Planning Escalations

5.5.1 Planning Escalations

Planning escalations in Kanban Workflows is a strategic approach to managing tasks that require prioritization or intervention. This supports efficient escalation management and can be tailored to complex workflows, especially those involving cross-team collaboration. Here’s how it works in detail:

5.5.1.1 Escalation Trigger and Initial Setup

1. Escalation Column : The first step is to create an Escalation column on your Kanban Board. This designated area is where tasks requiring escalation are moved.
2. Identifying Escalated Tasks: Tasks that are stuck, delayed, or marked as urgent are transferred to the Escalation column, signaling the need for special attention or intervention.

Figure 5.12: Kanban Board for Customer Tickets (Source: Vabro)

Figure 5-12 above shows Vabro's Kanban Board for Customer Tickets, featuring task columns (Ticket Received, Assigned, In Progress, Done) with options to edit, add, or delete columns.

5.5.1.2 Setting Escalation Destinations

1. Escalation Destination Boards : Once tasks are moved to the Escalation column, you can define escalation destination boards—specific locations where tasks are sent for further action.
2. Multiple Destinations: Digital Kanban tools allow you to set multiple destination boards. For example, escalated tasks can be routed to:

1. Technical Support for resolution
2. Management for oversight and decision-making
3. Cross-Functional Teams when collaboration across departments is required

1. Flexible Escalation : This flexibility ensures that tasks are escalated to the appropriate team or individual for timely resolution.

Figure 5.13: Kanban Board with Escalation Column (Source: Vabro)

Figure 5-13 above shows Vabro's Kanban Board with an "Escalated" column added. A pop-up explains how to escalate tasks using this new column.

Figure 5.14: Kanban Board with Escalation Destinations (Source: Vabro)

Figure 5-14 above displays Vabro's Kanban Board with the "Escalation Destinations" window open. It shows three destinations: Tech Tickets, Payment Tickets, and L1 Support, each assigned to specific support teams. There's also an option to create a New Escalation Destination.

5.5.1.3 Severity Levels and SLA Timings for Escalations

1. Digital Kanban Tools allow you to configure Severity Levels that correlate with the Service Level Agreements (SLAs) for resolution times:

1. Critical tasks: Must be resolved within 1 hour.
2. High-priority tasks: Must be resolved within 2 hours.
3. Medium-priority tasks: Should be resolved within 4 hours.
4. Low-priority tasks: Can be resolved within 8 hours.

1. These severity levels help prioritize tasks, ensuring that urgent matters are addressed more quickly, while less critical tasks follow their own timelines.
2. The Kanban Manager can customize these SLAs based on the specific needs of the organization or workflow. Once a task is escalated, it must be resolved within the defined SLA to avoid further escalation or negative consequences.

Figure 5.15: New Escalation Destination Board (Source: Vabro)

Figure 5-15 above shows the "New Escalation Destination Board" setup window within Vabro's Kanban Board.

5.5.1.4 Managing Complex Workflows with Multiple Escalation Columns

1. For complex workflows, Digital Kanban Tools provide the option to add multiple Escalation Columns within a single Kanban Board. This is especially useful when the escalation process requires cross-team collaboration. The escalation columns in a Kanban Board can include:

1. First Escalation Column: A task may be escalated to a specialized team (e.g., technical support).
2. Second Escalation Column: If unresolved, the task can be escalated to management or a higher authority for quicker intervention.
3. Third Escalation Column: If still unresolved, a cross-functional team can be tasked with resolving the issue, involving multiple departments or stakeholders.

1. This structure allows for a tiered escalation approach, where each stage introduces a higher level of attention, increasing urgency and priority accordingly.

5.5.1.5 Notifications and Alerts

1. As tasks progress through the escalation process, notifications and alerts can be configured to inform relevant stakeholders at each stage. For example:

1. A notification can be sent to the support team when a task is escalated to them.
2. If the SLA for a task is about to be breached, the relevant manager or team lead can be alerted.

This ensures the team remains aware of critical tasks and that responsibilities are clearly defined at each stage of the escalation.