfilling customer needs can be generated much faster than they can actually be realized. This is the source of much tension between the organization and its customers, but also within the organization itself.

Upstream Kanban isn't so much about "managing flow," as seen with downstream, Delivery Kanban systems. Instead, it is about marshaling options--having enough choices at the right time, without overburdening the system and the workers who generate those options.

Discover the mechanisms of Upstream Kanban and Customer Kanban for better enterprise business agility.