Handbook
Lean Software Development — roles (prescriptive)
Lean does not mandate specific named roles the way Scrum does. Instead, it defines **principles** about how people should work together. The roles below reflect common patterns in teams that apply Lea
Lean Software Development — roles (prescriptive)
Lean does not mandate specific named roles the way Scrum does. Instead, it defines principles about how people should work together. The roles below reflect common patterns in teams that apply Lean thinking.
1. Value-stream manager / owner
| Aspect | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Accountable for | End-to-end flow of value from demand to delivery; identifying and removing systemic waste |
| Archetypes | Orchestrator (primary), Sponsor proxy (value alignment) |
| Key outputs | Value-stream maps, lead-time data, waste-reduction initiatives |
Not always a separate role — in smaller teams, the product owner or engineering lead may hold this accountability.
2. Lean coach / sensei
| Aspect | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Accountable for | Teaching Lean principles; facilitating Kaizen events; coaching A3 thinking |
| Archetypes | Orchestrator (facilitation), Quality advocate (systemic quality) |
| Key outputs | Coaching outcomes, facilitated improvement events, capability building |
The coach teaches problem-solving, not solves problems for the team. Similar to Scrum Master but with a broader process-improvement mandate.
3. Team members (cross-functional)
| Aspect | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Accountable for | Delivering value; identifying waste in their own workflow; participating in Kaizen |
| Archetypes | Implementer (primary), Quality advocate (built-in quality) |
| Key outputs | Working software, improvement suggestions, updated standards |
Prescriptive rule: Team members are empowered to change their process. Management sets constraints and vision, not step-by-step instructions.
4. Management (servant leadership)
| Aspect | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Accountable for | Setting strategic direction; providing resources; removing organizational impediments |
| Archetypes | Steer (context, not commands) |
| Key outputs | Strategic alignment, resource decisions, impediment resolution |
Lean management practices Gemba (go to where the work happens) and Hoshin Kanri (policy deployment) to align strategy with execution without micromanaging.
5. Ceremony participation matrix
| Ceremony | Value-stream mgr | Lean coach | Team | Management |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value-stream mapping | R | R | R | O |
| Stand-up / flow sync | O | O | R | — |
| Kaizen event | R | R (facilitate) | R | O |
| A3 review | O | R | R | O |
| Retrospective | O | R (facilitate) | R | — |
| Portfolio / strategy review | R | O | O | R |
6. Anti-patterns (by role)
| Anti-pattern | Why it hurts | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Manager dictates process | Violates "empower the team"; kills local improvement | Set context and constraints; let team decide how |
| Coach solves instead of teaches | Creates dependency; team does not learn | Use A3 coaching: ask questions, guide thinking |
| No one owns the value stream | Waste accumulates between teams/phases | Assign explicit value-stream accountability |
| Team waits for permission to improve | Kaizen stalls; small waste compounds | Give standing authority for experiments within guardrails |
7. Links
Canonical source
Edit https://github.com/autowww/blueprints/blob/main/sdlc/methodologies/lean/roles.md first; regenerate with docs/build-handbook.py.