--- name: wardley-map-creation description: Create Wardley Maps from value chains and user needs allowed-tools: Read, Glob, Grep, Write, Edit --- # Wardley Map Creation Skill Create Wardley Maps to visualize value chains and component evolution for strategic planning. ## When to Use This Skill Use this skill when: - **Wardley Map Creation tasks** - Working on create wardley maps from value chains and user needs - **Planning or design** - Need guidance on Wardley Map Creation approaches - **Best practices** - Want to follow established patterns and standards ## MANDATORY: Documentation-First Approach Before creating Wardley Maps: 1. **Invoke `docs-management` skill** for mapping patterns 2. **Verify Wardley mapping methodology** via MCP servers (perplexity) 3. **Base guidance on Simon Wardley's original methodology** ## Wardley Map Fundamentals ```text Wardley Map Structure: VISIBLE TO USER ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ User Need │ │ ○ │ │ \ │ │ ○ Component A │ │ \ │ │ ○ Component B ──── ○ Component C │ │ \ \ │ │ ○ Component D ○ Component E │ │ \ │ │ ○ Component F │ │ │ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘ INVISIBLE TO USER ◄──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────► Genesis Custom-Built Product/Rental Commodity (I) (II) (III) (IV) EVOLUTION AXIS ──────────────────────────────────────────────► ``` ## Evolution Stages | Stage | Characteristics | Examples | |-------|-----------------|----------| | **Genesis (I)** | Unique, poorly understood, rare, uncertain, changing | New AI capabilities, novel algorithms | | **Custom-Built (II)** | Uncommon, understood by few, growing, best practice emerging | Custom integrations, bespoke solutions | | **Product (III)** | Common, understood, stable, best practice known | Commercial software, SaaS platforms | | **Commodity (IV)** | Ubiquitous, standardized, certain, utility-like | Cloud compute, electricity, bandwidth | ## Evolution Properties ```text Properties Change Along Evolution Axis: Genesis ────────────────────────► Commodity Ubiquity: Rare ──────────────────────────► Everywhere Certainty: Uncertain ─────────────────────► Certain Failure: High ──────────────────────────► Low Market: Undefined ─────────────────────► Defined Knowledge: Uncertain ─────────────────────► Known User perception: Chaotic ──────────────────────► Ordered Focus: Exploration ───────────────────► Exploitation ``` ## Map Creation Process ### Step 1: Identify User Need Start with the user's actual need (not a solution): ```text Good User Needs: - "I need to process customer payments" - "I need to communicate with my team" - "I need to deploy software to production" Bad (Solution-focused): - "I need Stripe" (solution, not need) - "I need Slack" (solution, not need) - "I need Kubernetes" (solution, not need) ``` ### Step 2: Build Value Chain Work backwards from user need to dependencies: ```text Example: E-commerce Platform User Need: "Buy products online" │ ├── Product Catalog │ ├── Search │ ├── Product Data │ └── Images │ ├── Shopping Cart │ ├── Session Management │ └── Pricing Engine │ ├── Checkout │ ├── Payment Processing │ ├── Address Validation │ └── Tax Calculation │ └── Order Fulfillment ├── Inventory ├── Shipping └── Notifications ``` ### Step 3: Position Components Place each component on the evolution axis: | Component | Evolution Stage | Rationale | |-----------|-----------------|-----------| | Product Catalog | Product | Many commercial options | | Search | Commodity | Elasticsearch, Algolia commoditized | | Payment Processing | Commodity | Stripe, PayPal utilities | | Pricing Engine | Custom | Business-specific rules | | AI Recommendations | Genesis | Still evolving rapidly | ### Step 4: Add Dependencies Draw links showing dependencies: ```text Dependency Rules: - Higher components depend on lower - Arrows flow down and to the right - Visible components near top - Infrastructure components near bottom ``` ### Step 5: Annotate Movement Add evolution indicators: ```text Movement Notation: ○────► Moving right (commoditizing) ○◄──── Moving left (rare, usually wrong) ○ ∿ ∿ Inertia (resistance to change) ○ !! Warning/concern ``` ## Wardley Map in Mermaid (Approximate) ```mermaid %%{init: {'theme': 'base', 'themeVariables': { 'primaryColor': '#fff', 'lineColor': '#333'}}}%% flowchart TB subgraph visible["Visible to User"] UN["User Need: Buy Products"] PC["Product Catalog"] SC["Shopping Cart"] CO["Checkout"] end subgraph invisible["Invisible to User"] SE["Search"] PP["Payment Processing"] DB["Database"] CL["Cloud Compute"] end UN --> PC UN --> SC UN --> CO PC --> SE PC --> DB SC --> DB CO --> PP PP --> CL SE --> CL DB --> CL classDef genesis fill:#f9f,stroke:#333 classDef custom fill:#fcf,stroke:#333 classDef product fill:#cfc,stroke:#333 classDef commodity fill:#ccf,stroke:#333 ``` ## Text-Based Map Notation For precise Wardley Maps, use Online Wardley Maps (OWM) notation: ```text title E-commerce Platform anchor User [0.95, 0.70] component Product Catalog [0.82, 0.65] label [-10, -10] component Shopping Cart [0.75, 0.55] label [10, -10] component Checkout [0.70, 0.60] label [10, 10] component Search [0.60, 0.85] label [-10, -10] component Payment Processing [0.45, 0.90] label [-20, 10] component Database [0.35, 0.75] label [10, 10] component Cloud Compute [0.20, 0.95] label [-10, 10] User->Product Catalog User->Shopping Cart User->Checkout Product Catalog->Search Product Catalog->Database Shopping Cart->Database Checkout->Payment Processing Payment Processing->Cloud Compute Search->Cloud Compute Database->Cloud Compute evolve Payment Processing 0.95 note Custom pricing engine at 0.55, 0.35 [business differentiator] ``` ## Component Positioning Guide ### Visibility (Y-axis) | Position | Component Type | |----------|----------------| | 0.90-1.00 | Direct user interaction | | 0.70-0.89 | User-facing features | | 0.50-0.69 | Application services | | 0.30-0.49 | Platform/infrastructure | | 0.10-0.29 | Utilities | | 0.00-0.09 | Raw resources | ### Evolution (X-axis) | Position | Stage | |----------|-------| | 0.00-0.17 | Genesis | | 0.18-0.40 | Custom | | 0.41-0.70 | Product | | 0.71-1.00 | Commodity | ## Common Mapping Patterns ### Pioneer-Settler-Town Planner ```text Pioneers: Genesis → Custom - Explore new territory - High failure tolerance - Focus on innovation Settlers: Custom → Product - Take pioneer discoveries - Make them useful - Focus on product-market fit Town Planners: Product → Commodity - Industrialize at scale - Focus on efficiency - Volume and margins ``` ### Identifying Anchors ```text Anchor: User needs or market expectations that don't change Good anchors: - "Communicate with customers" (stable need) - "Process transactions" (stable need) Bad anchors: - "Use email" (solution, will evolve) - "Use SQL database" (technology, will evolve) ``` ## Workflow When creating Wardley Maps: 1. **Start with Purpose**: What decision are you trying to make? 2. **Identify Users**: Who are you mapping for? 3. **Define Needs**: What do users actually need? 4. **Build Chain**: Map components from need to dependencies 5. **Position Components**: Place on evolution axis 6. **Add Movement**: Show evolution direction 7. **Identify Opportunities**: Find strategic options 8. **Iterate**: Maps improve with understanding ## Output Template ```markdown # Wardley Map: [Context] ## Purpose [What strategic question is this map answering?] ## Scope [What boundaries define this map?] ## User Need [The anchor need at the top of the map] ## Map [OWM notation or diagram] ## Key Components | Component | Position | Evolution | Notes | |-----------|----------|-----------|-------| | [Name] | [y, x] | [stage] | [observations] | ## Movement [Components evolving and direction] ## Strategic Observations [What the map reveals] ## Questions Raised [What needs further exploration] ``` ## References For detailed guidance: --- **Last Updated:** 2025-12-26