Understanding Board Columns and Workflow

Columns represent stages in your workflow. Tasks move from left to right as they progress through different stages toward completion. Stride offers two types of boards with different column configurations.

AI-optimized boards come with five pre-configured columns designed for AI agent workflows. These columns cannot be added, removed, or renamed:

• Backlog: Tasks that are not yet ready to be worked on
• Ready: Tasks available for AI agents to claim
• Doing: Tasks currently being worked on
• Review: Tasks awaiting human review
• Done: Completed tasks

This fixed structure ensures consistency for AI agents working across multiple boards.

Non-AI optimized boards give you complete flexibility to design your own workflow. You can:

• Create any number of columns with custom names
• Add new columns by clicking Add Column
• Reorder columns by dragging them
• Rename or delete existing columns
• Design workflows like Backlog → In Progress → Testing → Complete or any pattern that fits your team's needs

When creating a board, select:

• AI Optimized Board if you'll be working with AI agents or want a standardized agent-friendly workflow
• Empty Board if you need custom columns tailored to your team's specific process

Note: You cannot convert between board types after creation, so choose carefully based on your workflow needs.

Only Custom Boards support WIP (Work In Progress) limits on each column. WIP limits prevent bottlenecks by restricting how many tasks can be in a column at once, keeping work flowing smoothly through your workflow.

AI-Optimized Boards do not support WIP limits — their five-column structure is fixed by design so AI agents can rely on a consistent workflow.