How can you use value stream mapping to align your product development team with stakeholder capitalism?

1 What is value stream mapping?

VSM is a method of mapping the steps, activities, resources, and information involved in creating and delivering a product or service to a customer. It helps you to see the current state of your value stream, identify the sources of waste and inefficiency, and design a future state that eliminates or minimizes them. VSM can be applied to any process that delivers value to a customer, such as product development, manufacturing, sales, or service.

2 Why use value stream mapping for product development?

Product development is an intricate and ever-changing process that involves various teams, stakeholders, and feedback loops. It can be difficult to guarantee that your product meets the needs and expectations of your stakeholders, such as customers, employees, suppliers, partners, investors, regulators, and society. Utilizing VSM can help you comprehend the value proposition of your product from the perspective of your stakeholders, coordinate your product vision, strategy, and roadmap with stakeholder goals and values, pinpoint and prioritize the features and functions that provide the most value to your stakeholders, do away with or reduce activities that do not add value or create waste like rework, delays, defects, or over-engineering, optimize the flow of value from ideation to delivery while reducing cycle time, costs, and risks, heighten collaboration and communication between your product development team and your stakeholders, as well as measure and enhance the value delivered by your product and the effect it has on your stakeholders.

4 How to align your value stream with stakeholder capitalism?

Stakeholder capitalism is a model of business that considers the interests and needs of all the stakeholders affected by its activities, not just the shareholders. To ensure that your value stream is aligned with stakeholder capitalism, you need to define the value proposition of your product for each stakeholder group, taking into account their needs, expectations, and values. Additionally, it's important to incorporate the principles of sustainability, social responsibility, and ethics into your product vision, strategy, and roadmap. Furthermore, engaging and involving stakeholders in your product development process is key to success. This includes soliciting their input, feedback, and support while balancing the trade-offs and conflicts among their interests to create win-win solutions that create shared value. Finally, it's essential to communicate and demonstrate the value and impact of your product to your stakeholders using stories, data, and evidence.

5 What are the benefits of using value stream mapping for stakeholder capitalism?

Using VSM for stakeholder capitalism can offer many advantages. It can help create a product that increases customer satisfaction, loyalty, and advocacy, as well as enhance your reputation and credibility. Additionally, it can reduce environmental footprint and social risks, while allowing you to innovate and differentiate your product from competitors. Finally, it can improve business performance and profitability, reducing costs and increasing revenues.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?