Value Stream Wrapping | Old Lean Dude
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8 thoughts on “Value Stream Wrapping”	
Value Stream Mapping is a messy process. Neat and pretty gets in the way of collecting the information. I really prefer to grab all the data I can and worry about how pretty the paper looks at a later date (if ever!). To me VSM is the start of change. I remember someone telling me that: “No one like change except a baby — and the baby screams all through the change process.” Let’s remember the intent of this process.
I have been “forced”, against my better judgement, to participate a few sessions where the mapping was done digitally. Here’s how it affected the team. First, and most importantly, they put most of their attention on formatting and wordsmithing. Their attention was not on understanding what the map was telling them. The second problem was that they couldn’t see the whole map on the projector screen at once, and some of the insights were hidden because of this.
If you want a digital version of the map, either take a picture of it when you’re done or have someone in the background building it in parallel while the team is focused on the map.
The primary purpose of the observation and mapping is to build a clear and common understanding of current reality. You can’t do that just by building a map. You need dialog and activity to build that understanding.
Bruce Hamilton January 9, 2012 at 9:12 am
Thanks for your observations, Jamie. Peripheral vision is definitely underrated.
bryan_ostrowski@cargill.com January 9, 2012 at 11:24 am
Agree with Jaime totally. I have fought the battle and asked the people to trust me. Once they see the results on paper first, they usually get it.
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Ryan Cartier January 12, 2012 at 5:14 pm
I prefer a pencil and paper in lean implementations also.
The only time I produce a digital (excel, visio or VSM software) version of a value stream map is for some type of report out, management presentation or record – but I feel this 2nd production (rework) of a cleaned up version is waste;
and if it is to be used for training purposes, a better method would be to coach employees and executives through their own materials and information flow.
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autoditactical March 9, 2012 at 3:15 pm
This thread conjures up in my mind the old adage “beauty is only skin deep”. From the post and the comments here I don’t think I’d get much arguement. It also reminds me of a former colleague of mine who seemed to know all of the Lean Japanese buzzwords (kanban, gemba, etc.) and seemed to think that working these words into every conversation he would somehow impress people, and by simply saying the words something good was accomplished. He thought that the Japanese people were the first in history to think lean. I used to have great fun at his expense by working a few old adages into the conversation myself (‘a stich in time saves nine’, and ‘measure twice,cut once’ were a couple of my favorites). Taken by themselves, there’s nothing wrong with buzzwords, it’s just that for myself, I’d like to see more people proactively going forward while thinking outside the box.
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