Product Collective - 🚗 Where your product is going

Roadmaps for existing products

Product roadmaps are not just useful for brand new products. When you work on an existing product, a properly crafted and maintained product roadmap can guide decisions on what you will or will not change given all the feedback you receive. An effective product roadmap also helps you communicate your plans for your product. Here's a look at things to consider when building and sharing a product roadmap for an existing product.

How To Build A Product Roadmap Everyone Understands. Today, road mapping is a contentious subject but at least one thing is self-evident: We know that no one really reads overly detailed roadmaps. We’re also discovering how powerful it is when a roadmap is so clearly designed that teams put it at the center of product decisions, and companies put it at the center of their business decisions. We’re seeing that a roadmap bridges your work with everyone else’s and puts you back in control of your product. Andrea Saez shows you how to use your product roadmap to communicate high-level priorities so clearly that anyone — from CEO to summer intern — could walk away knowing what’s going on.
(via @dreasaez)

5 Ways to Convince Your Boss Product Roadmaps Don’t Need Deadlines. Bosses like timeline roadmaps because bosses like deadlines. Deadlines give them a sense of control or at least a sense of security that everything will go according to plan. Indeed, timeline roadmaps are like a security blanket–they placate, reassuring leadership that everyone is working, but are not actually useful in ensuring the right work is getting done. The key to productive product management is actually the opposite of control–it’s trust. To release that controlling grip, give your teams autonomy, and do away with deadlines all together. Janna Bastow provides five reasons control and forced roadmap deadlines are bad for business.
(via @prodpad)
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Sometimes, detours are necessary

I’ve got a couple of road trips coming up soon. My first target: Green Bay, Wisconsin. Even in the age of Google Maps, I admit that I’m already starting to look ahead and am planning out the journey. We have some choices to make:

1. As we start from Ohio, instead of going south to drive around Lake Michigan – we could veer north past Grand Rapids onto Muskegon, Michigan. From there, we could actually take a ferry to Milwaukee, potentially cutting several hours of driving off of the trip.
2. If we do opt to drive instead of take the ferry – we’ll have to prepare for Chicago traffic as we loop under and up Lake Michigan. And Chicago traffic can be pretty scary.

We will have a plan for our trip, but we have to be open to deviating from that plan once we have more information. For instance, if we decide that the ferry is the best route – and then we learn that it’s a steady downpour in Muskegon… it wouldn’t even make sense to head north. If we do, we’ll be subject to a several-hour delay.

And if we start to loop under Lake Michigan towards Chicago – but then learn about deadlocked traffic ahead… it may make sense to keep driving west a bit before we start to go north. Yes, it will add miles onto the trip… but it may end up saving us time.

Why the heck am I sharing all of this information about my road trip to Green Bay in our product management newsletter?

As we think through our own product roadmaps, it’s important to evaluate where things stand in the moment. What new information do you have now that you didn’t when you were first starting out? What may be the outcome if you don’t change course? Sometimes, it’s better to not overreact. But sometimes, some reaction and adjustment is 100% necessary.

So as I start to prepare for my journey, I wish you good luck on yours!

This photo was taken at the last in-person edition of INDUSTRY Global in 2019. If you have been to INDUSTRY before, you know how big that stage is. Performers like The Beatles and Elvis Presley have graced it in the past, and this September it's the turn of illustrious product leaders like Christian Idiodi (Silicon Valley Product Group), Michelle Parsons (Hinge), and David Cancel (Drift).

This year in Cleveland, Ohio, following a day of Workshops on Monday, September 19th, 8 keynotes will be presented on the stage Tuesday. There will be even more keynotes on Wednesday, but you'll also have the chance to explore the venue and choose your own adventure -- attend an exclusive interactive Jobs-to-be-Done experience, take part in intimate roundtable discussions, enjoy more talks on the breakout stage, or ask the speakers your burning questions on the Talk Shop stage. 

We're getting pretty pumped with only 66 days to go. Make sure you register soon, as tickets are going fast.

Why Customer Success should own more of your Product Roadmap. The folks at Savio.io have been on the phone with dozens of Customer Success folks lately. After one particularly insightful call, it became clear they were seeing a significant change in how customer-centric companies determine what their development teams work on. Customer-facing teams — particularly Customer Success — are increasingly using customer feedback to influence the product roadmap. Kareem Mayan summarizes how various Customer Success leaders influence their company’s roadmap.

How to let your power users define your next product roadmap. You’ve likely built your product roadmap with clear goals and a vision for your product in mind, but you may not have considered your power users. Next time you develop a roadmap, let your power users guide you. Power users are the people who use and interact with your product the most compared to all other users on your platform. Often, they’re the most valuable group of users to your company. With that in mind, Charlie Windschill explains how you can establish a clear understanding of your power users and use that information to influence your product roadmap.
(via @mixpanel)

Your Product Roadmap Is a Plan, Not a Promise. A product roadmap represents your strategic plan to solve a problem for your market. The reason to share your product roadmap plan with stakeholders is to create transparency and alignment across your company. But your roadmap does not represent an obligation or commitment to accomplish everything on it. When you share a roadmap, you are not making a promise—implicitly or explicitly—to deliver specific functionality by a certain date. You’re inviting stakeholders into your current strategic thinking and planning, which could change anytime for several reasons. The folks at ProductPlan want to remind new and experienced product people that a roadmap is a plan, not a promise.
(via @productplan)

The 5 Truths of Great Product Managers

In her upcoming book, JJ Rorie reveals five vital skills that are vital to navigate the exciting and dynamic field of product management: Customer intelligence, relationship-building, effective communication, good judgment, and prioritization. In this discussion, we will scratch the surface of what she shares in her book — and discuss why these skills, specifically, are so crucial for product managers… as well as what we can do to continue to build these skills. You'll also have a chance to ask questions of your own!

1. A newsletter each and every Friday centered around an important product topic, like roadmapping, strategy, and analytics.
2. Access to a thriving Slack group with thousands of others to share advice, tips and get feedback on your work.
3. Plus, invitations to exclusive video chats, special member privileges at the conferences we hold in the United States and Europe, and more!