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Overview

The Visual Board is a free-form canvas inspired by physical Obeya (大部屋) rooms used in lean management. Place sticky notes, shapes, images, widgets, and linked items anywhere on an infinite canvas. It is perfect for brainstorming, PI planning, retrospectives, and strategy visualization.

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The Canvas

The Visual Board provides an infinite, zoomable canvas. Use your mouse wheel or trackpad to zoom in and out, and click-drag on empty space to pan around.
Press Cmd+0 / Ctrl+0 to reset the zoom to 100% and center the canvas on your content.

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Adding Elements

Click the toolbar on the left side of the canvas to add elements:

Sticky Notes

Colored sticky notes in multiple sizes. Type directly on them. Choose from eight colors.

Shapes

Rectangles, circles, triangles, diamonds, and arrows. Customize fill, border, and text.

Text

Free-form text labels with configurable font size, color, and alignment.

Images

Upload images or paste from clipboard. Resize and position freely on the canvas.

Connectors

Draw lines and arrows between elements to show relationships and flows.

Board Widgets

Embed live data from your other boards as widgets. Show item counts, status breakdowns, or mini tables.

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Linked Items

You can link items from your structured boards onto the Visual Board. Linked items appear as cards that update in real time — change the status on your Kanban board and it reflects on the Visual Board instantly.
1

Open the Item Picker

Click the Link Item button in the toolbar or press L.
2

Select Items

Search for items by name or browse by board. Select one or more items to link.
3

Place on Canvas

Click anywhere on the canvas to place the linked item cards. Arrange them as needed.

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Zones and Sections

Divide your canvas into zones with colored backgrounds and labels. Zones help organize the visual board into logical areas (e.g., “Sprint Goals”, “Risks”, “Dependencies”). To create a zone, select the Zone tool and draw a rectangle on the canvas. Name it and choose a background color.

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Real-Time Collaboration

The Visual Board supports real-time collaboration with:
  • Live cursors showing where each team member is looking
  • Presence indicators in the top-right showing who is online
  • Simultaneous editing of different elements
  • Cursor chat — press / to type a quick message at your cursor position
The Visual Board is designed for team sessions. Use it during PI planning, sprint retrospectives, or brainstorming meetings where everyone contributes simultaneously.

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Templates

Start with pre-built Visual Board templates:
  • Kanban Board — sticky notes organized in columns
  • Retrospective — What went well, What to improve, Action items
  • SWOT Analysis — Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats
  • PI Planning Board — Program Increment planning with team swimlanes
  • Business Model Canvas — Nine building blocks of a business model
  • Blank Canvas — Start from scratch

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Exporting

Export the Visual Board as a high-resolution PNG or PDF for sharing outside of Obeya Cloud. Click Export in the top menu and choose your format and resolution.