Kanban

Kanban was invented by a Toyota industrial engineer. It's an organizational scheduling system, giving visibility to the status and process for many parties involved in making...something.

Kanban is used in many methods of work and organization. See: Just In Time - JIT.

Originally, Kanban organization helped align a firm’s inventory movement with the rate of consumption, so that there’s never a back-up and overstocking, nor a shortage, of product. In Toyota’s factory, there are six kanban rules that help them build cars fast and efficiently, with minimal confusion or error. Things like "nobody gives anybody else something defective" and "nothing moves without someone requesting it."

Today, Kanban’s made a name in the electronic scene, with apps like Trello. Kanban is all about constant, iterative movements...a ballet of firms.