Futures · Explore

Wardley mapping

Maps the components of what you deliver against how evolved each one is, so you can see what to build, what to buy, and what is about to become a commodity underneath you.

Stage

02 Explore

Works at

Corporate, Business

Maturity

Scaling → Large organisation

Time

Half a day to learn it, half a day to draw one properly

What it is

Simon Wardley's mapping technique: a value chain drawn vertically from user need down to underlying components, with each component positioned horizontally by how evolved it is. Unlike most business diagrams it has both an anchor and a direction of travel, which is what makes it a map rather than a picture.

Anchor: The user and their need, at the top. Everything on the map exists to serve it; without an anchor the diagram has no meaning.
Value chain: Components arranged vertically by how directly they serve the user need. Higher is more visible to the user, lower is more foundational.
Evolution axis: The horizontal position: Genesis (novel, uncertain), Custom-built, Product (including rental), Commodity (including utility). Set by market maturity, not your own.
Movement: Everything evolves rightward over time. The map's real power is that it has a direction, so you can play it forward rather than only describe now.
Doctrine and gameplay: What follows: build what is in genesis, buy what is a product, never custom-build a commodity, and expect competitors to exploit the same movement you can see.

The mistake people makeNobody produces a useful map on their first attempt, and the notation genuinely costs a session to learn. If you have half a day and a room of people who have never seen one, you will spend it teaching the technique rather than making a decision.

What it’s forYou want to see how parts of your value chain will evolve, and where to build versus buy.

What it’s not forNobody in the room has seen one and you are short of time. The notation costs a session to learn.

How you run it

Start from a user need, not from your systemsEvery map is anchored on somebody wanting something. Anchoring on your architecture produces a diagram of your architecture.
Build the value chain downwardWhat does that need depend on, and what does that depend on? Keep going until you reach things you clearly buy.
Position each component by evolutionGenesis, custom-built, product, or commodity. Position by how the market treats it, not by how you treat it.
Look for the mismatchesCustom-building something the market treats as a commodity is the classic finding, and it is usually expensive and invisible.
Play the movement forwardEverything drifts rightward toward commodity. Ask what your position looks like when the component you differentiate on becomes something anyone can buy.

The prompt

Two ways to run it

Run this tool in your own Claude

The short prompt starts your partner against the library on your disk. The long one carries everything with it and needs nothing installed.

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🔒 Prompt locked

Everything above is free — what this tool is, what it is for, what it is not for, and how to run it as a workshop. Three tool prompts a month are free with an account; beyond three, and for the printable canvas, it is the paid part.

See plans — from £19 a month

Your playbook

It lands in the earliest stage this tool suits. Move it on the Playbook page.

You’ll need

A specific user need to anchor the map
The components that chain back from it
Someone who has done this before, or time to learn

You’ll end up with

A map with components positioned by evolution
Explicit build, buy and outsource decisions
Where movement will change your economics

Runs well with

Acquisition screen and synergy thesis Adjacency map Analysis plan Ansoff matrix