A Guide to

Value Stream
Mapping
with
Kanbanize
Table of Content
Short Introduction
Map the current state
Identify the Beginning of a
Value Stream Map
Map the Information Flow
Map the Process Flow
Track Elapsed Time Between
Stages
Visualize Non-Value-Adding
Stages
Create Future/Ideal State of a
Value Stream
Calculate Flow Efficiency
Spot Bottlenecks & Identify
Waste
Limit Work In Progress
Continuously Improve
Short Introduction
Value stream mapping is a Lean tool for visualizing the
end-to-end flow of a product/service so you can identify
waste and optimize processes.
While the technique has its roots in manufacturing, it’s
becoming increasingly popular in an office/knowledge
work environment.
In this tutorial, we will walk you through some steps on
how you can use Kanbanize to create a value stream
map.
Stage 1. Map The Current State
First, we will show you how to map the current state of your
information and process flow on a Kanban board. Let’s get
started.
Step 1. Identify the Beginning of a Value
Stream Map
To map a value stream for a product/service, you’ll first
need to determine the starting point in your process
where you collect demand. In Kanbanize, you can use the
backlog area of a Kanban board which acts as a
container to visualize all incoming customer requests.
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Step. 2 Map the Information Flow

Once you’ve identified where the process begins, you can

start mapping the information flow on a Kanban board.
Because of its flexibility, Kanbanize allows you to
implement both Upstream (Discovery) and Downstream
(Delivery) Kanban.

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In terms of value stream mapping, Upstream Kanban
can be used to visualize the flow of information (initial
customer communication, documentation, etc.) before
the actual delivery stream. Based on your process,
right after the point where you collect demand, you
can use the Kanban board to create Kanban columns
related to the information flow.

For simplicity, let’s say that your information flow

consists of 4 stages: “Requirements Gathering”,
“Analysis”, “Documentation”, “Review”. Mapping those
inside Kanbanize will look like this:

In the image, notice that the lane above the columns is

grey, signifying the board’s backlog area. In other
words, here, we are only mapping the exchange of
information (i.e., knowledge-gathering flow) between
the supplier and the customer.

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Step 3. Map the Process Flow

Once you are done mapping the information flow, you

can move to the process flow. For that, you can use the
main/downstream part of a Kanban board. Let’s say that
your actual delivery process consists of the following
stages: “CAD Design”, “Prototyping”, “Testing”, “Reporting”.

Inside Kanbanize, you can visualize all these steps with

columns on a Kanban board including the point where
you commit to a new customer request (“Ready to Start”)
and where you finish it (“Done”).

It’s important to note that the commitment point here

(“Ready to Start”) acts as a connection between the
information and the process flows of the value stream
map. It’s a representation of those requests which you’ve
gathered enough information, and you are ready to pull
them inside the delivery process.

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Combined, Upstream and Downstream Kanban form the
information and process flow of a value stream map in
Kanbanize.

Step 4. Track Elapsed Time Between Stages

After you’ve visualized both flows, it’s now time to start

tracking elapsed/cycle time between work stages. This
information will be later helpful to calculate flow
efficiency based on value and non-value-adding stages.

Kanbanize allows you to easily set up cycle time

configuration by editing the workflow inside a Kanban
board. When you access the workflow editor, all you
have to do is choose the “Configure Cycle Time” option.

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This allows you to choose the stages in your value stream
map for which to track cycle time.

As the workflow data progressively accumulates in the

system, you can use it to determine how long a task stays
in a given work stage/column on the board and track
bottlenecks.

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 Step 5. Visualize Non-Value-Adding Stages

So far, you’ve mapped both information and process

flows, and you have a way to track time between work
stages. A complete value stream map, though, wouldn’t
be full without non-value-adding stages.

That’s why inside Kanbanize, you can add queue

columns to your process, representing waiting stages
that add no real value to the work at hand. So, let’s say
that you have stages such as “Ready for Review” and
“Waiting on External Stakeholder” in your workflow.

To map them in Kanbanize, you can use the workflow

editor and change the column details from “Activity” to
“Queue” type.

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Stage 2. Create Future/Ideal State
of a Value Stream
The steps above represent an overview of mapping
your existing process on a Kanban board. To get to an
ideal/future state of the value stream map, you need
to embrace continuous improvement. Let’s see how
Kanbanize enables you to do that.

Step 1. Calculate Flow Efficiency

To determine your flow efficiency, you need to apply

the following formula:

Flow Efficiency[%]=Value-added Time/Lead Time*100,

where the lead time is a combination of the value-

added and non-value-added activities in the process.

In Kanbanize, you can gain a quick overview of how

efficient your process is with the help of the flow
efficiency chart. Under the queueing stages
dropdown, you will see that the queue columns (non-
value-adding activities) that we created in the
previous step are automatically selected.

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Based on them and the cycle time configuration on
the other Kanban columns/work stages, Kanbanize will
accumulate workflow data. As a result, the chart will
automatically apply the above formula and derive a
percentage showing the flow efficiency of your
process.

Step 2. Spot Bottlenecks & Identify Waste

Bottlenecks add “waiting” waste to the process and

are thus one of the main efficiency killers. That’s why
you need to monitor them continuously.

Kanbanize allows you to do that with a variety of

charts, such as the cycle time heatmap.

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With its help, you can visualize how long work items
stayed in every stage of your process.

The idea here is to keep an eye on the red areas. They

usually signify bottlenecks in the process caused by
either too much work in progress or long cycle times of
the tasks (Kanban cards).

In Kanbanize, the heatmaps are very flexible as you

can calculate cycle time by different criteria (ex.:
average cycle time). It allows you to dig deeper in the
value stream maps, identify problematic stages, and
take necessary actions to remove process waste.

Step 3. Limit Work In Progress

Talking about bottlenecks, one of the best ways to
alleviate them is by limiting work in progress. It is also a
great way to improve the state of your value stream
and enable flow within your process.

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Kanbanize allows you to add a wide variety of WIP
limits inside your Kanban boards such as limits on
columns/work stages, swimlanes, cells, CONWIP, and
more. You can do that from the workflow editor inside
your account and bring the “pull” principle of Lean
into the workflow.

Step 4. Add Work Stages & Continuously

Improve the Value Stream Map

Finally, don’t forget that the value stream map is

constantly evolving, so make sure that you remove
wasteful activities and add new work stages or merge
others when necessary. Kanbanize allows you to do
that with its flexible boards and a variety of Lean
features.

Happy Kanbanizing!
If there is something we can help with, don't hesitate
to contact us.

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Map Value Streams

Measure Efficiency

Identify Waste

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