Guiding teams, and shaping a portfolio, using Wardley Maps & DDD at KanDDDinsky

Effective portfolio management hinges on teams and software systems being aligned with value streams. Wardley Mapping and Event Storming are techniques for collectively discovering and re-imagining current constraints on value streams into a more favorable flow. Domain-Driven Design on the other hand offers patterns, principles, and practices that help with moving the boundaries that constrain the value stream. These techniques are even helpful if we are not certain yet on how to deliver value to the customer.

Portfolio management and DDD have something important in common: both practices promote the idea that the focus of engineers & designers should be directed toward the area with the largest potential for business differentiation.
Although DDD could be considered a holistic approach to software design, introducing it in fast-growing organizations should be done gradually, and iteratively, in order to snowball into true momentum for change. We should anticipate how quickly the snowball will grow based on domain knowledge, technical fluency, and adaptive capacity of teams and the surrounding organization.

Join the session to learn the do's and don'ts of introducing these ideas in fast growing organizations.

Transcript

1. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Guiding teams and shaping a portfolio using Wardley maps and DDD
2. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Domain-Driven Design does not exist in a vacuum
4. Marijn Huizendveld I help leadership teams at fast growing organizations accomplish more with the people that produce their software. marijn@huizendveld.com marijn.huizendveld.com
5. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky If you have less then 5 teams.
6. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky For in-depth discussion on the topic
7. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky If you are new to DDD or Wardley Mapping
8. huizendveld.com …talk to me after this presentation KanDDDinsky
10. huizendveld.com TL,DR; KanDDDinsky
11. huizendveld.com Lack of situational awareness leads to painful situations when the market evolves KanDDDinsky
12. huizendveld.com Prioritizing the emerged situation is of little help, Because if lots of things receive priority, then nothing receives priority KanDDDinsky
13. huizendveld.com Constraints in the landscape limit what can or what cannot be done KanDDDinsky
14. huizendveld.com Situational awareness increases constraint awareness KanDDDinsky
15. huizendveld.com Constraint alleviation should drive sequencing of initiatives in portfolio management KanDDDinsky
16. huizendveld.com Use DDD patterns, principles, and practices to align systems to the value stream and surrender to the constraint. KanDDDinsky
18. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky In Theory
19. huizendveld.com The solution (tm) ✓ Wardley Mapping: Gain situational awareness ✓ Domain-Driven Design: Shift boundaries ✓ Portfolio Management: Constrain work in progress KanDDDinsky
20. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Theory ≠ Practice
21. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky In Practice
22. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky
23. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky 🗺 Make problems visible, 👩⚖ decide , and 🔁 iterate Deal with reality
24. huizendveld.com Basically do what a DDD-er does, just higher up in the stack
26. Wha t is p ort fo lio m an agem en t ?
27. huizendveld.com Organizations have limited resources but in fi nite ideas to improve. Portfolio management is the process to resolve this tension by picking and evaluating initiatives that yield results. KanDDDinsky
28. huizendveld.com Organizations have limited resources but in fi nite ideas to improve. Portfolio management is the process to resolve this tension by picking and evaluating initiatives that yield results. Organizations have limited resources but in fi nite ideas to improve. Portfolio management is the process to resolve this tension by picking and evaluating initiatives that yield results. KanDDDinsky
29. huizendveld.com “Yet another thing we have to do, on top of agile, OKRs, 360 reviews, etc., etc., etc.” – anyone KanDDDinsky
30. huizendveld.com You are already doing it, perhaps not intentionally
31. huizendveld.com Imagine a CTO and a CFO of a fast growing company…
32. © Ketut Subiyanto
33. huizendveld.com And then they all lived happily ever after…
34. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Lack of situational awareness leads to painful situations when the market evolves
35. © Lukas Medvedevas
36. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Prioritizing the emerged situation is of little help, Because if lots of things receive priority, then nothing receives priority
37. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky
38. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Constraints in the landscape limit what can or what cannot be done
39. Visibility Genesis Custom Build Product (+ rental) Commodity (+ utility) 2020 Company Grow revenue Billing Add-on Usage Service offering Subscription Growth hacking Price experiments Component Pipeline Anchor Line of the present Needs Line of the future Future component
40. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Situational awareness increases constraint awareness
41. Visibility Genesis Custom Build Product (+ rental) Commodity (+ utility) 2020 Company Grow revenue Billing Add-on Usage Service offering Subscription Growth hacking Price experiments Billing as a Service Component Pipeline Anchor Line of the present Needs Line of the future Future component
42. Visibility Genesis Custom Build Product (+ rental) Commodity (+ utility) 2020 Company Grow revenue Usage Service offering Growth hacking Price experiments Billing as a Service Component Pipeline Anchor Line of the present Needs Line of the future Future component
43. Visibility Genesis Custom Build Product (+ rental) Commodity (+ utility) 2020 Company Grow revenue Billing Add-on Usage Service offering Subscription Growth hacking Price experiments ACL Billing as a Service Component Pipeline Anchor Line of the present Needs Line of the future Future component
44. Visibility Genesis Custom Build Product (+ rental) Commodity (+ utility) 2020 Company Grow revenue Usage Service offering Growth hacking Price experiments Billing as a Service ACL Component Pipeline Anchor Line of the present Needs Line of the future Future component
45. Who is pu z zl ed? Ra i s e y o ur h and
46. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Constraints alleviation should drive sequencing of initiatives in portfolio management
47. Visibility Genesis Custom Build Product (+ rental) Commodity (+ utility) 2020 Company Grow revenue Billing Add-on Usage Service offering Subscription Growth hacking Price experiments Billing as a Service Component Pipeline Anchor Line of the present Needs Line of the future Future component
48. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky 🗺 Be conformist, or ➡ change needs There are di ff erent ways to surrender to the constraint
49. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Use DDD patterns, principles, and practices to align systems to the value stream and surrender to the constraint.
50. huizendveld.com Hide problems behind abstractions
51. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Gra nt t i c k e t ho lde r acc es s Tic ket Ch e ck in g Tic ket h o l d er wa s g r ant e d ac c es s The co m m and is t h e i n s tru c t i o n The even t i s t h e co n se q u e n ce The ex t e r n a l s y s te m is t h e re s pon si b l e p art y
52. huizendveld.com Shift boundaries in due time with high-quality engineering
53. describe('Please reserve vehicle', () = > { test('Vehicle is available', async () = > { return (new CommandHandlingScenario<AnyReservingEvent, AnyReservingCommands>()) .given( aVehicleEnteredOperation() .with('vehicle', 'NL : GHC-12-A') .andWith('vehicleClass', 'long distance trips') .toObject() ) .when({ _named: "Please reserve vehicle!", vehicle: 'NL : GHC-12-A', reservedBy: "customer:11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111", when: ZonedDateTime.of( LocalDateTime.parse("2024-11-02T20 : 19 : 52"), ZoneId.of("UTC+2") ) }) .then({ _named: "Vehicle was reserved", vehicle: 'NL : GHC-12-A', vehicleClass: 'long distance trips', reservedBy: "customer:11111111-1111-1111-1111-111111111111", when: ZonedDateTime.of( LocalDateTime.parse("2024-11-02T20 : 19 : 52"), ZoneId.of("UTC+2") ) }) .assertScenario(runAssertionOnDecider(decider)); }); });
54. huizendveld.com Surrender to the constraint
55. huizendveld.com You cannot remove the constraint!
56. huizendveld.com Use DDD to ✓ Hide problems behind abstractions ✓ Shift boundaries in due time with high-quality engineering ✓ Surrender to the constraint KanDDDinsky
58. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky In Theory
59. huizendveld.com The solution (tm) ✓ Wardley Mapping: Gain situational awareness ✓ Domain-Driven Design: Shift boundaries ✓ Portfolio Management: Constrain work in progress KanDDDinsky
60. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Theory ≠ Practice
61. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky In Practice
63. huizendveld.com “In portfolio management you are either grieving or lying to yourself” – Romeu Moura KanDDDinsky
64. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Leadership Management Team Engineering Product Business
65. huizendveld.com “Between you and me… We are really bad at this” - Any of your nine allies KanDDDinsky
66. huizendveld.com “We have a strategy” - Any of your nine allies KanDDDinsky
67. huizendveld.com Friction ❌ Lose engagement ❌ Remodeling open store ❌ Teams go o ff the rails ❌ Misaligned cadence ❌ Cards close to chest ❌ Numb to pain KanDDDinsky
68. huizendveld.com Deal with reality ✓ Make problems visible: in portfolio management ✓ Make tough decisions: be human, but clear and decisive ✓ Iterate on implementation: adjust strategy ongoing KanDDDinsky
69. huizendveld.com Basically do what a DDD-er does, just higher up in the stack
70. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky This is the organizational equivalent of going to the gym
71. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Dreams © Binyamin Mellish
72. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Reality
74. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Final words
75. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky
76. huizendveld.com Portfolio Management o ff ers a structure to be a good manager KanDDDinsky
77. huizendveld.com “A manager’s task is di ff i cult, but simple: […]” – Scott Galloway KanDDDinsky
78. huizendveld.com “[…] allocate fi nite capital to generate a greater return than their peer group gets” – Scott Galloway KanDDDinsky
79. huizendveld.com Surrender to the constraint ✓ Make problems visible: in portfolio management ✓ Make tough decisions: be human, but clear and decisive ✓ Iterate on implementation: adjust strategy ongoing KanDDDinsky
81. huizendveld.com Continue your learning 🔗 Conway’s Law Doesn’t Apply to Rigid Designs by Verraes 🔗 Wardley Maps by Wardley 🔗 The Anatomy of DDD by Millett 🔗 Antifragile by Taleb KanDDDinsky
82. huizendveld.com KanDDDinsky Did you like this presentation? Tell your friends Tell your boss Tell the internet
83. Are you eager to learn more? Marijn Huizendveld B.V. Hillegomstraat 12-14 1058 LS Amsterdam The Netherlands If you take the time to ask a good question, then I’ll take the time to write a good answer. marijn@huizendveld.com marijn.huizendveld.com