Food for Agile Thought #350: Product Discovery Tool, Team Longevity, Vanity Metrics
Stefan Wolpers
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TL; DR: Product Discovery Tool, Vanity Metrics — Food for Agile Thought #350
Welcome to the 350th edition of the Food for Agile Thought newsletter, shared with 35,507 peers. This week, we introduce the ‘Confidence Meter,’ a product discovery tool. Plus, we ask a seemingly simple question: how do we define team longevity, and is it indeed a helpful approach? Moreover, we enjoy an introductory guide to understanding and using Product Goals to your team’s advantage and point at waste at all levels in our software shops.
Then, we share ‘empirical evidence for the [usefulness of the] Double-Diamond model’ and applaud Jason Yip, who sketched use cases of user stories, from 😞 to 🤔 to 😀 practices. And in case you plan your next career step: Roman Pichler sheds light on the responsibilities of a head of product. Moreover, Janna Bastow talks about being lean while creating and maintaining your roadmap and how objectives and key results (OKR) may help meet that challenge.
Finally, we share John Cutler’s ultimate guide to fighting vanity metrics, from understanding their appeal to identifying and overcoming them. And while we are at it: Agile Uprising provides a guide to helpful metrics in various environments, from flow efficiency to work item age to time to market.
Did you miss the previous Food for Agile Thought’s issue 349?
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🏆 The Tip of the Week: Product Discovery Tool
Itamar Gilad: How Much Product Discovery Is Enough?
Itamar Gilad addresses a common problem in product discovery, getting lost in yet another discovery activity, by introducing the ‘Confidence Meter’ tool.
Author: Itamar Gilad
➿ Agile & Scrum
Jeff Gothelf: How long should we keep the team together?
Jeff Gothelf asks a seemingly simple question: how do we define team longevity, and is it indeed a helpful approach?
Author: Jeff Gothelf
(via Parabol Focus): Product Goals: How to Write and Use Them (With Examples)
Parabol shares an introductory guide to understanding and using Product Goals to your team’s advantage.
Tim Ottinger (via Industrial Logic): Waste Snake
Tim Ottinger points to various forms of waste at all levels in our software shops and what we can do about it.
Source: Industrial Logic: Waste Snake
Author: Tim Ottinger
🎓 🖥 💯 🇬🇧 Hands-on Agile #43: Outcome-Based Product Planning w/ Jeff Gothelf — July 14, 2022
Roadmapping is a flawed concept in the age of Agile. Maps, by their definition, are linear and we don’t build linear products and services any more. We build continuous systems. Nevertheless, we have to be able to create and provide some plans for our teams, leaders and customers to set expectations about the ongoing improvements and future of the services we build. How do we communicate that effectively in a continuous world? How do we ensure the voice of the customer is included in these plans?
In this talk, Jeff Gothelf will discuss the concept of outcome-based product planning. Using specific examples and detailed tools, Jeff will show how taking a customer-centric look at product strategy and creating continuously improving plans ensures the teams maintain their agility, customer-focus and ultimately, the success of their product.
RSVP now—seats are limited: 🖥 💯 🇬🇧 HoA 43: Outcome-Based Product Planning with Jeff Gothelf — July 14, 2022
🎯 Product
Sharon Ferguson (via Medium): How do product design teams converge on an idea?
Sharon Ferguson shares ‘empirical evidence for the [usefulness of the] Double-Diamond model.’
Author: Sharon Ferguson
Jason Yip (via Medium): Some sketches about using User Stories to facilitate shared understanding: bad, better, best
Jason Yip sketches use cases of user stories, from 😞 to 🤔 to 😀 practices.
Source: Medium: Some sketches about using User Stories to facilitate shared understanding: bad, better, best
Recommended by LinkedIn
Author: Jason Yip
Roman Pichler: What Should a Head of Product Do?
Roman Pichler sheds light on the responsibilities of a head of product, a career aspiration for many product managers and Product Owners.
Author: Roman Pichler
📺 Janna Bastow: Lean Roadmapping and OKRs — Hands-on Agile #42
In this energizing 42nd Hands-on Agile Lean Roadmapping session, Janna Bastow, the go-to-authority on product roadmaps, talked about being lean while creating and maintaining your roadmap and how objectives and key results (OKR) may help meet that challenge.
📺 Watch the video now: Janna Bastow: Lean Roadmapping and OKRs — Hands-on-Agile #42.
🛠 Concepts, Tools & Measuring
John Cutler (via Amplitude): What Are Vanity Metrics and How to Stop Using Them
John Cutler shares his ultimate guide to fighting vanity metrics, from understanding their appeal to identifying and overcoming them.
Author: John Cutler
(via Agile Uprising): Actionable Agile Metrics For Scrum, Kanban, SAFe, or ANYTHING! How to get started!
Agile Uprising shares a guide to helpful metrics in various environments, from flow efficiency to work item age to time to market.
Source: Agile Uprising: Actionable Agile Metrics For Scrum, Kanban, SAFe, or ANYTHING! How to get started!
✂️ Cutting Room Floor
Cal Newport: The 3-Hour Fields Medal: A Slow Productivity Case Study
Cal Newport explains why three hours of work per day may not be painfully slow but massively productive — when you zoom out and take a long-term perspective.
Author: Cal Newport
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Food for Agile Thought 350: Product Discovery Tool, Team Longevity, Vanity Metrics, Shared Understanding in Sketches was first published on Age-of-Product.com.
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