ICTlogy

Abstract:

A step-by-step guide into analysing businesses and their marketplace to develop actionable corporate insight. "Wardley maps" are diagrams of a business' environment which serve as powerful communications tools and guides: learn how to create these maps using a straightforward process, and harness their power in your business.

Business strategy has a well-deserved reputation for snake-oil, faddish ideas and un-actionable ideas, often handed down from large-scale enterprise change programmes designed by management consultants. The "Wardley mapping" technique is a simple way to describe the environment in which a business operates, from the fixed perspective of customer. Simple maps allow teams to talk about business strategy and tactics in powerful ways, enabling businesses to achieve their strategic goals and respond appropriately to changes in the market.

Whether you've heard about Wardley mapping or not, have previously tried it without success, or are simply interested in developing your strategic/analytical business skills further, this book will lead you through the process of developing these maps using a few simple tools. No matter your current level of experience, this book will enable you to:

• critically analyse the needs of your users - using a concrete three-step process, you will be able to draw maps which represent your current environment
• assess the extent to which the general marketplace meets the needs of the users
• develop "situational awareness" about the opportunites available to your business, and the threats to it
• spread these skills internally to raise the level of awareness throughout your teams

At each step, the book draws on specific practical examples to demonstrate the methods discussed, and through a series of case studies enables you to practice the methods before moving on. This book is aimed at CEO/COOs and "C-suite" colleagues, but will suit people at any level in a business (in fact, having whole-organization understanding of maps is crucial) and will be specifically valuable to those new to management and seeking to make an impact.