Wardley Mapper

Transform ANY input into a strategic Wardley map for understanding competitive positioning and evolution.

Quick Start

1. Identify the scope: What system/business/concept are we mapping?
2. Find the user: Who is the primary beneficiary?
3. Extract components: What capabilities/activities exist?
4. Determine evolution: Where does each component sit on the evolution axis?
5. Map dependencies: How do components connect?
6. Generate visualization: Create the map

Core Mapping Process

Step 1: User & Scope Identification

# Always start with the user need
user_need = identify_primary_user_need(input_data)
scope = define_boundary(input_data)

Key questions:

• Who is the primary user/customer?
• What need are we fulfilling?
• What is the boundary of our system?

Step 2: Component Extraction

Components can be:

• Activities: Things we do (e.g., "customer support", "data analysis")
• Practices: How we do things (e.g., "agile methodology", "DevOps")
• Data: Information assets (e.g., "customer database", "analytics")
• Knowledge: Expertise and capabilities (e.g., "ML expertise", "domain knowledge")

For different input types:

• Structured data: Extract entities, relationships, processes
• Text descriptions: Use NLP to identify nouns (components) and verbs (activities)
• Technical architectures: Map services, infrastructure, dependencies
• Business models: Extract value propositions, channels, resources

Step 3: Evolution Assessment

Use the evolution characteristics matrix:

Step 4: Value Chain Positioning

Position components on Y-axis by visibility/value:

• Top (visible): User-facing, differentiating
• Middle: Supporting capabilities
• Bottom (invisible): Infrastructure, utilities

Step 5: Dependency Mapping

Connect components showing:

• Direct dependencies (solid lines)
• Data flows (dashed lines)
• Constraints (red lines)

Input Type Handlers

For Business Descriptions

See references/business-mapper.md

For Technical Systems

See references/technical-mapper.md

For Competitive Analysis

See references/competitive-mapper.md

For Data/Metrics

See references/data-mapper.md

Map Generation

HTML/SVG Visualization

# Use scripts/generate_wardley_map.py
from scripts.generate_wardley_map import WardleyMapGenerator

generator = WardleyMapGenerator()
map_html = generator.create_map(components, dependencies)

Text-Based Map

User Need
    |
    +-- [Visible Component] ------------> Product (0.7)
            |
            +-- [Supporting Component] ---> Custom (0.4)
                    |
                    +-- [Infrastructure] --> Commodity (0.9)

Advanced Patterns

Inertia Identification

Components resisting evolution despite market forces

Gameplay Patterns

• Commoditization play: Push products to utility
• Innovation play: Create new genesis components
• Ecosystem play: Build platforms at product stage

Strategic Movements

See references/strategic-patterns.md

Validation Checklist

✓ User need clearly defined ✓ All components have evolution position ✓ Dependencies mapped ✓ No orphaned components ✓ Evolution positions justified ✓ Map tells coherent story

Output Formats

1. Interactive HTML: Full visualization with tooltips
2. Static SVG: For presentations/documents
3. JSON Structure: For programmatic use
4. Strategic Report: Analysis and recommendations

Quick Command

For instant mapping:

# Read the input and generate map immediately
exec(open('scripts/quick_map.py').read())

Quality Indicators

Good maps have:

• Clear user focus
• Logical value chains
• Justified evolution positions
• Actionable insights
• Strategic options visible