Sara Frasca’s Post

Ever wondered how long it takes for a new product idea to transform into a live feature? 🕒 Our latest data dive reveals the answer... 📊 𝟯𝟬𝟲 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀! That's the average journey from concept to reality for software product ideas. This almost year-long process involves insight gathering, prioritization, and building solutions to the problems identified. We call this the "average speed of product innovation." 🌟 Sounds lengthy? Remember, it's an average. Our insights show: ✨ 25% of ideas turn into features in under 45 days! 🌱 Larger, groundbreaking ideas might take over a year to fully develop. The key to success? Balancing incremental improvements with groundbreaking innovation for optimal discovery and delivery throughput. The best product teams master this balance, pushing the boundaries of what's possible. 🏆 #ProductManagement #Innovation #SpeedToMarket

Do you see problems others ignore? Mary Anderson invented the windshield wiper because she did In snowy 1902 NYC, Mary Anderson noticed streetcar drivers struggling to see while passengers froze. Unlike others, she questioned the status quo and sketched the first-ever windshield wiper. The ability to identify the overlooked challenges, the subtle shifts, the gaps that others haven't noticed – that's where the seeds of innovation and success lie. As a product manager, honing this skill is essential. Here's how to cultivate that future-forward lens: 1️⃣ Question the Usual: The problems considered 'normal' are the ripest for disruption. Don't just accept the status quo. (Blockbuster vs. Netflix) 2️⃣ Listen to the Unsaid: Dive deep into user feedback. The unarticulated frustrations hold the key to the solutions of tomorrow. (Cameras got smaller as phones got smarter) 3️⃣ Trend Spotting: Connect the dots between technology shifts, evolving user behavior, and broader market patterns to see where the unmet needs lie. The art of seeing what others miss is both a mindset and a set of practices. It's about being acutely aware of the present to build a better future. #innovation #designthinking #problemsolving #productmanagement PS : Interesting Ted Talk by Tony Fadell https://lnkd.in/dT_gJEXq

Great minds don't always think alike. 💡 Are your products suffering from groupthink? Discover how diverse thinking can become your product team's superpower in our Customer Value series! Our Chief Product Officer, Jon Stephens, details how biases and blindspots cause poor product decisions and outcomes in his most recent article. 👇 #product #productstrategy #cpo

The Product Field is a sense-making framework for teams and organizations that build products. https://lnkd.in/d2AAVYpU #productthinking @theproductfield

In your next product team meeting covering new ideas, go from person to person around the room. Have each person present an idea, and then force the next person to say only, "I like that idea because...(with a reason)", and then say, "my idea is...". Just keep going around the room through 2-3 cycles - never allowing anyone to say why anything will not work, while also forcing evolutions of all the ideas in general, building from one to the next. This was @jaygerhart's idea in a meeting this week and it immediately forced me to rethink how I will go about feature planning in the future. In building our platforms, my teams would often talk about why features would not work, trying to solve the problem. While a subtle difference, what I now believe probably a much more valuable exercise moving forward is to accept every little bit of momentum, allow the conversation to evolve at a very rapid pace with big crazy ideas, small nonsense ones, and everything in the middle. Just throw everything into the pot, allow it to evolve, marinate, and then have the team embrace it. Take that idea you know you can't do - but really want to do - and embrace it. Understand the value inside of it and put it on the board for all to see. Then drive through it as a team, it might take some time to fester out, but hug it tight. I think I have inadvertently presented the wrong message in the past and probably killed ideas I need were good, but was fairly certain we could not deliver.

The focus in product development is typically on adding features, but what if we approached simplification with the same energy? The reality is that many first-to-market products end up over-engineered, overwhelming customers with more functionality than they’re ready to handle. This often detracts from ease of use, making it harder for them to complete their task. As we iterate on products, we should prioritize simplifying both the experience and the underlying technology. Streamlining leads to a more intuitive, efficient product—and ultimately, happier customers. Really enjoyed the Medium article below on Reverse Roadmaps by John Utz !

By moving from timeline to Now-Next-Later you will reframe feature ideas to strategic initiatives aimed at solving broader problems. This will allow product teams to prioritize their efforts and drive meaningful outcomes. Ready to make the switch? This blog has the 8-step process on how to do it. https://hubs.ly/Q02pXgcf0

The North Star refers to the one metric that best captures the core value customer gets via your product. It serves as the guiding light for your team, helping everyone focus on the most impactful work that aligns with your overall product strategy. Having a North Star metric is important: * Alignment: It provides a clear and shared goal for the entire team, ensuring everyone is working towards the same overarching objective. * Focus: It helps prioritize features, initiatives, and resources that directly contribute to improving the North Star metric. * Measurement: It provides a measurable way to track progress and assess the impact of your product decisions. #Productmanagement

Product teams don’t just keep the lights on; we keep the value on. Value drives price, and by extension, profit. This is challenging because value deteriorates over time due to competition, evolving needs, or broader access to technology. The better we understand our team’s role in the value ecosystem, the more effectively we can deliver it.

Launching a product is both exhilarating and nerve-wracking Require more than just execution—they demand adaptability, foresight, and alignment across teams. Success lies in staying customer-centered while building the systems to handle growth. But the challenges don’t stop at launch. Transitioning from launch to growth brings its own set of hurdles: ✅ Scaling operations to onboard more customers seamlessly. ✅ Managing increasing volumes of data while ensuring reliability. ✅ Adapting internal processes to stay efficient and customer-focused. Questions like "Will it work as expected?" and "Will customers respond positively?" can dominate your thoughts during those critical early days. But remember: every great product was built step by step.