Mapping the Process -- Finding the Waste

Robert Damelio published a second edition of his best selling book The Basics of Process Mapping this year, and I recently spoke with him about it. I asked him: "While you were developing the second edition of your book, which of the most important concepts in your book still often gets misunderstood?" Here is Robert's reply:

One of the most important (and often misunderstood) properties of work is "waste." Those familiar with the cost of poor quality concept often tend to equate “waste” with defects, rework, returns, inspection, appraisal, failure in test or operation, etc. In general these are forms of waste related to work outputs.

It turns out that more forms of waste, and much greater cost are associated with the resources used and applied during a work activity. This is why waste is defined as any work that does not create value as perceived by the customer.

Here is a table from the new edition of Robert's book that illustrates his points:


What do you think of Robert's table? Do you think his definitions and examples are accurate? What are your experiences with process maps? Do they help diagnose and improve work?