Where Is the Customer? Everywhere!

Author: Jurgen Appelo

Now and then, people point at the unFIX picture and ask, "Where Is the customer?" A few even criticize the model for not showing a picture of customers! The question is fair, but the criticism is misguided. It reveals a misunderstanding of the purpose of the model and the meaning of the customer.

unFIX has its focus on organization design, not on process. The model does not offer process descriptions or any specific guidance on how to create value. We leave that crucial job to methods and frameworks such as Scrum, Kanban, Design Thinking, Lean Startup, Service Design, etc. For this reason, unFIX can be a perfect fit with models that don't cover organization design.

Note: there is a bit of a clash with the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) because SAFe is a weird mix of process and organization design. And it doesn't do organization design particularly well.

Just consider, when you see an architect at work designing a building, do you point at the architectural drawings and ask, "Where is the customer?" Indeed, most architects create separate mock-ups, models, and brochures that picture users inside the buildings, but they don't draw little puppets in their architectural drawings. What's the point? That's not what these drawings are for. Likewise, in organization design, we don't draw external customers because paying customers don't work in the organization; the organization works for them.

A second reason why the unFIX model doesn't picture customers is that customers are not the only stakeholders. There are also users, shareholders, employees, vendors, business partners, and others who benefit from the company. An organization design model typically only shows employees because the purpose of the picture is to show how the organization is structured, not what it produces. And a company is usually defined only by its employees. All other stakeholders are external.

Note: If you want, it's perfectly fine to include other stakeholders, such as freelancers, volunteers, or gig workers, in your organization design model. You should do that when you see them as internal to the organization. Likewise, you could exclude contracted employees that practically work elsewhere most of their time.

Also note: There are other great modeling tools for describing input, output, processes, and value streams of organizations. Including them all in one picture is confusing. For the same reason, Google Maps also does not show plumbing structures, geological data, or historical events by default. It would make the maps unreadable.

The Customer Is Everywhere

Last but not least, a third argument for not drawing customers in our models is that everything exists to serve customers. The Value Stream Crews serve external users and customers; the other Crews serve internal customers (other teams). Each unit is a value unit: it must offer something of value to others inside or outside the organization. For example, the Value Stream Crews themselves are customers of the Platform Crews. And we can argue that the entire Base is the customer of Facilitation Crews because of how they help people work together.

Consider this: When you see a blueprint of a new church, mosque, synagogue, or temple, do you ask the designer, "Where's the image of God?" Would you criticize the architect for not drawing a picture of a deity? This seems rather silly. The entire building is created to serve God and other stakeholders. It is the reason why it is made in the first place. Indeed, many religious buildings include statues or symbols as reminders of the One who is worshipped. But the architectural blueprint doesn't need a godly illustration.

Still, if you prefer an organization design picture with customers, I won't stop you. Remember that we are all customers (stakeholders) of the organization. If you choose to include customers in the picture, consider including all external stakeholders. The organization exists to offer a value exchange with all stakeholders, not only customers. Everyone expects to benefit from it.

(Photo by Andrew Seaman on Unsplash)