High level introduction to Wardley Maps - why might they be something worth learning?

1. Wardley Maps
John Donoghue
Agile:MK – February 2020

2. The plan…
• General Introduction
• Simple example
• Example for Software Development

3. General Introduction
• About “Situational Awareness”
• Created by Simon Wardley to help with strategy
decisions – but can be useful in other places
• “All maps are wrong, some are useful”
• Originally called “Value Chain Mapping”
• Let’s hear from the man himself…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnFeIt-uaEc

4. In Summary
• Map is intended to help you plan where to go
• Can be at any level of detail
• Shows Value Chain against Evolution
• Helps to think about:
– How should we expect things to change: threats
and opportunities
– How to manage different things: methods,
investment

5. Simple Example: Pizza
Pizza
Ingredients
Dough
Toppings
Sauce
Pizza Oven
ElectricityMaintenance
Visibility
Evolution
Genesis Custom Built Product Commodity

6. Simple Example: What can we see?
Pizza
Ingredients
Dough
Toppings
Sauce
Pizza Oven
ElectricityMaintenance
Visibility
Evolution
Genesis Custom Built Product Commodity

7. Example: generalised Software Development
• Inspired by a post from Chris McDermott
https://medium.com/@chrisvmcd/mapping-maturity-
create-context-specific-maturity-models-with-wardley-
maps-informed-by-cynefin-37ffcd1d315

8. Identify the need
• Develop “our product”

9. What do we need to do that?
• Build the right thing
• Build the thing right
• Build it fast enough

10. Build out the Value Chain
Product
Build the Thing Right
Build
Client Build Server Build
Client Tests Server Tests
Build the Right Thing
Understand
Need
Understand
Value
User
Research
Market
Research
Build Fast Enough
Process Pipeline
Version
Control
Environments Tools
Build
Server
Visibility

11. Map against Evolutionary Stage
Visibility
Evolution
Novel Emerging Good Best

12. Evolution Aside
• Use labels suitable to the context
• See “Cheat sheet” on wardleypedia for examples
http://wardleypedia.org/mediawiki/index.php/File:Che
at_sheet.png

14. Map against Evolutionary Stage
Product
Build the
Thing Right
Build the
Right Thing
Build Fast
Enough
Visibility
Evolution
Novel Emerging Good Best

15. Map against Evolutionary Stage
Product
Build the
Thing Right
Build the
Right Thing
Understand
Need
Understand
Value
User
Research
Market
Research
Build Fast
Enough
Visibility
Evolution
Novel Emerging Good Best

16. Map against Evolutionary Stage
Product
Build the
Thing Right
Build
Client Build
Server Build
Client Tests
Server Tests
Build the
Right Thing
Understand
Need
Understand
Value
User
Research
Market
Research
Build Fast
Enough
Visibility
Evolution
Novel Emerging Good Best

17. Map against Evolutionary Stage
Product
Build the
Thing Right
Build
Client Build
Server Build
Client Tests
Server Tests
Build the
Right Thing
Understand
Need
Understand
Value
User
Research
Market
Research
Build Fast
Enough
Process
Pipeline
Version
Control
Environments
Tools
Build
Server
Visibility
Evolution
Novel Emerging Good Best

18. Now what do we do with it?
• Consider how things could/will change
• Scenario planning
• Select appropriate process
• Allocate resources
• Common patterns

19. Where can we “move” to?
Product
Build the
Thing Right
Build
Client Build
Server Build
Client Tests
Server Tests
Build the
Right Thing
Understand
Need
Understand
Value
User
Research
Market
Research
Build Fast
Enough
Process
Pipeline
Version
Control
Environments
Tools
Build
Server
Visibility
Evolution
Novel Emerging Good Best

20. Links
• Introductory talk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnFeIt-uaEc
• Free training course https://leadingedgeforum.com/advisory/wardley-mapping/
• Free book https://medium.com/wardleymaps/on-being-lost-2ef5f05eb1ec
• Wardley Pedia http://wardleypedia.org/mediawiki/index.php/Main_Page
• Map Camp https://www.map-camp.com/
• Map Camp 2019 presentations https://www.infoq.com/Map-Camp-Conference-
London-2019/presentations/