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Value Stream Mapping: How to Visualize Work and Align Leadership for Organizational Transformation 
Authors: Karen Martin and Mike Osterling
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Education, ©2014

If you are interested in Value Stream Mapping (VSM), there are numerous lean Six Sigma books that reference it and give detailed instructions on how to do it. So why read another one? VSM is a robust tool with numerous applications. Unfortunately, it can be seen as a simple tool; so it is possible for it to be easily misunderstood and misused. This book gives a holistic approach to VSM regarding:

• The purpose of VSM
• What it is and more importantly what it is not
• Why an organization should use it
• How to use most effectively
• How to manage the use of it.

It concentrates on effective application versus the technicalities of drawing a value stream map. The book is a quick read, only 148 pages, with 6 appendices giving detailed examples of actual VSMs from services perspective instead of manufacturing one. How refreshing! The book is oriented more toward executives and VSM novices rather than the experienced practitioner. However, even the most experienced at Value Stream Mapping will find practical ideas for how to introduce VSM to senior teams in order to gain acceptance. Overall a well written book with knowledge to impart.

The book is written by Michele D. Dekelbaum, vice president (performance excellence) at Phoebe Putney Health System.

If you are interested in getting a book reviewed, then contact the Book Review Chairs Haleh Byrne, product lead for industrial engineering and continuous improvement at North Carolina State University and Arsalan Safari, Ph.D., postdoctoral associate, Sociotechnical Systems Research Center, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.