I gave a talk at QCon London and I mentioned that I wanted to test if
there were some gaps or inconsistencies in the Kanban Method [1]. My
goal was to put the ideas to this list first, but due to time
constraints I didn't manage that. However, I thought it might be
interesting to see whether others see it similarly or differently than
me. My intent is to improve the Kanban Method by subjecting the logic
to robust discussion, and not to destroy or denigrate the Kanban
Method.

I presented three questions, I thought I'd post one at a time to keep
the discussion focussed.

Q1: How does "respect current roles, responsibilities and job titles"
relate to the fact "change is emergent and cannot be predicted"?

I infer that logic of the Kanban Method is that in order to gain broad
support for the Kanban Initiative:
* “[agree] to respect current roles, responsibilities and job titles
[in order to] eliminate initial fears”
* position Kanban against sweeping processes that might include the
“wholesale removal of certain positions” to “help individuals realize
the benefits [of the Kanban Method]”.

However, the Kanban Method also says that “What will happen next is
emergent change. Beyond that we cannot predict.”

I could imagine that if someone was afraid, telling them that their
roles were "respected" but that "we cannot predict [what will happen]"
could potentially increase their fears.

What I want to know is:
* What does "respect" mean in practice? I'd like to understand this
more concretely.
* What does the Kanban Method recommend saying to people (an example
dialogue would be very useful) who are afraid about their roles?
Should we say "We'll respect your roles, but we cannot predict what
will change?" Should we check "Does that seem a mixed message or
contradictory?" If not, why not?
* Should we tell them that we're trying to eliminate their fears?
Should we validate whether we have in fact eliminated their fears? On
what basis are we suggesting they should eliminate their fears?

1 -
http://agilemanagement.net/index.php/Blog/the_principles_of_the_kanban_method/