Every company has a goal, like every mountain hike has a peak to be reached. The problem usually is not setting this target, but how to get there, especially when it is a new place. First, ask yourself these 2 questions: 1. What do we usually bring with us beforehand? (except food xD) 2. What do we check before going? The answers are simple: **Map and Weather Forecast.** Why? Because they will help us get to the point, and avoid dead ends, or determine a better approach considering the weather (even including the complete change of plans). Without them it is really hard to [[Decision making|make decisions]]. ## [[Simon Wardley's Strategy Cycle]] [[Simon Wardley]] saw the same problems related to making decisions in business, which could even be resolved by a decision-making framework like [[OODA]], but the problem is that organisations very often rely on guesswork and ignore the hidden dynamics of [[Sun Tzu's 5 elements#Meteorology|meteorology]]: ![[Sun Tzu's 5 elements#^meteorology]] When combined, the loop presents as: ![[Simon Wardley's Strategy Cycle#^cycle]] So in fact the purpose of mapping and determining external forces is to avoid costly mistakes and position an organisation ahead of competitors - exactly in the same manner as a commander during war to make fewer mistakes than the enemies. ## Framework > A strategic framework that helps [[Organisation|organisations]] to understand their environment by [[mapping]] the [[Value chain|value chain]] and showcasing how each component evolves over time. ### Principles - every business has a [[Value chain]] - all components evolve - [[Strategy]] comes from timing - winners know where to innovate, where to differentiate, and where to cut costs ### Value Chain Every map starts with a user need of what your customer wants to achieve. Components are drawn as nodes linked by lines representing dependencies between them. We draw then starting from the customers needs that we would like to deliver. ### Visibility axis Each component from [[#Value Chain]] is positioned on `y` axis corresponding to its visibility to the end-user. ### Evolution axis Each component from [[#Value Chain]] is positioned on `x` axis corresponding to its evolution or commodization. |Stage|Characteristics|Strategic Focus| |---|---|---| |Genesis|Novel, uncertain, changing|Innovation, experimentation| |Custom Built|Growing, defined, scarce|Building capability, differentiation| |Product|Stable, available, competitive|[[Optimization]], market positioning| |Commodity|Ubiquitous, standardized, utility|Cost efficiency, scale| The questions you may encounter: - where should we invest? - Genesis and Custom Built mean differentation - what should we outsource? - consider commoditized components - how do we compete? - differentiate on evolving components, optimize the stable ones - what's changing? - monitor components moving between stages #### Genesis - it is basically an exploration - uncertain - ideas are discovered, clients needs are usually uknown - constantly changing #### Custom built - it is a growing market that is becoming more defined - first solutions exists that support custom needs #### Product (including rental) - it is stable market and clients understand how to use these products #### Commodity (including utility) - fully mature market, where a solutions are widely spread and standards are known and accepted ### Steps 1. Identify User Need - list users - needs [gray cards] 2. Map [[#Value Chain]] - underlying capabilites (e.g. tech) [cards with status color] - match dependencies 3. Position components on [[#Evolution axis]] 4. Add movement indicators - predict evolution (e.g. AI impact) [blue arrows] - [[Meteorology patterns]] - orient - [[Doctrine patterns]] - decide - [[Leadership patterns]] - (optional) bounded context (e.g. departments) 5. Analysis