Identifying, Mapping, and Managing Value Streams
Why Value Streams
Organizations operate uniquely with different roles in service relationships and varying digital product architectures. Real-world workflows deviate from theoretical templates and are "always unique" and formed by many lower-level workflows and actions.
Value stream: "a series of steps an organization undertakes to enable value for consumers through management of products and services."
Value streams:
- Represent the actual sequence of activities performed rather than predetermined blueprints
- Include information and artifact flows created, processed, and transferred during activities
- Enable value for customers or stakeholders
- Cover end-to-end flows across one or multiple organizations
Value stream mapping and management aim to:
- Focus on customer value and optimize end-to-end flows
- Visualize value enablement from start to finish
- Identify and eliminate waste to maximize value
- Identify and implement improvements
Value Streams of Digital Organizations
Organizations play different roles: creating and delivering digital products, shipping products to others, or operating products created elsewhere. This creates multiple value streams dependent on internal capabilities and external services.
Core and Enabling Value Streams
| Type | Definition | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Core value stream | Enables value for consumers as intended by operating model | New customer onboarding, incident resolution, product development |
| Enabling value stream | Enables value for internal customers supporting core streams | IT infrastructure provisioning, resource procurement, employee onboarding |
Categories may cascade -- enabling streams at one level become core at another.
Value Stream Mapping
Value stream mapping is "a technique for the visual representation and analysis of value streams," adapted from industrial settings for knowledge work and service management.
Five Steps of Value Stream Mapping
Step 1: Value Stream Identification
Determine which value streams exist and which to focus on.
Value streams should reflect how work actually happens. Two approaches:
Live value stream walk: Directly experience steps and information flow in practice using Lean's Gemba walk technique. Map workflows using whiteboards, sticky notes, or digital tools.
Reverse mapping: Restore workflows backward from selected outputs using records and interviews. Select workflows that are:
- Recent and easy to remember
- Real and clearly linked to customer-facing outputs
- Representative and applicable to similar cases
- Established with sufficient evidence and records
Combining both approaches maps real "as-is" workflows.
Step 2: Mapping the "As-Is" Value Stream
After identification, map activities, add timing, and include relevant information. Formal notations designed for production may be unnecessarily complex for knowledge work -- simple tools like whiteboards or online platforms suffice.
Key time metrics:
| Metric | Definition | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Cycle time | Time to complete one specific step | Per step |
| Wait time | Time spent waiting between steps | Between steps |
| Lead time | Total time from initiation to delivery | End-to-end |
| Flow efficiency | Percentage of cycle time in total lead time | End-to-end |
Activity categorization:
| Category | Description |
|---|---|
| Value-adding | Activities creating customer value |
| Supporting | Work not directly adding customer value |
| Coordinating | Management and organizing activities |
| Non-value-adding | Activities adding no customer value |
Step 3: Analysing the Value Stream
The mapped value stream is analyzed to identify bottlenecks, dependencies, and improvement opportunities. Time metrics reveal flow, delays, and congestion points. End-to-end analysis identifies highest-impact improvements. While efficiency matters, quality of outputs and flow efficiency both require attention.
Step 4: Mapping the "To-Be" Value Stream
After prioritizing bottlenecks, teams model improved versions:
| Map Type | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Ideal value stream map | Perfect version with optimal flow, best outputs, zero delays, all resources available; used as reference for direction |
| Future value stream map | Feasible improvements with achievable targets; documents expected state after specific improvements |
The future state map typically requires multiple improvements across Four Dimensions executed over time.
Step 5: Planning and Implementing Improvements
Based on analysis and inspired by "to-be" maps, improvements address all Four Dimensions:
- Organizations and people: Team reorganization, competency acquisition
- Value streams and processes: Procedure changes, handoff optimization
- Information and technology: New tools, improved automation
- Partners and suppliers: Contract changes, service level renegotiation
"Value stream mapping is relatively easy to start" and provides short-term results, but requires ongoing value stream management for sustainable effects rather than one-off exercises.
Value Stream Management
Value stream management involves ongoing focus on how work is done, plus analysis and improvement of organizational value streams. It requires understanding operating models, value chains, and how practices contribute to value flow, supported by automation and measurement.
Since value streams exhibit "high variability" and cannot be managed directly, continual improvement occurs through:
- Optimizing processes contributing to value streams
- Improving team collaboration and reducing handoffs
- Redesigning organizational structures supporting flow
- Upgrading tools and technology
- Enhancing governance and controls without unnecessary friction
"Adopting continual value stream management may be a significant transformation" requiring major leadership, cultural, organizational, and technology changes.
Relationship to the ITIL Lifecycle
Value streams are built from value chain activities (eight lifecycle stages). The lifecycle provides vocabulary; value streams describe how real work actually flows through those activities in specific contexts.
| Concept | Description |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle activities | Eight standard management activities (Discover through Support) |
| Value chain | Complete set of activities an organization can perform |
| Value chain pattern | Common activity combinations based on organizational role |
| Value stream | Specific end-to-end flow for particular purposes |
Related Pages
- Value chain (lifecycle activities)
- Product and service lifecycle
- Management practices overview