Value Stream Mapping Workshop

Value Stream Mapping is a great way to collaborate as a team to understand everything involved in delivering great products.

There are hidden systemic problems within every Value Stream and inherent waste that usually grows over time as systems evolve and change.

A Value Stream Mapping workshop pulls together everyone that has been working to deliver a product ("from Idea to Value" or "from Concept to Cash") and invites them to visualise the steps of the Value Stream and capture any pain points to action.

Workshop Guidance

This template is best used in a group workshop when experimenting with understanding the total end-to-end Value Stream Map of product delivery.

Select a recent medium-sized delivery that you can get data on and is still relatively fresh in people's minds.

Invite representatives from each stage of the delivery - you don't need to have every role in the workshop, just a good cross-section of those involved.

🔬 Value Steam Stages

Each column represents the stages experienced throughout the delivery - we need to understand the 'as-is' state of the Value Stream before we can improve the 'to be future state.

Update, add or remove these column headers as appropriate for the Value Stream you are mapping out.

Each column is facilitated by a different person in the workshop, ideally someone with experience in that stage of the Value Stream. Everyone should add notes to the board!

✍️ Value Stream Stage Details

Capture the detail of each stage, adding to separate sticky notes the roles, activities, deliverables, tools, policies and metrics that apply to that stage of the Value Stream.

😧 Pain Points

Capture Pain Points as you go through each column - issues that caused pain or delays. Systemic themes will emerge. Do not try to design solutions until afterwards.

🚴‍♀️ Cycle Time

Capture a range for the Cycle Time (time the delivery was in this step of the Value Stream).

⏲️ Wait Time

Capture a range for the Wait Time (time the delivery was waiting for the next step of the value chain).

🧮 Total Lead Time

Adding together the full ranges of the Cycle Time and the Wait Time will provide a Total Lead Time - the time it takes to deliver value to a customer from the initial idea.

🔢 Prioritise the Pain Points

Use the Dot Voting tool to prioritise the Pain Points. Ask each person to use five votes on the most important, impactful, or painful issue captured in the workshop.

The results of the Dot voting will provide a heatmap of actions and interventions of where the team should focus.

📹 Video - In-Person Reference

A video is included in the canvas to showcase how this workshop is delivered in an 'in-person' setting using blue tape and sticky notes!