Product-org-os wardley-map

'Create a Wardley Map to visualize value chains and component evolution for strategic decision-making. Activate when: "wardley map", "value chain map", "component evolution", "strategic landscape",

install

source · Clone the upstream repo

git clone https://github.com/yohayetsion/product-org-os

Claude Code · Install into ~/.claude/skills/

T=$(mktemp -d) && git clone --depth=1 https://github.com/yohayetsion/product-org-os "$T" && mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills && cp -r "$T/skills/wardley-map" ~/.claude/skills/yohayetsion-product-org-os-wardley-map && rm -rf "$T"

manifest: skills/wardley-map/SKILL.md

source content

Document Intelligence

This skill supports three modes: Create, Update, and Find.

Mode Detection

Signal	Mode	Confidence
"update", "revise", "refresh" in input	UPDATE	100%
File path provided ( `@path/to/wardley-map.md` )	UPDATE	100%
"create", "new", "map" in input	CREATE	100%
"find", "search", "list maps"	FIND	100%
"the wardley map for [domain]"	UPDATE	85%
Just a business domain or user need	CREATE	60%

Threshold: >=85% auto-proceed | 70-84% state assumption | <70% ask user

Mode Behaviors

CREATE: Identify anchor user need, map value chain, position components by evolution, identify strategic gameplay opportunities.

UPDATE:

Read existing Wardley Map (search if path not provided)
Preserve anchor user need and value chain structure
Update component positions based on market evolution or new intelligence
Show diff summary: "Updated: [components moved]. New gameplay: [opportunities]."

FIND:

Search paths below for Wardley Map documents
Present results: domain, anchor need, date, path
Ask: "Update one of these, or create new?"

Search Locations

```
strategy/
```
```
product/
```
```
planning/
```
```
analysis/
```
```
competitive/
```

Gotchas

The anchor MUST be a real user need, not an internal capability. "The user needs to [verb]" — not "we need a platform"
Evolution positions are based on market maturity, NOT your company's maturity. A component you custom-built may already be a commodity in the market
Maps are situational — they represent ONE user need and its value chain. Do not try to map everything in one map
Movement arrows show where components ARE EVOLVING, not where you want them to be. Evolution is driven by competition and supply/demand, not by your strategy

Vision to Value Phase

Phase 1: Strategic Foundation - Wardley Maps reveal strategic landscape before committing to product bets, showing where to invest, what to build vs. buy, and where competitors are vulnerable.

Prerequisites: Understanding of target user and their needs Outputs used by:

/strategic-intent

(where to play decisions),

/strategic-bet

(informed by landscape),

/competitive-landscape

(evolution-aware competitive view),

/business-case

(build vs. buy decisions)

Methodology

The Map Structure

A Wardley Map positions components along two axes:

Axis	Represents	Direction
Y-axis (Visibility)	Value chain — from user need (top) to infrastructure (bottom)	Top = visible to user, Bottom = invisible
X-axis (Evolution)	Component maturity — from novel to commodity	Left = Genesis, Right = Commodity

Evolution Stages

Stage	Characteristics	Market	Examples
I. Genesis	Novel, uncertain, poorly understood, changing rapidly, high failure rate	Undefined, no market yet	New AI capabilities, experimental tech
II. Custom Built	Emerging understanding, bespoke solutions, increasing learning, divergent approaches	Early adopters, growing	Custom ML pipelines, in-house platforms
III. Product (+Rental)	Well-understood, increasingly standardized, feature differentiation declining	Mainstream, competitive	SaaS products, cloud services, commercial APIs
IV. Commodity (+Utility)	Standardized, essential, volume operations, well-defined, low margin	Mature, utility	Electricity, compute, storage, email

Component Characteristics by Stage

Characteristic	Genesis	Custom Built	Product	Commodity
Ubiquity	Rare	Emerging	Common	Widespread
Certainty	Poorly understood	Increasing clarity	Well understood	Fully defined
Market	Undefined	Niche	Competitive	Utility/volume
Knowledge	Exploration	Learning	Refinement	Operation
User perception	Exciting novelty	Enabling capability	Expected feature	Invisible utility
Appropriate method	Agile, experimentation	Lean, iteration	Six Sigma, best practice	Outsource, standardize

How to Create a Map

Step 1: Anchor on User Need Start with a specific user need at the top of the map. "The user needs to..." — this anchors the entire value chain.

Step 2: Map the Value Chain Work downward: what capabilities does the user need require? What does each capability depend on? Continue until you reach infrastructure components.

Step 3: Position by Evolution For each component, assess where it sits on the evolution axis based on MARKET maturity (not your implementation maturity).

Step 4: Identify Movement Add arrows showing which direction components are evolving. All components move left-to-right over time (toward commodity).

Step 5: Apply Gameplay Identify strategic opportunities based on component positions and movements.

Climatic Patterns (Rules of the Game)

Pattern	Implication
Everything evolves	No component stays in Genesis forever; plan for evolution
Components evolve through supply/demand competition	You cannot stop evolution; you can only exploit it
Past success breeds inertia	Incumbents resist evolution of components they profit from
Efficiency enables innovation	Commoditized components become platforms for new Genesis work
Higher-order systems create new sources of worth	As components commoditize, value shifts up the stack

Doctrine (Universal Principles)

Principle	Application
Focus on user needs	Anchor every map on a real user need
Use appropriate methods	Agile for Genesis, Lean for Custom, Six Sigma for Product, outsource Commodity
Think small	Small autonomous teams, not large coordinated programs
Be transparent	Share maps widely; strategy improves with more eyes
Challenge assumptions	Maps expose assumptions; use them to have better debates

Gameplay (Strategic Moves)

Move	Description	When to Use
Open source	Commoditize a component to undermine a competitor's profit center	When a competitor profits from a component that is ready to evolve
Ecosystem play	Build a platform on commoditized components, attract developers	When lower components are mature enough to standardize
ILC (Innovate-Leverage-Commoditize)	Innovate in Genesis, leverage in Custom/Product, commoditize to create platform	When you can drive the full evolution cycle
Tower and moat	Invest heavily in a component at the Product stage to own the market	When a component is crystallizing into product form
Exploit inertia	Move fast where incumbents resist change	When competitors have organizational inertia around evolving components
Signal distortion	Publish misleading intent to misdirect competitors	Competitive contexts with high-stakes positioning

Output Structure

# Wardley Map: [Domain/Context]

**Date**: [YYYY-MM-DD]
**Owner**: [Who owns this strategic analysis]
**Anchor User Need**: [The user needs to...]

---

## User Need

**User**: [Who is the user]
**Need**: [What they need to accomplish]
**Context**: [Business context, market situation]

---

## Value Chain

### Components (Top to Bottom)

| # | Component | Evolution Stage | Visibility | Dependencies |
|---|-----------|----------------|------------|-------------|
| 1 | [User-facing capability] | [Genesis/Custom/Product/Commodity] | High (visible to user) | — |
| 2 | [Supporting capability] | [Stage] | Medium | Depends on #1 |
| 3 | [Enabling service] | [Stage] | Medium | Depends on #2 |
| 4 | [Platform/infrastructure] | [Stage] | Low | Depends on #3 |
| 5 | [Foundational component] | [Stage] | Low (invisible) | Depends on #4 |

---

## Map (Text Representation)


---

## Evolution Analysis

| Component | Current Stage | Movement | Speed | Confidence |
|-----------|--------------|----------|-------|------------|
| [Component 1] | [Stage] | [Evolving toward X] | Fast/Medium/Slow | High/Med/Low |
| [Component 2] | [Stage] | [Stable / Evolving] | [Speed] | [Confidence] |
| [Component 3] | [Stage] | [Evolving toward X] | [Speed] | [Confidence] |

---

## Inertia Points

| Component | Who Has Inertia | Why | Strategic Implication |
|-----------|----------------|-----|---------------------|
| [Component] | [Company/Industry] | [Reason for resistance] | [How to exploit] |

---

## Strategic Gameplay Opportunities

### Opportunity 1: [Name]
**Type**: [Open source / Ecosystem / ILC / Tower and moat / Exploit inertia]
**Target component**: [Which component]
**Move**: [What to do]
**Expected outcome**: [What this achieves strategically]
**Risk**: [What could go wrong]

### Opportunity 2: [Name]
[Same structure]

---

## Build vs. Buy vs. Partner Analysis

| Component | Current Approach | Recommended | Rationale |
|-----------|-----------------|-------------|-----------|
| [Component 1] | [Build/Buy/Partner] | [Recommendation] | [Based on evolution stage] |
| [Component 2] | [Build/Buy/Partner] | [Recommendation] | [Based on evolution stage] |

**Principle**: Build in Genesis/Custom (competitive advantage). Buy/rent in Product/Commodity (table stakes).

---

## Method Mapping

| Component | Evolution Stage | Appropriate Method |
|-----------|----------------|-------------------|
| [Genesis component] | Genesis | Agile, experimentation, prototyping |
| [Custom component] | Custom Built | Lean, iteration, learning loops |
| [Product component] | Product | Best practice, feature comparison |
| [Commodity component] | Commodity | Outsource, standardize, SLA-driven |

---

## Key Assumptions

| # | Assumption | Component | Impact if Wrong | Validation |
|---|-----------|-----------|-----------------|-----------|
| 1 | [Assumption about evolution position] | [Component] | High/Med/Low | [How to validate] |
| 2 | [Assumption about user need] | [Component] | High/Med/Low | [How to validate] |

---

## Recommendations

### Strategic Priorities
1. **[Priority 1]**: [Action and rationale based on map]
2. **[Priority 2]**: [Action and rationale]
3. **[Priority 3]**: [Action and rationale]

### What to Stop Doing
- [Activity that the map reveals as misallocated effort]

### What to Start Doing
- [Activity the map reveals as strategic opportunity]

## Next Steps

- [ ] Validate evolution positions with market research via `/market-analysis`
- [ ] Frame strategic bets based on gameplay via `/strategic-bet`
- [ ] Feed build/buy decisions into business case via `/business-case`
- [ ] Map competitive positions via `/competitive-landscape`
- [ ] Save map to context registry via `/context-save`

Instructions

Start by identifying the anchor user need — "The user needs to..." Must be a real external user need
Map the value chain top-down: what capabilities serve the need? What do those depend on?
Position each component on the evolution axis based on MARKET maturity (not your own implementation)
Identify which components are actively evolving and in which direction
Look for inertia points — where are incumbents resisting evolution?
Identify gameplay opportunities based on component positions and movements
Derive build vs. buy recommendations from evolution positions
Map appropriate methods (agile/lean/six sigma/outsource) to each component's stage
Save output as markdown file
Offer
```
/strategic-bet
```
to frame gameplay as a formal strategic bet

Integration

Links to
```
/strategic-intent
```
(map informs where to play)
Links to
```
/strategic-bet
```
(gameplay becomes bets)
Links to
```
/competitive-landscape
```
(evolution-aware competitive view)
Links to
```
/market-analysis
```
(validate evolution positions)
Links to
```
/business-case
```
(build vs. buy decisions)
Links to
```
/business-model-canvas
```
(value chain informs business model)
Links to
```
/context-save
```
(save strategic landscape analysis)