Lean Consumption and Lean Provision Maps
A consumption map is a simple diagram of all the actions customers must take to acquire given goods and services. A provision map is a similar drawing that shows all the actions producers and service companies must perform to deliver these goods and services to customers (see illustrations on pp.49–50).
On both the consumption and provision maps, boxes representing individual actions are drawn from left to right in process sequence. Each box is drawn in proportion to the time needed to complete the corresponding action and shaded in proportion to the fraction of value-adding time in each step. Key information, such as total time, value-added time, and first-time quality, also is collected and summarized in a box score for the total consumption and provision process.
To complete the mapping exercise, the two maps are displayed in parallel—one above the other—to show a complete consumption/provision cycle. The combined map helps providers “see” the whole process so they can identify and eliminate wasteful activities in consumption and provision and begin a win-win collaboration by drawing a leaner future-state map. (Womack and Jones 2005, pp. 22–45.)
