Although value stream is a Lean Six Sigma concept, value stream thinking is gaining traction in Agile organisations as more organisations seek ways to accelerate delivery, reduce waste, and focus on customer outcomes. From an Agile perspective, an important question for project management practitioners is: does value stream thinking make sense in organizations structured around projects? Many professionals, especially those in traditional project environments, wonder how to apply value stream concepts when teams remain siloed by function, phase, or expertise. This post explores the relevance of value streams in project-oriented organisations, common challenges, some practical recommendations, and why this perspective is transforming how organisations deliver value.
Organizational Structure and Siloes
A common challenge is that many organizations are still structured around projects, with teams grouped by function (such as engineering, sales, or marketing) or by delivery phase (broker, build, test). This can make it difficult to visualize the end-to-end flow of value. Ron Jeffries, one of the authors of Extreme Programming, the framework that dominated Agile software delivery before the publication of the Manifesto for Agile Software Development, noted that “functional silos create local optimizations but often at the expense of the overall system.” The PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct mandates responsibility and respect, yet traditional structures sometimes hinder the collaboration needed for holistic improvement.
Blog post: Value Stream Thinking in Project Environments
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