What is Wardley Mapping?

Wardley Mapping is a strategic thinking technique developed by Simon Wardley that helps organizations examine their environment, identify upcoming changes, and properly choose their actions. By examining what is needed, what components will be in use, what are their dependencies and characteristics, you can build a visual representation of your world, play what-if games, and pick your direction and best actions to support it.

The Core Concept

At its heart, Wardley Mapping is about situational awareness - understanding where you are, where you're going, and how to get there. It's like having a map of the business landscape that shows:

• What components exist in your value chain
• How evolved they are (from genesis to commodity)
• What dependencies exist between components
• Where change is happening and what it means

The Evolution Axis

Wardley Maps plot components along an evolution axis with four stages:

1. Genesis - New, uncertain, and unique
2. Custom Built - Becoming more understood but still specialized
3. Product - Well-defined and available as products/services
4. Commodity - Standardized, ubiquitous, and utility-like

Why It Matters

Wardley Mapping helps you:

• See the landscape - Understand your current position and environment
• Anticipate change - Identify what's evolving and what it means
• Make better decisions - Choose strategies that align with the landscape
• Communicate strategy - Share complex strategic thinking visually
• Avoid common mistakes - Don't build what you can buy, don't buy what you should build

The Value Chain

The horizontal axis represents the value chain - the sequence of activities that deliver value to your users. This could be anything from a simple service to a complex ecosystem of components.

Getting Started

Wardley Mapping starts with a simple question: "What do you need to deliver value to your users?" From there, you map out the components, their evolution stage, and their relationships. The result is a visual representation that makes strategic thinking tangible and actionable.

This technique has been used by organizations worldwide to transform their strategic thinking and make better decisions in an increasingly complex and fast-changing world.