Health Care Service Corporation, a Mutual Legal Reserve CompanyFOR INTERNAL USE ONLY
How Business Architecture Value Streams Can Benefit Project and
Program ManagersFrank Fons
July 2020, adapted mainly from content created by fellow
HCSC business architects, Greg Gulledge and Julie Gerdes
• Overview of Business Value Streams
– Definition
– Purpose
• Business Value Stream Usage
• What can Program and Project Managers do with or without the help of Business
Architects
Contents
FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY
What is a Business Value Stream?
Business Value Stream: Definition & Examples
Example Business Value Streams
Establish Product Collect Payment
Acquire Coverage Settle Claim
Onboard Member Provide Customer Service
Select Provider Onboard Employee
*Example is illustrative and does not represent a finalized set of value streams
* See appendix for definitions from the Business Architecture Body of Knowledge (Bizbok)
Business value
streams show how
an organization
creates value for
stakeholders within
the context of a set
of business activities
Request PositionValidate
Position
Source
Individuals
Evaluate
Individuals
Finalize
Acceptance[Value Stage]
Recruitment
requisition opened
Position
opened
Potential matches
for position are
identified
Match for
open position
identified
[Value Item]
Commitment
from individual
confirmed
An individual fills the
identified position and
is ready to contribute.
[Value Proposition]
Onboard
Individual
Individual is
contributing
*Example is illustrative and does not represent a finalized value stream
* See appendix for definitions from the Business Architecture Body of Knowledge (Bizbok)
Hiring Manager
has an open
position
[Trigger]
Stage Name:
Finalize Acceptance
Entrance Criteria:
Offer Extended
Exit Criteria:
Offer accepted/rejected
Value Item: Commitment
from individual confirmed
Stakeholders:
Hiring Manager, Recruiter,
Human Resources
VA
LU
E S
TA
GE
AT
TR
IBU
TE
S
Business Value Stream: Onboard Employee
Business Value Streams: Purpose
– Quickly get teams to a common
understanding
• Less need to define current state repeatedly
• Put initiatives in visual context that business stakeholders can understand and see commonalities and dependencies across initiatives before and after funding
– Facilitate strategic conversations
• Speak in terms of process, not just capability
• Easier path out of the weeds
Better facilitate the strategy & planning stages of delivery
FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY
How will Business Value Streams be used?
Usage: Problem Solving & Brainstorming
• Bring focus to conversation
• Heatmap pain points
Request PositionValidate
Position
Source
Individuals
Evaluate
Individuals
Finalize
Acceptance
Onboard
Individual
EXAMPLE
Delays in receiving
equipment
Delays in getting access to
systems
Departmental orientation
activities may be confusing
Lack of qualified
candidates for
specialized role
Pa
in P
oin
ts
Job descriptions not
defined for new roles
Pre-screening
questions have not
been established
Recruiters have not
been informed of the
business need
Interview scheduling
constrained by
resource availability
Offers are rejected
by qualified
candidates
* Pain points listed are examples for illustration only
Usage: Inform Investment Decisions
Request PositionValidate
Position
Source
Individuals
Evaluate
Individuals
Finalize
Acceptance
Onboard
Individual
Strategic
Goal
Strategic
Goal
Strategic
Goal
Existing Project
Proposed
Project Proposed
Project
Proposed
Project
The first step is to map the
alignment of projects and strategic
goals to value stages
Existing Project
Usage: Inform Investment Decisions
Request PositionValidate
Position
Source
Individuals
Evaluate
Individuals
Finalize
Acceptance
Onboard
Individual
Strategic
Goal
Strategic
Goal
Strategic
Goal
Existing Project
Proposed
Project Proposed
Project
Proposed
Project
Alignment & Implication
• Proposed project and 2
strategic goals align to
the same value stage
• Highly likely the
proposed project will
have strategic value
• Further research may be
needed to understand
strategic impact
Alignment & Implication
• No project is aligned to
the strategic goal
• Does a gap exist?
Alignment & Implication
• No connection
between proposed
project and strategic
goals
• Likely a less desirable
funding candidate
Alignment & Implication
• 2 existing projects and 1
potential project align to a
strategic goal
• Is there opportunity to combine
these efforts?
• Further research may be
needed to understand strategic
impact
Existing Project
1
1
4
2
2
3
3
4
The second step is to analyze the
implications of
project/strategy/value alignment
Usage: Program Planning/Phasing
• Use heatmap to show project phases
PHASE IPHASE III
EXAMPLE
Pa
in P
oin
ts
Request PositionValidate
Position
Source
Individuals
Evaluate
Individuals
Finalize
Acceptance
Onboard
Individual
Delays in receiving
equipment
Delays in getting
access to systems
Departmental
orientation activities
may be confusing
Lack of qualified
candidates for
specialized role
Job descriptions not
defined for new roles
Pre-screening
questions have not
been established
Recruiters have not
been informed of the
business need
Interview scheduling
constrained by
resource availability
Offers are rejected
by qualified
candidates
PHASE II
* Pain points listed are examples for illustration only
Usage: Map to Processes & Capabilities
Get approval for
position
Post position on
HR site
Post position on
public sites
Search for
candidates on
Assign recruiter
Review
candidate
resumes
Conduct
interviews
Select preferred
candidate
Send offer letter
Receive
acceptance
Set start date
Grant security
access
Request system
access
Request
equipment
Set up employee
payroll
information
Request PositionValidate
Position
Source
Individuals
Evaluate
Individuals
Finalize
Acceptance
Onboard
Individual
Create job
description
Submit position
request to HR
Hiring and
Termination
Policy and
Procedure
Management
Recruiting
Program
Management
Hiring Candidate
Review
Employment
Inquiry
Management
Employee Profile
Management
Training
Delivery
Role Based
Education
Management Job Role
Definition
Cap
ab
ilities
Pro
ce
ss A
lign
me
nt
FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY
Enterprise-Level Business Value Streams
Business Value Stream Reference Model
• Collection of Business Value Streams should
represent the highest level of process across the
enterprise
– Provide business context to solution architecture and
– Can be decomposed to most meaningful level of detail
– Can find libraries of commonly used value streams across
multiple industries IF anybody has a membership to the
Business Architecture Guild, which is under $200 per
person
• For maximum effectiveness, create Value Streams
in partnership among PMO, business, and IT
stakeholders
FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY
So what should a Program Manager or Project Manager do next?
Next Steps• If your organization has business architects
➢ Remember that anybody can join the Business Architecture Guild, so get
one member who can research Value Stream concepts to avoid starting
from scratch
➢ Ask them about partnering to borrow or create key Value Streams that cover
activities important to the enterprise related to key customer experiences
➢ Ask for help from both business architects and key business leaders to
collaborate firming up a few strategies, goals, key objectives, and timeline
for desired outcomes at each milestone/value stage in a Value Stream
➢ If your organization does not have an enterprise Business Capability Model
(BCM), don’t wait until one is done; Outline a few key Level 1 and maybe
Level 2 Capabilities that resonate with the business and align with the key
Value Streams and stages
Next Steps• If your organization doesn’t have business architects
➢ Remember that anybody can join the Business Architecture Guild, so get one
member who can research Value Stream concepts to avoid starting from
scratch
➢ In lieu of business architects leading this effort, have a senior Program
manager start with one key strategy and any key initiatives related to it and
identify the experience applicable to your customers; break it down into
milestones/stages and call that a Value Stream with an identifiable value
proposition attained for your customers at the end of the series of activities
➢ If your organization does not have an enterprise Business Capability Model
(BCM), don’t wait until one is done; Outline a few key Level 1 and maybe
Level 2 Capabilities that resonate with the business and align with the pilot
Value Stream and stages
Next Steps• Regardless of whether your organization has business architects, once
you have at least one important Value Stream created
➢ Map key pain points and/or opportunities related to gaps in people, process,
and technology
➢ Map the strategies and goals that match up to each Value Stream stage
➢ Map current and planned initiatives that relate to each Value Stream stage
➢ To help prioritize and sequence work, and inform funding and planning
decisions, identify any redundancies, dependencies, overlaps, etc. with the
help of subject matter experts and your IT/solution architects
Next Steps• Regardless of whether your organization has business architects, once
you have at least one important Value Stream created (continued)
➢ Ask business leaders what happens if initiative X is not done versus initiative
Y; this can help leaders decide what to fund
➢ Even during execution, refer back to milestones and value outcomes desired
and use that to inform decisions about rework, cancellation, etc.; you can use
earned value measurement techniques
➢ Cultural change is hard, so try this with a willing executive to back at least one
pilot; don’t try to implement this for several or all current and planned
initiatives, especially if you don’t have business architects, a BCM, and a
library of Value Streams to help
FOR INTERNAL USE ONLY
Appendix
Value Stream Concepts Defined• Value – “the benefit that is derived by an organization’s stakeholder while interacting with that organization”
• Value Stream – “a visual depiction of how an organization achieves value for a given stakeholder or
stakeholders within the context of a given set of business activities”
• Stakeholder – “internal or external individual or organization with a vested interest in achieving value through
a particular outcome”
• Value mapping – “value-focused analytical techniques intended to help organizations better understand how
they exchange value with their stakeholders”
• Value proposition – “an innovation, service, or feature intended to make a company, product, or service
attractive to customers or related stakeholders”
• Value item – “judgment of worth attached to something tangible or intangible and attained in the course of a
particular interaction with one or more other parties”
• Value stream stages – “represent the series of interchanges with stakeholders as the value stream moves
from initiation to conclusion”
• Business process – “series of logically related activities or tasks performed together to produce a defined set
of results”Source: Business Architecture Guild, Bizbok 8.0
Principles of Value Stream/Stage Creation• A stage needs to have well-defined entrance and exit criteria
• A stage needs to have an associated value item (value is accrued moving left to right
through a value stream)
• A stage needs to have one or more stakeholders
• As a value stream is navigated, stages may be skipped or may be reentered based on
entrance and exit criteria
• Value stages can be decomposed into sub-stages
• If there is heavy back-and-forth interaction between two stages, they possibly should
be combined into one
• If two stages share more than 90% of the same capabilities, they are basically doing
the same thing and there is good chance they should be combined
Source: Business Architecture Guild, Bizbok 8.0