https://www.thisisservicedesigndoing.com/methods/mapping-systems
https://thebrieflab.com/blog/the-narrative-map-what-it-is-and-how-to-us-it/
https://www.aiadallas.org/columns/narrative-mapping/
Systems maps is an umbrella term for different visualisation of systems: stakeholder maps., value network maps and ecosystems. All of these can be created from various perspectives. A system can be mapped from a customer’s perspective, including competitors within their consideration set as well as external players that might not have a direct relationship with the organisation. Alternatively, a system map can focus on the business itself and visualise the external stakeholders involved in support processes: as an alternative or addition, it could illustrative various departments and business units
As with anything in service design, maps can become very messy, you should maintain a clear focus for a map. Don’t try to visualise every stakeholder you can think of on the same stakeholder map; it’s beneficial to make variants for different purposes. For example, focus on one specific experience (e.g. based on a journey map) to get a overview of the system of actors, or focus on the financial transactions between stakeholders to understand financial streams within a system
Systems maps are an excellent tool to synthesise your research data to identify promising interview partners. Remember that research is iterative, and it makes sense to use these maps. to find gaps in your research data which you can investigate in later research iterations