Steve Clean Mapping the Unknown – The Ten Steps to Map Any Business

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step

 Lǎozi 老子

I simply had lunch with Shenwei, one in every of my ex-students who had simply taken a job in a mid-sized consulting agency.  After a little bit of catching up I supplied he was wanting a bit misplaced. “I simply obtained handed a venture to assist our agency enter a brand new trade – semiconductors. They need me to map out the house so we will determine the place we will add worth.

After I requested what they already knew about it, they tossed me a tall stack of trade and inventory analyst reviews, firm names, internet sites, blogs. I began studying via a bunch of it and I’m drowning in knowledge however don’t know the place to begin. I really feel like I don’t know a factor.”

I advised Shenwei I used to be completely satisfied for him as a result of he had simply been handed an superior studying alternative – the right way to quickly perceive after which map any new market. He gave me a “straightforward so that you can say” look, however earlier than he may object I handed him a pen and a serviette and requested him to put in writing down the names of firms and ideas he examine which have something to do with the semiconductor enterprise – in 30 seconds. He rapidly got here up with a listing with 9 names/phrases. (See Mapping – First Cross)

“Nice, now now we have a begin. Now give me a couple of phrases that describe what they do, or imply, or what you don’t find out about them.”

After a couple of minutes he got here up with a serviette sketch that seemed like the image in Mapping – Second Cross. 
Now we had some progress.

I identified he now had a starter checklist that not solely contained firms however the starting of a map of the relationships between these firms. And whereas he had a couple of information, others have been hypotheses and ideas. And he had a ton of unanswered questions.

We spent the following 20 minutes deconstructing that sketch and mapping out the Second Cross checklist as a diagram (see Mapping – Third Cross.)

Be aware that even with simply the sparse set of data Shenwei had, within the backside right-hand nook of his third mapping go, a relationship diagram of the semiconductor trade was starting to emerge.

As the knowledge fog was starting to raise, I may see Shenwei’s confidence returning. I identified that he had an actual benefit that his project was in a identified trade with a number of obtainable data. He rapidly realized that he may hold including data to the columns within the third mapping go as he learn via the reviews and internet sites.

My suggestion was to make use of the diagram within the third mapping go as the start of a wall chart – both bodily (or just about if he may hold it in all in his head). And each time he discovered extra concerning the trade to replace the connection diagram of the trade and its segments. (When he identified that there have been current diagrams of the semiconductor trade he may copy, I advised that he ignore them. The aim was for him to grasp the trade effectively sufficient that he may draw his personal map ab initio – from the start. And if he did so, he may create a a lot better one.)

When lunch was over Shenwei requested if it was OK if he checked in with me as he discovered new issues and I agreed. What he didn’t know was that this was solely step one in a ten-step trade mapping course of.

Epilog

Over the following few weeks Shenwei shared what he had discovered and despatched me his more and more refined and up to date trade relationship map. (The 4th  mapping go confirmed up 48 hours later.)In change I shared with him the information that he was on step one in every of a ten step trade mapping program. Different the following few weeks he rapidly constructed on the trade map to reply questions 2 via 10 under.

Two weeks later he handed his management an trade report that coated the ten steps under and contained a complicated trade diagram he created from scratch. A far cry from his authentic serviette sketch!

Six months later his work on this venture satisfied his firm that there was a big alternative within the semiconductor house, and so they began a brand new observe with him in it. His work gained him the “finest new worker” award.

The Ten Steps to Map any Business

Primary Business Understanding

1. Diagram the trade and its segments
   1. Begin with something
   2. Construct your studying by successive iteration
   3. Who’re the important thing suppliers to every phase?
   4. How does this trade feed into the bigger financial system?
2. Create a glossary of trade distinctive phrases
   1. Are you able to clarify them to others? Are there analogies to different markets?
3. Who’re the trade specialists in every phase? For the complete trade?
   1. Financial specialists? E.g. trade analysts, universities, suppose tanks
   2. Expertise specialists? E.g. universities, suppose tanks
   3. Geographic specialists?
4. Key Conferences, blogs, internet sites, and so on.
   1. What are the perfect opensource knowledge feeds?
   2. What are the perfect paid assets?

Detailed Business Understanding

5. Who’re the market leaders? New entrants? In income, market share and development price
   1. Within the U.S.
   2. Western international locations
   3. China
6. Perceive the expertise flows
   1. Who builds on high of who
   2. Who’s crucial versus who will be substituted
7. Perceive the financial flows
   1. Who buys from who on this trade
   2. Who buys the output from this trade.
   3. How cyclical is demand?
   4. What are the demand drivers?
   5. How do firms inside every phase get funded? Any variations in capital necessities? Ease of beginning, and so on.
8. If relevant, perceive the personnel circulation for every phase
   1. Do folks transfer simply between their segments or up and down via the complete trade?
   2. The place do they get educated?

Forecasting

9. What’s modified within the final 10 years? 5 years?
   1. Diagram the previous incarnations of the trade
10. What’s going to alter within the subsequent 5 years?
    1. Any massive perception on disruption?
    2. New entrants?
    3. New expertise?
    4. New international suppliers?
    5. Diagram your mannequin of the trade in 5 years

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