VSM Limitations

Limitations of VSM:

1. Finding deficiencies and getting rid of them is not the way for improving performance of a system.

2.The definition of what a value stream is, is itself fuzzy:

a. It doesn't capture all specific actions

b. VSM should be typically applied to product, but often gets applied to product families with little guidance about what constitutes those families.

c. VSM is cumbersome when product variety is high and volume is low (Media team has more than 20 product / product families; and we are looking at only the 10 important activities in each stream, not looking at all the activities in each stream).