At Broadcom’s recent Spark VSM Summit, the theme was “VSM evolution meets AI revolution.”

After the event, SD Times sat down with Broadcom’s Jean Louis Vignaud, the head of ValueOps at the company, to discuss the AI revolution and its connection to value stream management. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

DR: Everyone is talking about AI. But I’m curious to know how AI can make value stream management better.

JLV: There are two powerful ways AI and VSM intersect. First, AI and VSM workflows, automating repetitive tasks, analyzing risk and progress and helping users create better, more complete artifacts like investment requests or features. And second, VSM provides the structure AI needs to thrive through alignment, visibility and measurable outcomes.

DR: So, people who are implementing AI now with their value stream, what are the most promising use cases that you are seeing from your customers?

JLV: From my perspective, AI is making a real impact across three areas: automation, assessment and augmentation. It’s helping generate user stories and test cases. For instance, forecasting resource needs, aligning investment with strategic goals and flagging compliance risk early, boosting both efficiency and strategic alignment.

DR: Forrester analyst Ted Shadler has said that AI agents aren’t only just software. They kind of live in their own knowledge realm. What do you think about that?

JLV: Absolutely, it’s not just software. AI agents just don’t follow instructions. They operate with contextual awareness, and the well-defined value stream provides that context, enabling agents to act as intelligent teammates, not just tools.

DR: We were talking about when value stream management first came to software development. We at SD Times had certainly spotted this and seen that this seems to be the bridge between the business side and tech side, where there was this big disconnect. They didn’t use the same tools or speak the same language. And it now seems like VSM is the link that’s bringing those both together. So what are the business implications of using AI with VSM?

JLV: Well, AI in general is not just about speeding things up. It’s about reshaping how we do business. It improves user experience, supports entirely new services. And VSM helps organizations align every investment with strategy goals. Companies now are in the digital transformation journey, moving from project to product funding. Carnival Cruise Lines is in the process of adjusting the investment to the available resources, and is already proving what’s possible.

DR: So on the business side, what do executives need to do to be successful in this world where AI and VSM are coming together?

JLV: Oh, that’s really a tough question. So to lead in an AI plus VSM world, executives must rethink how the organization operates. That means enabling cross-functional collaboration, shifting to a product-based model and preparing teams for the new AI-driven roles. Above all, they need to focus on outcomes, not just outputs. As well, there are cultural and structural shifts required to scale AI successfully. I mean, here the mindset changes. Organizations need to break down silos and remove the resistance to automation. It is important to have strong executive sponsorship in sustaining such transformation.

DR: That’s really the most important, the most difficult part, though, right? To get people to change how they think and how they want to work. So what about data and proprietary knowledge that people have and the fear that AI is going to somehow expose their intellectual property or misuse someone else’s. How important is that for organizations to get a handle on? 

JLV: I think it’s critically important. But the thing is, AI is only as good as the context it’s trained on. And if you think about the enterprise knowledge, the product decision, the customer, the understanding of the customer behavior, the internal expertise, this is what makes a competitive advantage of the company, and therefore training your AI on that is truly important. And the value stream management system is often the best place to start extracting and organizing this knowledge for AI.

DR: People are already starting to put AI systems in place. What should companies be focusing on?

JLV: First, get your data house in order and clear up your hierarchy, tools and governance structure. Most enterprises are not starting from a clean state, meaning VSM can rationalize tool chain or surface integration challenges. We also need to define value metrics, speed to value, improve flow efficiency, reduce risk and AI, and VSM can bring more precision in those measurements. They also need to train teams in AI literacy and rethink skill development, just as Carnival is doing with retention and balance. And my last one, my last recommendation, would be to use AI to improve business efficiency and reinvest the savings into innovation.

DR: Fantastic. So where is all this going? We’re laying the foundation now for this kind of work. Where is value stream now going to be headed? 

JLV: Value stream management will evolve from managing software delivery to managing business knowledge as a strategic asset as we move forward. AI agents will become part of  dual teams, humans and agents working together on goals, and companies will build resilient, learning-driven systems that adapt and self-optimize over time.

DR: I understand that your VSM Summit, which was April 30, attracted more than 1,500 registrants, which certainly shows that  there are many organizations interested in doing this kind of work. What were people most interested in attending in terms of sessions or companies speaking? What kind of information were they most looking for, would you say? Was it all about AI particularly, or were there other things as well?

JLV: I think the first outcome from that is you should not view AI adoption and value stream management separately. Together, they unlock the future of work and value creation. And the other message is if you’re already on the VSM journey, you are uniquely positioned to lead the AI transformation in your organization.