Minith Kumar’s Post

In product management, backlogs can often become a repository of aspirations rather than a reflection of customer needs. As a product manager, I’ve seen how easy it is for backlogs to grow disproportionately large, with each item often representing a single customer’s voice rather than the collective demand. A recent newsletter I read articulated this predicament perfectly: 'When you don’t talk to customers, you start relying on assumptions about what customers want or need. Those assumptions make their way into the backlog.' This resonated deeply with me, highlighting a fundamental principle that’s easily overlooked: engagement with customers is crucial. With ShareBase, we confronted this challenge head-on. Our backlog was a behemoth, a seemingly endless list that slowed our ability to deliver meaningful enhancements to our customers. By embracing the basic principle of customer dialogue, we trimmed the fat and focused on what truly mattered—delivering value. We saw usage increase, adoption of new features, and most importantly, our customers felt heard. For assumptions, we either validated them through conversations or used experiments to test our hypotheses. Reflecting on our journey with ShareBase, I'm reminded of the tangible impact that embracing customer dialogue had on our backlog management. Beyond mere reflection, I urge my fellow product managers, software engineers, and product leaders to actively implement strategies for engaging with customers. Consider conducting regular user interviews, analyzing customer feedback data, or even organizing focus groups to gain deeper insights into their needs and preferences. By incorporating these practices into your workflow, you can ensure that your backlog remains a dynamic tool for delivering value to your users, rather than a stagnant repository of assumptions. #customerengagement #productmanagement #backlogs

🚀 Mastering Prioritization is one of the Keys to Product Success 🔑 Ever feel overwhelmed by your product backlog? 😅 You're not alone! Effective prioritization is crucial for delivering value and maintaining focus. Try these quick tips: 1. Align with strategic goals 🎯 2. Consider impact vs. effort 📊 3. Listen to customer feedback 👂 4. Use data to inform decisions 📈 5. Regularly reassess priorities ♻️ Remember, saying 'no' to good ideas allows you to say 'yes' to great ones! 💡 What's your go-to prioritization technique? Share in the comments! 👇 #ProductManagement #Prioritization #ProductStrategy Learn more at: https://lnkd.in/gAkEEd7F

Stakeholders and their changing requirements might be one of the if not most frustrating things for a Product Manager. If not handled correctly, it will affect the product development lifecycle and everyone involved. So how do you handle ever-changing requirements? 1. Too much cooks spoil the broth: When you are coming up with a new feature or analyzing a request from a customer, you can go full-on with your research. Reach out to as many people as you need and take as much time as you want. This is the phase where you take it on solo and don't involve anyone from the product development side. But when it comes to the implementation phase, only involve a handful of people. This is to avoid too many inputs on how to implement. For example, A sales executive might need a feature to be implemented in a certain way that will be challenging. A designer might think of it differently. Get input from them but make the final decision with a limited set of people. 2. You don't have to put all your chips in: When a stakeholder comes up with an excellent idea for a feature you are currently working on, you don't have to stop the product in its roadmap and change it to include this new idea. It can be done in future iterations. Put it in the pipeline and work on what you currently have. 3. Keep everyone in the light: Talk to everyone involved whenever you think a change should be made during the development. Keep everyone in light as you will also get an idea of what they are working on and how much effort it will take to make a button 1px larger. 4. Speak with data: Whenever you would love to see a change in the product, don't go straight up and say that this change would make the product look good and might improve user experience. Speak with data. Do A/B testing, speak to customers, talk with designers and developers to see how much effort it might take, and talk with salespeople to know how this change would impact revenue. 5. Learn to say no: Finally, learn to say no. Say no when you know that a change someone's proposing will break the product. Of course, say it gently and with data supporting your claim. But learn to say no and not "let's take it up on the next pipeline" stuff. #repost #productmanagerspeaks #pmspeaks #productmanagement #pm #product

📌 Decoding Do's and Dont's of Prioritization in Product Management: In the realm of product management, there is always this one burning question, “How would you prioritize feature requests, if you could not do them all”? 🙆♀️  It’s a tricky puzzle that every product manager grapples with!!! Prioritization is all about tradeoffs. Tradeoffs start with our intended objective, which may differ based on the product and its maturity cycle. ✅ Things to consider while prioritizing: 👉 What are your criteria? 👉 How do you tradeoff between two equally important tasks? ❎ Common mistake to avoid: 👉 Giving a non-committal answer and implying that “one can do it all” by simply working longer hours.  🔀 Here are top criteria for determining which priorities to handle first generally:  👉 Revenue Impact: Which requests have the greatest estimated revenue?  👉 Customer Satisfaction: Satisfaction can lead to positive word-of-mouth marketing. It could also lead to higher usage, which increases likelihood of renewals or incremental purchases, if the product is sold on a subscription or a la carte basis.  👉 Number of Customers Affected: The magnitude of impact is important.  👉 Time to Resolution: Sometimes there are simple product fixes that don’t take a long time to address. Here I am thinking of short-term ROI. A minor fix may receive due consideration, especially if a burning issue may take a long time to resolve. 👉 Technical Feasibility: There is no point in addressing an issue if the fix is not technically possible. 🔀 Now, let's assume a vocal minority disagrees with your priorities or your prioritization criteria. How would you handle that disagreement? 👉 Allow the vocal minority to make their case: Most people get upset when their requests are rejected without any consideration.   👉 Explain why another feature received higher priority: People get upset and alienated when they feel that decisions are made arbitrarily.   👉 Provide evidence: Some feel better when there is evidence that accompanies a decision. Sometimes the data can be quantitative in nature. Other times, it can be qualitative like customer complaints. 👉 Share detailed reasoning: Explain; why you prioritized, what you prioritized. ✅ This approach can certainly make you stand out if followed and backed up with right research and data to prove the valid points. #Prioritization #ProductManagement

Unlocking Product Success: Mastering Customer Expectations In the world of tech product development, the role of the Product Owner is more significant than ever. They are the linchpin ensuring that customer expectations align with development outcomes, significantly impacting a product's success. One crucial problem faced by tech teams is the gap between what customers need and what gets delivered. This is where a Product Owner steps in to bridge the gap, translating customer needs into practical solutions. Did you know that clear and well-managed communication between stakeholders often determines the success rate of a project? The responsibilities of a Product Owner are extensive yet pivotal. They must excel in: - **Customer Communication**: Engaging with customers to obtain feedback and accurately identify needs. - **Prioritization and Backlog Management**: Defining and maintaining the product backlog with a keen focus on what brings the most value. - **Stakeholder and Requirements Management**: Ensuring all parties are aligned and product requirements are clear and understood. The benefits of an effective Product Owner extend beyond just product delivery. They ensure a seamless feedback loop, fostering adaptability and collaboration within tech teams. This, in turn, enhances customer satisfaction and drives better business outcomes. Studies have shown that fulfilling the aforementioned responsibilities can lead to improved satisfaction rates, setting the stage for competitive advantage and market distinction. In your role, how do you ensure customer expectations are met or even exceeded during project development? #TechsageConsultingUK #TechsageConsulting.UK #ProductDevelopment #CustomerExperience #ProjectManagement #StakeholderEngagement #TechJobs #TechCareerGrowth

Calling all Product Managers! 🗣 Struggling with your #productbacklog? Discover 15 real-world #examples to turbocharge your productivity! Dive in to this #blog now and transform your approach to #productmanagement. Read more: https://lnkd.in/d5qZB9u5

As a product manager, balancing customer feedback with maintaining a clear product vision can be challenging. We often face two extremes: 1. Ignoring Customer Feedback: Solely following internal plans can result in a product that doesn't deliver value and fails to sell. 2. Over-listening to Customers: Allowing customer feedback to drive strategy can lead to a fragmented product that meets no one's expectations. The key to success lies in having a clear product strategy, vision, goals, and a well-structured backlog. This ensures that every new request is evaluated against these criteria: 👉Is the request part of our backlog or product goals? If yes, prioritize it. 👉Does the request align with our vision or strategy? If not, it's easier to decline. Arto Kiiskinen has written an excellent post about: "Empower your product team by linking your strategy and backlog" (link in the reply message). I have notice that setting clear product goals and KPIs for each level is crucial. These measurements help us assess progress and ensure alignment with our vision. When a new request comes in, we evaluate it against our KPIs. Does it improve our metrics? We also estimate the priority using the RICE method (Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort). By thoughtfully integrating customer insights and aligning them with our strategic goals, we create products that meet customer needs and stay true to our vision. What strategies do you use to balance customer feedback with your product vision? How do you keep your backlog aligned with your strategy? Let's discuss! #productmanagement #agile #KPIs #productgoals #productstrategy

What is Product Management? #productmanagement Product management is about making the right product, not just making a product right. Making the Right Product: 1. Identifying Market Needs: The cornerstone of product management is understanding and addressing the actual needs of the target market. This involves thorough market research, user feedback, and trend analysis. A product manager must discern what problems users are facing and what solutions they seek. 2. Defining Product Vision and Strategy: Crafting a clear and compelling product vision is essential. This vision should align with the overall business strategy and objectives. It’s about envisioning a product that not only fits the current market demands but also anticipates future needs and opportunities. 3. Prioritizing Features and Functionality: In product management, prioritization is key. This means focusing on features that offer the highest value to users and the business. It's about making strategic choices to ensure that the product delivers the right solutions and differentiates itself from competitors. Making a Product Right: 1. Ensuring Quality and Reliability: Once the product direction is set, attention shifts to the execution. This involves ensuring that the product is built with high quality, meets technical standards, and performs reliably. It’s about fine-tuning and perfecting the product according to specifications. 2. User Experience and Design: Making a product right also involves crafting a seamless user experience. This includes intuitive design, ease of use, and effective functionality. The product must not only solve problems but also be enjoyable and efficient for users. 3. Testing and Iteration: Continuous testing and iteration are crucial to refine the product. Gathering user feedback, identifying issues, and making necessary adjustments are part of ensuring that the product performs as intended and meets user expectations. #BAcareers #businessanalyst #productowners #productmanagement #businessanalysis #projectmanagers #productmanagers #Agilemethodology #businessanalysis

While being a product manager means potentially wearing a lot of hats in a day, some of the things we think we should do or get pulled into doing really shouldn't be the things we spend our time on. I appreciate how this article breaks it down and gives insight from various perspectives. #productmanagement #productmanager #productthinking

Ever wonder what Product Management and CSI have in common? It's all about evidence-based decision making! Today's blog breaks down how to gather and analyze customer problems to avoid bias and make informed product decisions. Get actionable insights for your roadmap, starting today! #ProductManagement #EvidenceBasedDecisions #RoadmapStrategy