wm-atlas-forces

name: wm-atlas-forces description: > Map showing accelerators and decelerators affecting component evolution. Extracts explicit force elements from the strategy map and identifies implicit forces from research and evolution assessments. Analyses which forces the organisation is riding vs fighting and where strategy aligns or conflicts with external pressure. compatibility: Requires Node.js (npx) for OWM rendering via cli-owm metadata: author: monkeypants version: "0.1" skillset: wardley-mapping stage: "atlas" freedom: medium

Atlas: Market Forces

You are generating a forces-focused map from a comprehensive Wardley Map. This view surfaces the accelerators and decelerators shaping component evolution -- both those already explicit in the strategy map and those implied by research and evolution assessments.

Prerequisites

Check that the project directory contains:

• strategy/map.agreed.owm
• evolve/assessments/*.md
• strategy/plays/*.md
• decisions.md

If strategy/map.agreed.owm is missing, tell the user to complete wm-strategy first.

The project path is clients/{org}/projects/{project-slug}/.

Staleness check

Compare modification times:

• Sources: strategy/map.agreed.owm, evolve/assessments/*.md, resources/index.md
• Outputs: atlas/forces/map.owm, atlas/forces/analysis.md

If all outputs exist and are newer than all sources, report that the forces atlas is up to date and skip regeneration. If any source is newer, or any output is missing, proceed.

Step 1: Extract explicit forces

Read strategy/map.agreed.owm and extract every accelerator and deaccelerator element. For each, record its label and position.

Identify which components each force is positioned near (within a reasonable coordinate distance). These are the components the force primarily affects.

Step 2: Identify forces from analytical artifacts

Read the analytical work from earlier stages:

1. Evolution assessments (evolve/assessments/*.md): The primary source for force identification. Assessments contain:
   • Components marked with inertia (deceleration signals)
   • Components assessed as evolving faster or slower than expected
   • Evolution reasoning that references external pressures
   • Market maturity evidence that implies acceleration or resistance
2. Strategy plays (strategy/plays/*.md): Plays identify market dynamics in their evidence and impact sections. Forces may be implicit in why a play was proposed.
3. Decisions log (decisions.md): Client feedback during stages 2-5 may have surfaced forces ("our regulator is about to change the rules", "our competitor just launched X").

Supplement from primary research (resources/) for:

• Market trends not captured in assessments (new entrants, consolidation signals)
• Regulatory changes with specific timelines or detail
• Competitive dynamics not yet reflected in the analytical work

Step 3: Identify implicit forces

For each signal found in Step 2 that is not already represented by an explicit force in the strategy map, create a candidate force:

Discard candidates that are too speculative or lack clear evidence. Keep forces that have concrete research backing.

Step 4: Generate forces map

Read owm-dsl-reference.md for full OWM syntax.

Write atlas/forces/map.owm:

title {Organisation} — Market Forces
// Derived from strategy/map.agreed.owm — do not edit directly

// Anchors (preserve all from source map)
anchor {Anchor} [{vis}, {mat}]

// Components affected by forces (preserve original positions)
component {Component} [{vis}, {mat}]

// Dependencies (only those connecting force-affected components)
{Anchor}->{Component}

// Explicit forces (carried from strategy map)
accelerator {Force Name} [{vis}, {mat}]
deaccelerator {Force Name} [{vis}, {mat}]

// Identified forces (new — from research and assessment analysis)
accelerator {New Force} [{vis}, {mat}]
deaccelerator {New Force} [{vis}, {mat}]

// Annotations linking forces to components
annotation 1 [{vis}, {mat}] {Force explanation}
annotations [0.90, 0.03]

style wardley

Guidelines:

• Preserve original positions for all components.
• Include enough dependency structure to show how force-affected components connect to anchors. Strip unaffected branches.
• Position new forces near the components they affect. Accelerators to the right of the component (pushing toward commodity), decelerators to the left (resisting evolution).
• Use notes for brief force descriptions that don't warrant full annotations: note +AI driving commoditisation [0.48, 0.72]
• Mark inertia on components that have deceleration forces acting on them, if not already marked.

Step 5: Write analysis

Write atlas/forces/analysis.md:

# Market Forces Analysis

## Force inventory

### Accelerators

| Force | Affects | Source | Strength |
|-------|---------|--------|----------|
| {name} | {components} | {explicit / research ref} | High/Med/Low |

### Decelerators

| Force | Affects | Source | Strength |
|-------|---------|--------|----------|
| {name} | {components} | {explicit / research ref} | High/Med/Low |

## Strategic alignment

### Forces the strategy rides

{Forces that the strategy is aligned with — evolution moves that go
with the grain of market pressure. These are tailwinds.}

### Forces the strategy fights

{Forces the strategy pushes against — attempting to evolve components
that face deceleration, or holding back components under acceleration
pressure. These require extra effort and may fail.}

## Force interactions

{Where multiple forces act on the same component or cluster. Do they
reinforce or oppose each other? What net effect does the combination
produce?}

## Emerging forces

{Forces identified from research that are not yet strong but could
become significant. What signals would indicate they're strengthening?
What should the organisation watch for?}

## Recommendations

{Where should the strategy be adjusted to better align with forces?
Which fights are worth fighting and which should be abandoned? Where
can the organisation amplify a favourable force?}

Step 6: Render

bin/ensure-owm.sh clients/{org}/projects/{slug}/atlas/forces/map.owm

Output

Present the SVG and analysis to the user. Highlight any newly identified forces that were not in the original strategy map -- these are the primary value-add of this atlas view.

After completion, regenerate the deliverable site:

bin/render-site.sh clients/{org}/projects/{slug}/