What is User Needs Mapping?

User Needs Mapping (UNM) is a powerful technique designed to help organizations understand their users’ journeys and identify the underlying capabilities required to support them. By combining principles from Wardley Mapping, User Journeys, and Team Topologies, UNM offers a structured approach to define effective team boundaries and service ownership.

Born from the practical challenges of helping teams organize themselves around user needs, it has become a “go-to” tool within the Team Topologies community.

Why Use User Needs Mapping?

Organizations often struggle with aligning their teams and services to deliver value effectively. UNM addresses this by:

  • Providing a clear user-centered view of the system.
  • Highlighting capabilities needed to support user journeys.
  • Offering insights into team boundaries and potential areas of cognitive overload.
  • Supporting the decomposition of platforms into manageable team-owned services.

How Does It Work?

The UNM process involves:

  1. Mapping the User Journey: Understand the steps your users take and their specific needs at each stage.

  2. Identifying Capabilities: Define the underlying technical or organizational capabilities required to support these user needs.

  3. Grouping Capabilities: Organize capabilities into logical groupings, considering factors like team cognitive load and service ownership.

  4. Validating with Teams: Engage your teams in discussions to refine groupings and align on shared understanding.

Real-World Impact

Here’s how a Head of Delivery in a government organization used UNM:

Problem: Organizing people and teams around the user journey while identifying the necessary capabilities.

Outcome: Defined clear team boundaries, clarified service ownership, and decomposed platform teams for a new service.

Key Insight: The technique provided a structure for team discussions, leading to better alignment and actionable decisions.

Common Challenges and Tips

While UNM is intuitive, some challenges may arise:

  • First-Time Insights: Initial maps may confirm known assumptions. Focus on using discussions to uncover deeper insights.

  • Cognitive Load Estimation: Capabilities might be grouped too broadly. Consider weighting them based on complexity or dependencies.

  • Tooling: Tools like Miro, Mural, Excalidraw can enhance collaboration and make visualizing and iterating on the map easier.

Unexpected Benefits

Even if insights feel predictable, the structured discussions fostered by UNM provide clarity and alignment across teams. Participants often leave with a deeper understanding of their organization’s needs and priorities.

Adopted Widely in the Team Topologies Community

UNM has grown from a personal “itch to scratch” into a trusted technique embraced by practitioners worldwide. Its simplicity and adaptability make it an invaluable part of any team’s toolkit when designing humane and effective ways of working.

Learn More

Interested in exploring User Needs Mapping for your organization? Check out our resources or get in touch to learn how it can help you define clear team boundaries and services to deliver value faster.