Definition
The value stream map drawn after walking the process for real: process boxes, data boxes, inventory triangles, information flows and the timeline are all filled with what was observed on the floor, not with what the system says should be there.
In detail
Three rules of the current state map are easily skipped: walk upstream from the customer, have everyone draw their own version before merging, and take data from observation rather than reports. Walking upstream reveals the waiting, drawing individually exposes disagreement, and observing keeps should-be from being drawn as is. It differs from current state as a concept: the map has process boxes, data boxes, inventory triangles and a timeline, and it yields a lead time and a value-added ratio. It must be reviewed and marked with kaizen bursts before any future state map is drawn.
Example in practice
The team walks the whole line upstream from shipping, fills each data box with WIP counts and cycle times, and the timeline totals 275 seconds below and 19.7 days above, making three batch waits visible at a glance.