OGBA-101 TOGAF Business Architecture Foundation Exam Questions and Answers

A business capability map is a comprehensive representation that showcases an organization's abilities in a structured manner. It identifies and illustrates the various business capabilities that allow the enterprise to function and deliver value. These capabilities are often defined independently of the organizational structure, processes, or technology, focusing instead on what the business does and can do. This map encompasses the end-to-end value delivery and how different capabilities interrelate and support one another, thus providing a holistic view of the business's functional abilities.

The relationship between business models and business architecture in TOGAF can be described as follows:

Business Models:

Definition: Business models describe how an organization creates, delivers, and captures value. They provide a high-level overview of the business, including elements such as value propositions, customer segments, channels, and revenue streams.

Purpose: Business models are used to understand and analyze the core elements of the business and how they interact to create value.

Business Architecture:

Definition: Business architecture provides a detailed view of the business, including its structure, capabilities, processes, and information. It articulates how the business operates and supports the business model.

Purpose: Business architecture translates the high-level view of the business model into detailed architectural views and artifacts. It ensures that the architecture aligns with the business strategy and supports the execution of the business model.

Relationship:

Articulation of Perspectives: Business architecture articulates the different perspectives and impacts of the business model by providing detailed views of the business components that support the model. This includes defining the necessary capabilities, processes, and organizational structures.

Alignment and Execution: Business architecture ensures that the architecture aligns with the business model and supports its execution. It translates the strategic intent of the business model into actionable and implementable architectural components.

TOGAF References:

Phase B: Business Architecture: This phase involves developing a detailed business architecture that aligns with and supports the business model. It includes identifying and defining business capabilities, processes, and organizational structures.

Strategic Planning: TOGAF emphasizes the importance of aligning business architecture with business strategy and models to ensure that the architecture supports the overall business goals.

Benefits:

Comprehensive Understanding: By articulating the different perspectives and impacts of the business model, business architecture provides a comprehensive understanding of how the business operates and delivers value.

Strategic Alignment: Ensures that the architecture is aligned with the business strategy and supports the execution of the business model, leading to better business outcomes.

In summary, business architecture articulates the different perspectives and impacts of the business model by providing detailed views of the business components that support the model, ensuring alignment and effective execution of the business strategy.

In the context of the TOGAF ADM (Architecture Development Method), the phase labeled as item 1, which conducts implementation planning for the architecture defined in previous phases, corresponds to Phase E: Opportunities and Solutions. Here’s a detailed explanation:

Phase E: Opportunities and Solutions:

Objective: This phase focuses on identifying delivery vehicles (projects, programs, or portfolios) that can deliver the target architecture identified in previous phases. It bridges the gap between the architecture vision and the detailed implementation.

Implementation Planning: In this phase, the architect develops the detailed Implementation and Migration Plan. This includes identifying work packages, sequencing activities, and preparing for the transition to the target architecture.

Key Activities:

Identify Opportunities and Solutions: This involves identifying potential solutions that address the gaps identified during the architecture definition phases (Phases B, C, and D).

Work Package Definition: Work packages are defined, which include specific projects or initiatives required to implement the architecture.

Transition Planning: Detailed plans for transitioning from the baseline to the target architecture are developed, ensuring that all necessary steps and resources are accounted for.

TOGAF References:

Phase E Deliverables: Key deliverables of this phase include the Implementation and Migration Plan, project charters, and work package descriptions.

Alignment with Business Strategy: This phase ensures that the implementation plans are aligned with the business strategy and objectives, providing a clear path for executing the architecture vision.

Benefits:

Structured Implementation: Conducting implementation planning ensures that the architecture is implemented in a structured and controlled manner, reducing risks and enhancing the likelihood of success.

Resource Allocation: It helps in efficient allocation of resources by identifying the specific projects and initiatives needed to achieve the target architecture.

In summary, Phase E of the TOGAF ADM focuses on conducting implementation planning for the architecture defined in previous phases, ensuring a structured and controlled approach to executing the architecture vision and achieving the desired business outcomes.

According to the TOGAF Series Guide: Organization Mapping, one of the derived relationships in an organization map is value flow1. A value flow is a relationship that shows how value is exchanged between business units or other entities in an organization map1. A value flow can be expressed as a verb phrase that indicates what type of value is transferred or shared between entities1. For example, in an organization map for an online retailer, a possible value flow could be “Delivers products” between the Warehouse business unit and the Customer entity.

https://pubs.opengroup.org/togaf-standard/business-architecture/organization-mapping.html

In TOGAF ADM, Phase B is the Business Architecture phase where the architect should locate existing architecture descriptions to create an information map. This phase involves developing a detailed understanding of the business environment, including business processes, roles, and information flows. Existing architecture descriptions provide a baseline for identifying how information is currently managed and how it can be optimized to support business objectives.

The step during development of a business scenario that ensures that each iteration is managed as a mini-project is the Planning Step3. The Planning Step is a preparatory step that defines how to approach each iteration of developing a business scenario3. The Planning Step involves setting up a project team with clear roles and responsibilities, defining a project plan with milestones and deliverables, identifying stakeholders and their concerns, establishing communication channels and feedback mechanisms, and securing resources and budget3. The Planning Step can help to ensure that each iteration is managed as a mini-project with clear objectives, scope, schedule, quality criteria, risks, and issues.

According to the TOGAF standard, business models are used to understand and describe the business itself, including its organization, its objectives, and how it operates. This understanding is crucial when defining an enterprise architecture as it provides a frame of reference. Business models help in identifying new capabilities that the business must develop to achieve its future state as outlined in the target business model. These capabilities may be processes, information, or technologies that the business must adopt or adapt to fulfill the strategic objectives and deliver value. TOGAF emphasizes the alignment of IT with business strategy, and the business model serves as a key link in ensuring that the capabilities delivered by the enterprise architecture will enable the desired business outcomes.

In the TOGAF ADM, the Preliminary Phase sets up the architecture capability within the organization, establishing architecture governance, defining architecture principles, and setting up necessary processes and tools. This phase is crucial for laying the foundation before formal architecture development begins.

References: TOGAF ADM Preliminary Phase.

The Preliminary Phase is the first phase in the TOGAF Architecture Development Method (ADM). It sets the foundation for successful architecture development within an organization. The primary purpose of this phase is to:

Establish an Enterprise Architecture practice: This involves defining the organizational structure, processes, and resources needed to support architecture activities.

Tailor TOGAF to the organization's needs: TOGAF is a flexible framework. The Preliminary Phase allows for adapting the ADM and other TOGAF components to fit the specific context and requirements of the organization.

Secure senior management commitment: Gaining support from leadership is crucial for the success of any enterprise architecture initiative. This phase helps to ensure that key stakeholders understand and endorse the architecture development process.

Define the scope and approach: This includes determining the initial scope of the architecture work, identifying relevant architecture domains, and selecting appropriate methods and tools

The statement that best describes iteration and the ADM is that the ADM is iterative, over the whole process, between phases, and within phases4. Iteration is a key concept in managing the complexity of developing an Enterprise Architecture and managing its lifecycle4. The ADM supports several forms of iteration as follows:

Iteration over the whole process: Projects will iterate through the entire ADM cycle, commencing with Phase A (Architecture Vision) and ending with Phase H (Architecture Change Management)4. Each cycle of the ADM will be bound by a Request for Architecture Work that defines the scope and objectives of the project4. The architecture output will populate or update the Architecture Landscape that describes the current and target states of the enterprise4.

Iteration between phases: Projects may cycle between ADM phases in planned cycles covering multiple phases4. Typically, this is used to converge on a detailed Target Architecture when higher-level architecture does not exist to provide context and constraint4. For example, a project may iterate between Phase B (Business Architecture), Phase C (Information Systems Architectures), and Phase D (Technology Architecture) until a satisfactory solution is achieved4.

Iteration within phases: Projects may return to previous activities within an ADM phase in order to circle back and update work products with new information4. Typically, this is used to manage the inter-relationship between different aspects of an architecture domain or viewpoint4. For example, a project may revisit Business Architecture models after developing Information Systems Architecture models to ensure alignment and consistency4.

Value streams represent the series of steps an organization takes to deliver value to a customer or stakeholder. A key principle in defining value streams is clarity about who initiates the value stream and what triggers it. This is essential for several reasons:

Understanding customer needs: Identifying the triggering stakeholder helps to understand their specific needs and expectations, which drives the design and optimization of the value stream.

Defining scope and boundaries: Knowing the trigger helps to define the starting and ending points of the value stream, ensuring that it encompasses all the necessary activities to deliver the desired value.

Measuring effectiveness: With a clear trigger, it becomes possible to measure the effectiveness of the value stream by tracking how well it meets the needs of the triggering stakeholder.

The diagram presented is best described as a Business Capability Map. Here's a detailed explanation:

Business Capability Map:

Definition: A Business Capability Map represents the various capabilities an organization requires to deliver its products and services and achieve its strategic objectives. It typically categorizes capabilities into different levels or tiers, such as strategic, core, and supporting capabilities.

Diagram Analysis:

Layers and Groupings: The diagram shows capabilities grouped into three categories: Strategic, Core, and Supporting. Each group lists specific business capabilities necessary for the organization’s functioning.

Color Coding: The use of different colors (green, red, yellow, purple) may indicate various aspects such as priority, status, or different business units. However, the primary purpose is to visually represent and categorize capabilities.

TOGAF References:

Phase B: Business Architecture: In this phase, creating a Business Capability Map is a crucial activity. It helps in understanding the business functions and aligning them with strategic goals.

Capability-Based Planning: TOGAF promotes capability-based planning, which involves identifying, mapping, and analyzing business capabilities to ensure they support the overall strategy and objectives.

Purpose and Benefits:

Strategic Alignment: The Business Capability Map helps in aligning business capabilities with the strategic objectives of the organization. It provides a clear view of what the organization needs to do to achieve its goals.

Gap Analysis: It is useful for conducting gap analysis by comparing current capabilities with the desired state, helping to identify areas for improvement.

Resource Allocation: By understanding the different capabilities, organizations can allocate resources more effectively to areas that need development or enhancement.

In summary, the diagram is best described as a Business Capability Map because it visually represents and categorizes the various capabilities needed by the organization into strategic, core, and supporting layers, aligning them with the business strategy and objectives.

In the TOGAF framework, the architecture domains considered as subsets of an overall enterprise architecture are Business, Technology, Application, and Data. Here’s a detailed explanation:

TOGAF Architecture Domains:

Business Architecture: Describes the business strategy, governance, organization, and key business processes.

Data Architecture: Defines the structure of an organization’s logical and physical data assets and data management resources.

Application Architecture: Provides a blueprint for the individual applications to be deployed, their interactions, and their relationships to the core business processes of the organization.

Technology Architecture: Describes the logical software and hardware capabilities that are required to support the deployment of business, data, and application services.

Importance of Each Domain:

Business Architecture: Aligns the architecture with the business strategy and goals.

Data Architecture: Ensures that data is structured and managed to support business processes and decisions.

Application Architecture: Ensures that applications are designed and integrated to support business processes.

Technology Architecture: Provides the technology infrastructure needed to support applications and data management.

TOGAF References:

Phase B: Business Architecture: Focuses on developing the Business Architecture.

Phase C: Information Systems Architectures: This phase includes both Data Architecture and Application Architecture.

Phase D: Technology Architecture: Focuses on developing the Technology Architecture.

In summary, the TOGAF standard considers Business, Technology, Application, and Data as the architecture domains that are subsets of an overall enterprise architecture.

A TOGAF business scenario is a technique that can be used to fully understand the requirements of information technology and align it with business needs1. It is not a business case, which is a document that provides justification for a proposed project or initiative6. It is not a method to develop a business model, which is a description of how an organization creates, delivers, and captures value for its stakeholders7. It is not a use-case, which is a description of how a system interacts with external actors to achieve a specific goal.

A TOGAF business scenario is a technique that helps to derive architecture requirements by describing a business process, application, or set of activities. It includes detailing the actors, roles, goals, business policies, business processes, and the environment in which the scenario takes place. Business scenarios are used within TOGAF to ensure that the architecture has a clear link to the business requirements.

TOGAF's ADM (Architecture Development Method) is designed to be iterative at multiple levels: over the whole process, between phases, and within phases. This iterative approach allows for continuous refinement and improvement of the architecture, ensuring it remains aligned with changing business needs and technological advancements. Iteration helps in managing complexity and facilitates incremental development, enabling architects to revisit and adjust their work as new information and insights emerge.

The purpose of this activity is to identify which business capabilities (out of the total set of capabilities) are critical to delivering stakeholder value, and therefore which ones need to be performed to a sufficient standard of quality to meet stakeholder expectations. It also helps to identify those business capabilities that do not contribute toward any of the core value streams, and which may be eliminated from the business.

The primary purpose of mapping capabilities to value stream stages within the TOGAF framework is to analyze how each capability contributes to delivering value to the customer. This process helps to identify:

Capabilities essential for value creation: These are the capabilities that directly contribute to the activities within the value stream and are critical for delivering customer value.

Capabilities with indirect or unclear contributions: These may require further investigation to determine their role in the value stream.

Non-contributing capabilities: These capabilities do not play a role in the value stream and may be candidates for elimination or optimization to improve efficiency and reduce costs.

In the TOGAF ADM cycle, Phase A, the Architecture Vision phase, is where the architect would locate existing architecture descriptions to create an information map. This phase involves understanding the strategic context for the architecture work, defining the scope, identifying stakeholders, creating the Architecture Vision, and obtaining approvals to proceed with the work. Part of this involves reviewing existing documentation to understand the current state of the architecture and the information that is already available, which would be useful for creating an information map.

Risk is defined as the effect of uncertainty on objectives. It can be positive or negative depending on whether it enhances or hinders the achievement of objectives. Threat is a potential cause of risk that could have a negative impact on objectives. Continuity is the ability to maintain or resume normal operations after a disruption or disaster. Vulnerability is a weakness or exposure that could be exploited by a threat to cause harm or damage.

In TOGAF and other enterprise architecture practices, analyzing a value stream often involves understanding the various stages of the value stream and assessing how each stage contributes to business value. Heat mapping is a commonly used technique to visualize and analyze these stages, making it the most appropriate choice in this context.

Understanding Value Streams in TOGAFA value stream represents a high-level view of how value is delivered to customers or stakeholders. It encompasses all the activities necessary to achieve a specific outcome, often broken down into stages. In TOGAF’s Business Architecture, value stream mapping is a key activity for analyzing and understanding these value stages, enabling architects to identify areas for improvement.

Heat Mapping as an Analysis TechniqueHeat mapping by value stream stages is a visualization technique that highlights the effectiveness or performance of each stage in the value stream. By applying a heat map, architects can easily see which stages are performing well (often marked in “cool” colors) and which stages may need improvement (often marked in “hot” colors). This is particularly useful for identifying bottlenecks, redundancies, or inefficiencies within the value stream, which is essential for project analysis.

Why Other Options are Incorrect:

Option A (Converting value stream stages to entities and building a logical data model):Building a logical data model involves defining data entities and their relationships, which is more relevant for data architecture. It does not directly contribute to analyzing a value stream’s stages or performance within a project scope.

Option C (An organization chart showing business units and their value):An organization chart shows hierarchical relationships and roles within the enterprise, which does not specifically address value stream stages. While it may help understand which units are responsible for different parts of the value stream, it doesn’t provide insight into the performance or effectiveness of each stage.

Option D (Combining information mapping with a business process model):Information mapping with a business process model is more suited for detailed process analysis. It involves mapping information flows within processes but doesn’t directly address analyzing value stream stages. Value streams are typically at a higher level than detailed business processes, focusing more on outcomes than specific activities.

Conclusion: Heat mapping by value stream stages (Option B) is the most effective tool for analyzing a new value stream within the project scope, as it provides a visual assessment of each stage’s performance and identifies areas for improvement.

References:

TOGAF® Standard, Version 9.2, Value Stream Mapping Techniques

 A key principle of value streams is that value is always defined from the perspective of the stakeholder2. A stakeholder is any person or group who has an interest in or influence on an enterprise or its activities5. A stakeholder can be internal or external to the enterprise. A stakeholder can also be a customer, end user, partner, supplier, regulator, employee, or any other role that interacts with or benefits from the enterprise’s products or services5. Value streams should reflect how stakeholders perceive and measure value in terms of outcomes, benefits, costs, risks, and satisfaction2.

In TOGAF’s Architecture Development Method (ADM), the information map is linked to other business blueprints during Phase B: Business Architecture. Phase B is focused on developing the Business Architecture, which involves creating and aligning various business architecture artifacts, such as capability maps, value streams, organizational maps, and information maps.

The information map provides an outline of the critical information needed to support the business capabilities and processes. By linking the information map with other business blueprints (like the process and capability maps), architects can ensure alignment and coherence across business architecture components. This helps in creating a clear, unified view of how information flows and supports business operations and value creation.

Option B (Phase E) is incorrect because Phase E (Opportunities and Solutions) is primarily focused on identifying potential solutions and prioritizing initiatives for implementation.

Option C (Phase A) is incorrect as Phase A (Architecture Vision) is focused on defining the scope and vision of the overall architecture effort and gaining stakeholder agreement.

Option D (Preliminary Phase) is incorrect as it focuses on establishing the architecture framework and principles rather than creating detailed business blueprints.

Therefore, Phase B: Business Architecture is the correct answer, as it is the stage where the information map is integrated with other business architecture artifacts to create a cohesive business architecture.

A statement of business goals and drivers can be used to help define information concepts in an information map. Here’s a detailed explanation:

Information Map:

Definition: An information map represents the structure and interaction of information assets that support key business functions and processes. It is used to visualize how information flows within the enterprise.

Role of Business Goals and Drivers:

Business Goals: These are the strategic objectives that the business aims to achieve. They provide direction and context for defining the information needs of the organization.

Business Drivers: These are the factors that influence the business strategy and operations. They help in understanding the priorities and requirements for information management.

Using Goals and Drivers to Define Information Concepts:

Alignment: By aligning information concepts with business goals and drivers, architects can ensure that the information map reflects the strategic priorities of the organization.

Relevance: Business goals and drivers help in identifying the most relevant information assets and understanding how they support the achievement of business objectives.

TOGAF References:

Phase A: Architecture Vision: During this phase, business goals and drivers are identified and used to shape the architecture vision and requirements.

Phase C: Information Systems Architectures: In this phase, the data architecture is developed, and business goals and drivers are used to define the information concepts and data structures needed to support the business.

In summary, a statement of business goals and drivers helps define information concepts in an information map by ensuring that the information assets are aligned with the strategic priorities and needs of the organization.

In the TOGAF ADM (Architecture Development Method), Phase B is the Business Architecture phase. During this phase, the information map, which represents the relationships and flow of information within the business, is linked to other business blueprints. This linkage is crucial to ensure that the business architecture is aligned with the data and information needs of the organization, providing a foundation for the development of subsequent architecture domains (Data, Application, and Technology Architectures).

One of the reasons that supports the need to govern Enterprise Architecture is that best practice governance enables the organization to control value realization6. Value realization is the process of ensuring that the expected benefits from implementing an Enterprise Architecture are achieved and sustained over time6. Best practice governance provides a framework and mechanisms for monitoring and evaluating the performance and outcomes of Enterprise Architecture initiatives, as well as ensuring alignment with strategic objectives and stakeholder expectations.

https://pubs.opengroup.org/togaf-standard/adm-practitioners/adm-practitioners_15.html In short, the implementation team is directed to create changes with intentional value-based outcomes. Best practice governance enables the organization to control value realization.

The chart depicted is a Gantt chart, which typically represents the schedule for project activities. In the context of TOGAF's ADM, it is used to illustrate the sequence and interdependencies of tasks across different phases of architecture development. The ADM is an iterative cycle that includes various phases, from the preliminary phase, through architecture vision, business, information systems, and technology architectures, to opportunities and solutions, migration planning, implementation governance, and architecture change management. Each phase must be conducted in a sequence to ensure that the outputs of one phase feed into the next, thereby producing a coherent and structured architecture.

The segments labeled A, D and I in the Business Model Canvas are Key Partners, Customer Relationships, and Revenue Streams respectively1. The Business Model Canvas is a tool that can be used to describe how an organization creates, delivers, and captures value for its stakeholders1. The Business Model Canvas consists of nine segments that cover four main areas: customers (segments B,C,D), offer (segment E), infrastructure (segments A,F,G), and financial viability (segments H,I)1. The segments are defined as follows:

Key Partners (segment A): The network of suppliers and partners that make the business model work1. Key partners can provide resources, activities, or support that enable the organization to offer its value proposition1.

Customer Relationships (segment D): The type of relationship that the organization establishes with its customer segments1. Customer relationships can be driven by customer acquisition, retention, or loyalty objectives1. Customer relationships can also influence the customer experience and satisfaction1.

Revenue Streams (segment I): The sources of income that the organization generates from each customer segment1. Revenue streams can be derived from different pricing mechanisms, such as asset sale, subscription, fee, commission, or advertising1. Revenue streams can also reflect the value that customers are willing to pay for the organization’s offer1.

https://pubs.opengroup.org/togaf-standard/business-architecture/business-models.html Figure 8: The Business Model Canvas[6]

The business capability map provided uses color coding to represent the maturity levels of various business capabilities in strategic, core, and supporting functions. The colors indicate the current state or priority for development, with red indicating capabilities that are significantly below desired maturity levels and thus require immediate attention. In this case, Policy Management, Government Relations Management, and HR Management are marked as red, signaling the need for urgent improvement. Yellow indicates capabilities that are closer to the desired state but still need attention, while green shows capabilities that have achieved the desired maturity level. Purple indicates a missing capability that does not currently exist in the enterprise, which is the case for Agent Management.

When creating value streams, it is recommended to start with customer-based value streams. Here’s a detailed explanation:

Value Streams:

Definition: Value streams represent the end-to-end activities that create value for customers or stakeholders. They provide a high-level view of how value is delivered within the organization.

Starting with Customer-Based Value Streams:

Customer Focus: Starting with customer-based value streams ensures that the architecture is aligned with the needs and expectations of the customers. This approach helps in identifying the most critical value-creating activities and aligning them with business goals.

Value Delivery: Customer-based value streams provide a clear understanding of how value is delivered from the customer’s perspective. This helps in designing processes and capabilities that enhance customer satisfaction and business performance.

TOGAF References:

Phase B: Business Architecture: In this phase, value streams are identified and modeled to ensure that the architecture supports the delivery of value to customers. Starting with customer-based value streams is a key activity in this phase.

Capability-Based Planning: TOGAF emphasizes the importance of aligning business capabilities with value streams to ensure that the architecture supports value creation and delivery.

Benefits:

Customer-Centric Design: Starting with customer-based value streams ensures that the architecture is designed with a focus on customer needs and value delivery.

Strategic Alignment: Aligning value streams with customer needs helps in ensuring that the architecture supports the strategic goals of the organization and enhances customer satisfaction.

In summary, when creating value streams, starting with customer-based value streams ensures a customer-centric design, aligning the architecture with the needs and expectations of the customers and supporting strategic goals.

A business model is a high-level conceptual representation that explains how an organization creates, delivers, and captures value. This encompasses the organization’s core logic for creating value, and may include its intended customer segments, the value propositions it offers, the channels through which it reaches customers, customer relationships it establishes, key activities, resources, and partnerships, as well as the revenue streams and cost structures. Thus, it is a visual and strategic representation of how a business operates and competes in the marketplace.

Developing a TOGAF business scenario provides several benefits, particularly in aiding vendors to deliver appropriate solutions. Here’s a detailed explanation:

TOGAF Business Scenarios:

Business scenarios are used to capture and describe business requirements, helping to identify and understand business needs and challenges.

Role in Vendor Engagement:

Clarity of Requirements: Business scenarios provide clear and detailed descriptions of the business context, needs, and requirements. This helps vendors understand what solutions are necessary to address specific business challenges.

Alignment of Solutions: By providing a comprehensive view of the business environment and requirements, business scenarios ensure that the solutions proposed by vendors are aligned with the actual business needs and strategic goals.

TOGAF ADM References:

Phase A: Architecture Vision: In this phase, business scenarios are developed to capture stakeholder concerns and requirements, providing a basis for the architecture vision.

Vendor Communication: Business scenarios are communicated to vendors to ensure that their solutions fit within the overall architecture and meet the specific requirements of the business.

Benefits:

Effective Solution Design: Vendors can design solutions that are tailored to the specific needs of the business, reducing the risk of misalignment and ensuring better outcomes.

Improved Collaboration: Business scenarios facilitate better collaboration between the enterprise and vendors by providing a common understanding of the requirements and expected outcomes.

In summary, developing a TOGAF business scenario aids vendors in delivering appropriate solutions by providing clear and detailed descriptions of business requirements, ensuring alignment with business needs and strategic goals.

Value Stream Mapping (VSM) is a powerful tool used to assess an organization's effectiveness at creating, capturing, and delivering value for different stakeholders. It involves mapping out the entire process of value creation from end to end, identifying each step involved, and analyzing how value is added at each stage. VSM helps in identifying bottlenecks, inefficiencies, and opportunities for improvement, ultimately aiming to optimize the value delivery process to better meet stakeholder needs.