ABSTRACT
Whatever the industry, companies can use the value stream mapping tool to “get their heads and their hands” around even complex processes and systems. They can also use it to develop much needed teamwork across their organizations. The mapping tool is designed to capture the way work is organized and how it progresses throughout an organization (or series of organizations) to enable management to
◾ Visualize the process from a system perspective ◾ Point to problems impacting system performance ◾ Focus the direction of their Lean transformation to a few changes that have great impact on the system
Value stream mapping clearly shows the activities, pathways, and linkages necessary to process information or deliver a service, which, for several reasons, are not always easily identified and understood in office and service environments. First, much information exists and travels in electronic form, which can make it less visible unless methods are put in place to do bring it to the forefront. Next, the sequencing of the activities often varies as information processors or service providers are permitted to do things “their way”—in other words, with little to no standardization. Further, the scheduling of work, the means to trigger the next task or to “link” the activities, is often left unclear. The question, “How do you know when to perform an activity?” gives rise to varied responses, which is particularly concerning given the high-multitasking nature of most office and service environments. To summarize, the flows in office and service environments are loosely structured, which makes it difficult to identify and map their value streams. In addition, information flow is rarely contained in a single department. These circumstances make value stream mapping all the more important. At the same time, however, this context requires greater skill and practice with the tool.
