ITIL (Version 5): A Value Stream Perspective

# ITIL

# Value Streams

# Community

Bridging the Gap Between Process Compliance and Human-Centered Flow

February 16, 2026

Helen Beal

My background is in software engineering and DevOps, and I lead the PeopleCert community and ambassador program. I joined the PeopleCert family when DevOps Institute was acquired by PeopleCert in 2023. I also lead a community of flow coaches and practitioners, Flowtopia, and, as a result, spend a large chunk of my time thinking and talking about value streams. Here, I'm sharing my observations on the new version of ITIL through my value stream-centric lens.

ITIL (Version 5) represents an evolution that expands ITIL’s purview from IT service management to digital product and service management and enterprise service management, connecting business and technology value streams into one.

Value stream identification

The Service Value System (SVS) and Service Value Chain (SVC) mechanisms from ITIL4 remain central, and the introduction of a Unified Lifecycle further strengthens them. It introduces a model with eight core activities that act as "stepping stones" for any value stream:

Discover: Continually aligning roadmaps with consumer needs and organizational strategy.

Design: Creating prototypes and specifications focused on functionality and experience.

Acquire: Securing and allocating resources (like cloud capacity or specialist skills) efficiently.

Build: Developing, integrating, and testing digital solutions.

Transition: Seamlessly introducing updates into live environments.

Operate: Monitoring and maintaining systems for optimal reliability.

Deliver: Ensuring services are provided according to specs and stakeholder expectations.

Support: Restoring normal operation and resolving issues as they arise

Value realization and customer experience

In this new iteration, value streams in are no longer just about operational efficiency—they are explicitly experience-driven. The framework moves beyond process compliance to measure how the value is perceived by the customer (CX), user (UX), and the employee (EX) at every stage of the stream (some might say Total Experience TX 😁). A new core module, ITIL Experience, coming in May, focuses specifically on designing these streams to ensure positive outcomes for the people involved, not just the systems. It’s not only about process compliance now, but experience-driven flow. including Human-Centred Design (HCD)—a problem-solving approach rooted in empathy that prioritizes the needs of the people for whom a solution is designed throughout the entire journey. Value streams now integrate experience metrics (value realization) as formal measures of success alongside traditional technical metrics such as availability, capacity, and deployment velocity (flow). This aligns with the Flowtopian philosophy of the two dimensions of value stream management:

Flow (efficiency)

Value realization (effectiveness)

There is emphasis on processes being "workflows as designed," while value streams are the "workflows as performed"— the real-world, context-specific series of steps an organization takes to enable value for consumers, that encompass not just human activities, but the continuous flow of information and digital artifacts (like code or data) across the organization. I’m interested in hearing what people think about this differentiation, as I’ve traditionally thought of value streams as a collection of processes rather than one as reality and the other as hope. I am always open to new ways of thinking, modeling, and practice that can result in positive outcomes.

Type of value streams

The new version acknowledges that value streams operate in different complexity contexts, reminiscent of Cynefin: Ordered, Complex, Chaotic, and Confused.

Ordered streams: Can follow rigid procedures reliably.

Complex streams: Require experimentation and "reverse mapping" because the outcomes can only be understood in retrospect.

Chaotic or confused value streams: Apply Complexity Thinking to determine the appropriate management strategy based on the situation's predictability.

This highly variable nature of value streams makes it impossible to manage them "directly"; instead, they are improved by optimizing the 34 management practices that support them. I find this approach helpful and similar to how I describe DevOps as a digital value stream improvement toolkit. Value stream approaches make the work visible, the problems evident, and improvements measurable. The flow engineering that accelerates velocity or betters customer experience and value outcomes is ‘tweaks’ to the steps and the space between them. Specific Execution Patterns are included to manage the transformation of the value stream:

For Ordered Contexts (Implement): If the stream is predictable, use a traditional approach: Appraise → Plan → Do → Study → Act.

For Complex Contexts (Discover): If cause-and-effect can only be understood in retrospect, use an experimental pattern: Bound → Design → Run → Examine → Distil. This supports hypothesis testing to find the best direction forward.

You know you are in a confused context when the starting point, where the nature of a system or value stream is not yet understood. The next step is to identify whether it’s ordered, complex, or chaotic (does every value stream start here, as unknown?). The chaotic context represents a crisis situation where the relationship between actions and outcomes is turbulent and unpredictable. In this state, there is no time for detailed analysis. The priority is to stabilize the situation immediately, moving the organization from a chaotic state to a more manageable one where deliberate approaches become possible. Act first to establish order, then sense where the stability lies, and finally respond to transition the stream into a complex or ordered state.

Mapping for situational awareness

Mapping is used as a tool for situational orientation to "sense" the stability and complexity of the current environment. Rather than just designing a rigid process, you map the "work as performed" (the actual value stream) to see if it aligns with your "work as designed" (the processes). By measuring flow metrics such as Lead Time and Flow Efficiency, or using Reverse Mapping to handle unpredictable outcomes, you can determine whether a system is Ordered, Complex, or Chaotic. This allows you to adjust your management style—moving from stabilization in chaos to experimentation in complexity—ensuring your approach aligns with the system's real-world stability.

There is an explicit warning against applying rigid procedures to chaotic or complex value streams. Instead of fixed rules, use guiding principles to allow for ad-hoc corrections and situational adjustments. In high-complexity or chaotic situations, empowering people by granting autonomy and trust, and providing sufficient resources, is more effective than overly complicated controls.

Mapping techniques are adapted to focus on the flow of information and value rather than physical materials. It focuses on Lead Time (the total time from initiation to delivery) and Flow Efficiency (the percentage of active, value-adding time relative to wait time). In Flowtopia, we frequently have conversations about the difficulties of defining and using lead time as a metric, a debate likely to go on infinitum IMHO, but I believe it helps to start somewhere.

Appendix E of the official book outlines a visual representation and analysis technique adapted for digital-first environments:

Live "Value Stream Walk": Directly experiencing the steps and information flow in practice (similar to a "Gemba walk").

Artifact Flow: Unlike industrial value stream mapping, which tracks physical materials, the focus is on the flow of information and digital artifacts (code, data, and metadata).

The "To-Be" States: Teams should map both a "Future" state (feasible improvements for the next 3–6 months) and an "Ideal" state (a perfect version to inspire long-term innovation).

Happily, value stream mapping is no longer seen as a one-off project but as a continual activity of situational orientation. By tracking Lead Time and Flow Efficiency, we aren't just looking for speed; we are identifying where the flow of information stalls and where the human experience is compromised. Whether we are managing 'Core' streams for our customers or 'Enabling' streams for our internal teams, the goal remains the same: transforming complex, often chaotic work into a visible, high-velocity journey toward shared value.

Categorizing value streams

In terms of value stream categorization, ITIL (Version 5) distinguishes between core value streams (which deliver value to external consumers) and enabling value streams (internal flows, such as supplier onboarding, that support the Core). I will note here that ITIL (Version 5) is the result of nearly 4 years of effort, involving many experts in the community (and me!). This is my preferred way of identifying types of value streams, avoiding the separation of business and technology, product and engineering, as can sometimes happen—it meets the goal of unification. It’s also best suited to the era of long-lived digital products that are continually enhanced (as opposed to developed, then operated/manufactured).

AI, natch

The new version treats AI as a core component or collaborative partner of the value stream—not as a separate "tool". A new AI Capability Model (6C Model) helps organizations understand how AI facilitates value across the stream:

Creation, Curation, Clarification, Cognition, Communication, and Coordination. The goal is to move from manual hand-offs to "high-velocity" streams where AI handles routine categorization, risk scoring, and evidence generation.

I’m a big fan of this and the framework's human-centric approach. I had a short chat with Gemini the other day, triggered by my annoyance at the media pitching software and AI companies against each other when AI is software that you can read here. My two favorite parts of the conversation were:

1) That in the hype cycle, we’re headed towards the Plateau of Productivity, where AI capabilities are standard features in every app.

2) The Digital Paradox. As we saturate the world with synthetic, infinite, and "perfect" AI output, the value of human "messiness," originality, and genuine connection actually skyrockets.

In conclusion, we live and work in value streams. Our jobs are to make interesting things for each other and give them to each other without causing friction or wasting our collective resources. With ITIL now guiding millions of practitioners toward a unified product and service mindset, we aren't just managing processes; we are mastering the art of serving humanity through seamless, digital-first experiences.

If you are particularly interested in the value stream angle, like me, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

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ITIL (Version 5): A Value Stream Perspective

Bridging the Gap Between Process Compliance and Human-Centered Flow

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