#ContinuousImprovement – Its Just Good Management

What separates companies with thriving product lines from those struggling to stay afloat? It’s not just luck. Forrester’s 2024 US Customer Experience Index research shows that prioritising customer experience, powered by strong product management, can unlock 4-8% higher revenue growth. However, without this focus, companies risk falling behind, missing crucial market opportunities, and wasting valuable resources on products that fail to resonate with customers. This article explores why investing in product management capabilities is crucial in today’s complex product landscape, where seamless collaboration, data-driven decisions, and adaptability are essential for success. We’ll delve into three key justifications for prioritising product management upskilling: optimising product outcomes, enhancing team effectiveness, and driving continuous improvement.
Upskilling is crucial for all product managers, though the focus varies by seniority. Early-career PMs benefit from training in user research and execution, while senior leaders need development in strategy and team leadership.

1 – Optimise Product Outcomes

It is imperative to build products that resonate with the market to achieve the desired market impact and business goals. These products must deliver demonstrable value to customers and contribute directly to strategic business goals. Product managers must have the skills to understand the needs and desires of their customers and what their competitors are doing to successfully provide solutions that are sufficiently differentiated and valuable to pique user interest.

Spotify Example: Spotify uses A/B testing to optimise the user experience, such as testing different playlist recommendation algorithms to maximise user engagement.

Market & User Understanding: Deepening knowledge of markets, users, and competitors

Market Research & Analysis: Use techniques like TAM/SAM/SOM analysis to size your market accurately. For example, a product manager launching a project management tool could combine bottom-up analysis with Gartner data to ensure a realistic understanding of market potential.
User Research: Employ both qualitative methods, such as user interviews and contextual inquiry, and quantitative methods, such as surveys and A/B testing. Conduct user interviews to uncover unmet needs, then validate findings with larger-scale surveys to ensure user-centred development. To truly understand customer needs, Christensen et al. (2016) emphasise the importance of going beyond traditional demographics and analysing the “jobs” customers are “hiring” products to do. This “Jobs to Be Done” framework focuses on understanding the underlying motivations and desired outcomes that drive customer behaviour. For example, a customer might “hire” a smartphone for communication, entertainment, social connection, and self-expression. By understanding these “jobs,” product managers can develop features and messaging that genuinely resonate with customer needs.
Competitive Analysis: Analyse competitors’ strengths, weaknesses, and strategies to inform strategic decisions about pricing, features, and target markets, leading to stronger market positioning. Product managers must also be adept at competitive analysis, identifying both direct and indirect competitors. By analysing competitors’ strengths, weaknesses, and strategies, they can identify opportunities for differentiation and develop unique selling propositions that resonate with target customers. Opportunities include offering unique features, superior performance, a more compelling brand story, or a more competitive pricing strategy.

“The most important thing is to get out of the building and talk to customers.” (Aulet, 2013)

Product Definition & Strategy: Defining winning strategies and actionable plans

Product Vision & Strategy: Define a clear and compelling product vision to align the team with business strategy and maximise long-term product success. For example, Tesla’s vision for sustainable energy permeates every aspect of its product strategy. This vision is evident in their relentless focus on improving battery technology, developing a comprehensive charging infrastructure, and offering over-the-air software updates that continuously enhance vehicle performance and features.
Product Roadmapping & Prioritisation: Use prioritisation frameworks like MoSCoW or RICE (Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort) to ensure development focuses on high-value features, directly impacting ROI. RICE scoring allows objective feature comparison.
Product Requirements & Specifications: Precise documentation minimises ambiguity and rework.

Go-to-Market Execution: Improving product launches and market engagement

Go-to-Market Strategy: A well-defined go-to-market strategy ensures coordinated launches for maximum market penetration. Amazon often uses beta testing and phased rollouts.
Product Marketing & Messaging: Compelling messaging drives product adoption. However, even with strong messaging, poor execution can hinder success. A study by Repsly found that nearly 55% of promotions fail to impact sales due to poor execution. This failure highlights the importance of the product manager’s role in ensuring seamless go-to-market execution. (Repsly, n.d.)
Launch Execution & Performance Tracking: Product managers should track key performance indicators (KPIs) throughout the launch process to measure success and identify areas for improvement. These KPIs might include conversion rates (e.g., website visits to sign-ups), customer acquisition cost (CAC), user engagement metrics (e.g., daily active users, time spent on the app), and customer satisfaction scores (e.g., Net Promoter Score).

2 – Enhancing Team Effectiveness – Maximising Collaboration and Communication

Product Managers are crucial in building high-performing teams by facilitating effective collaboration and communication across all functions.

Stripe, an emerging global payment service provider, sees Product Management capability as essential in creating the alignment to deliver at pace.
“Have you been able to sell a vision or product to your last company’s leadership team? What disagreements or conflicts did the PM have with engineering or design? How were these disagreements resolved? How does the PM actively build relationships with other parts of the organisation?… There is a natural tension between product, design, and engineering. Conflicts may arise naturally in a fast-paced environment. The key is how to build relationships to surmount disagreements and how to resolve conflicts if they do occur.”(Gil, 2018)

Communication & Influence: Mastering communication for stakeholder influence

Communication & Presentation Skills: Product managers must tailor their communication style to different audiences. When presenting to executives, they might focus on data-driven insights and ROI projections. When collaborating with engineers, they might delve into technical details and user stories. Emotional intelligence and empathy are also crucial for building strong relationships, understanding diverse perspectives, and navigating disagreements effectively.
Stakeholder Management: Effective stakeholder management ensures stakeholder alignment and reduces conflicts.
Negotiation & Conflict Resolution: Product managers should develop skills to navigate disagreements and maintain positive relationships.

Collaborative Leadership: Leading and motivating cross-functional teams

Cross-Functional Team Leadership: Effective cross-functional team leadership empowers product managers to motivate teams and achieve product goals. Effective product managers empower their teams by delegating responsibilities, providing autonomy, and recognising individual contributions. They foster a collaborative environment where open communication, constructive feedback, and shared decision-making are encouraged.
Meeting Management & Collaboration Tools: Effective meeting management techniques and collaboration tools improve team efficiency and communication.
Building Consensus & Alignment: Product managers should focus on ensuring a shared understanding of product goals.

Facilitation and Alignment: Driving shared understanding and agreement within the team

Facilitation Techniques: Use techniques like workshops, brainstorming sessions, and structured discussions to guide team conversations and effectively drive towards shared outcomes.
Cross-Functional Alignment: Proactively work to align different functional perspectives (e.g., engineering, marketing, sales) by clearly articulating the product vision, strategy, and roadmap.
Conflict Management and Resolution: Develop skills to effectively mediate conflicts and disagreements within the team, fostering a positive and productive working environment.

3 – Driving Continuous Improvement – Driving Innovation and Adaptability

In today’s dynamic market, continuous improvement through innovation and adaptability is essential for sustained success.

Tesla Example: Tesla uses over-the-air updates to continuously improve its products, demonstrating a commitment to ongoing value delivery.

Innovation & Experimentation: Using data-driven approaches to validate ideas

Design Thinking & User-Centred Design: Applying design thinking ensures products are developed with a deep understanding of user needs.
Lean Startup & Agile Methodologies: Adopting lean startup and agile methodologies enables product managers to quickly test and validate ideas.
Data Analysis & Experimentation: Product managers should use data to optimise product performance (e.g., A/B testing landing pages). Continuous improvement relies on feedback loops and iterative development. Product managers should actively solicit customer feedback, analyse usage data, and conduct experiments to test and refine their products. For example, Amazon famously uses A/B testing to optimise its website and product pages, constantly experimenting with different layouts, messaging, and calls to action to improve conversion rates.

Market & Technology Awareness: Staying ahead of market trends

Emerging Technologies & Industry Trends: Staying informed about emerging technologies allows product managers to identify new opportunities and anticipate disruptions.
Competitive Monitoring & Benchmarking: Product managers should conduct competitive monitoring and benchmarking to gain insights into product strategy.
Continuous Learning & Knowledge Sharing: A commitment to continuous learning ensures product managers stay up-to-date with best practices.

4 – Measuring ROI: Demonstrating the Value of Product Management

Measuring product management activities’ return on investment (ROI) is crucial for demonstrating its value and securing continued support for these initiatives. However, as a Harvard Business Review study highlights, many executives lack confidence in accurately assessing product development ROI. This lack of confidence underscores the need for robust product management practices that track key metrics and demonstrate tangible impact. (HBR Analytic Services, 2019)
To effectively measure the ROI of your product management efforts, consider tracking these key areas:

Product-Specific Metrics:

Product Success Rate: The percentage of launched products that meet pre-defined success criteria (e.g., achieving target revenue, user adoption, or market share).
Time to Market: The time it takes to bring a product from ideation to launch, reflecting the efficiency of the product development process.
Customer Satisfaction: Measured through metrics like Net Promoter Score (NPS), Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT), and customer reviews, indicating how well the product meets customer needs.
Feature Adoption Rate: The percentage of users adopting and actively using specific features, highlighting the value and effectiveness of product enhancements.
Revenue and Profitability: Track the direct revenue generated by the product, as well as its contribution margin and profitability.

Team-Related Metrics:

Team Performance: Assess the product team’s effectiveness through metrics like sprint velocity (in Agile development), on-time delivery, and achievement of sprint goals.
Employee Satisfaction and Retention: Measure employee engagement, satisfaction, and retention within the product team, reflecting the impact of leadership and development initiatives.

Customer-Focused Metrics:

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): The cost of acquiring a new customer that can be reduced through effective product-led growth strategies.
Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV): The predicted net profit attributed to a customer’s future relationship that can be increased through product enhancements and customer retention efforts.
Churn Rate: The rate at which customers stop using the product, indicating areas for improvement in product value or customer engagement.

By consistently tracking and analysing these metrics, product managers can demonstrate the tangible impact of their work, justify investment in product management capabilities, and drive continuous improvement within their organisations.

Elevate your product team and maximise your product development ROI. Contact me to discuss a customised training program.

Bibliography

Aulet, B. (2013). Disciplined Entrepreneurship: 24 Steps to a Successful Startup. HBR Press.

Gil, Elad. High Growth Handbook. Accessed via Stripe Atlas https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2012/12/10/does-stripe-have-product-managers-or-do-engineers-manage-the-products-themselves/

HBR Analytic Services. (2019). Closing the Data Gap in Product Development. Harvard Business Review.

How to Make Change Stick in Your Organisation

Organisational transformations are complex undertakings, often involving significant changes to processes, systems, and culture. While the initial excitement and momentum can generate early wins, the real challenge lies in sustaining these changes and ensuring they become deeply embedded in the organisation’s DNA. To truly lock in your transformation investment and reap the long-term rewards, focus on these three critical areas:

Scenario: Imagine “Sunnies & Shades”, a fictional, mid-sized Aussie retailer specialising in sunglasses and prescription eyewear with stores across the country. They’re undergoing a significant transformation, aiming to shift from a traditional brick-and-mortar retailer to a more integrated online and offline experience. This shift involves a new e-commerce platform, in-store digital kiosks, and a revamped customer loyalty program. But like any good transformation, it’s not just about the initial launch; it’s about making those changes stick.

Build a Culture of “Always Improving”

A successful transformation requires a culture that embraces continuous improvement, where employees at all levels are empowered to identify opportunities, contribute ideas, and adopt new ways of working. This change can be particularly challenging when introducing new technologies or digital tools, as it requires a shift in mindset and a willingness to embrace change. Not only does this drive ongoing improvement and innovation, but it also helps attract and retain top talent who thrive in dynamic and forward-thinking environments.

Give Your People the Power: Empowering employees to participate in the transformation process is crucial because when individuals feel a sense of ownership and are actively involved in shaping the change, they are more likely to embrace it and contribute to its success. Empowerment means involving them in decision-making, encouraging them to share their ideas, and giving them the autonomy to experiment with new approaches. This involvement starts people planning how they will change what they do and positions them to be more prepared for the upcoming changes.
Get Feedback Regularly: Establish robust feedback mechanisms to gather insights from employees, customers, and other stakeholders. This feedback loop is essential for identifying areas for improvement, addressing concerns, and ensuring the transformation stays on track. By actively listening to feedback, organisations can make necessary adjustments and ensure the transformation remains aligned with the needs of the business and its stakeholders.
Never Stop Learning: Invest in ongoing training and development to equip your workforce with the skills and knowledge needed to thrive in the transformed organisation. This investment is vital because transformations often introduce new technologies, processes, and ways of working, for which employees need the capability to adapt and excel in this new environment. Learning can involve a combination of formal training programs, mentoring, online resources, and on-the-job coaching. Ideally, the change you implement has a ripple effect and can initiate further improvements. Introducing new technology can unlock further opportunities, which teams can capitalise on with appropriate learning.

For success, Sunnies & Shades needed comfortable and enthusiastic staff to use new digital tools to enhance the customer experience. Sunnies & Shades knew getting their team on board with their digital transformation was crucial. They set up staff forums and an online portal for feedback on the new systems, ran surveys, and held focus groups to ensure they considered and addressed everyone’s concerns. They also encouraged staff to experiment with the new technology and ran an internal competition to spark innovation. To top it off, they provided comprehensive training and ongoing support to ensure everyone felt comfortable using the new tools. The training acknowledged the value of previous ways of working while highlighting the benefits of the new processes to enable a smooth transition and minimising ambiguity.

Through developing a culture of continuous improvement, organisations can ensure that the changes implemented are not merely temporary fixes but become ingrained in their operations.

Make the Changes Stick

Transformations often involve significant changes to processes, systems, and behaviours. To ensure these changes are not just fleeting initiatives but become deeply embedded in the organisation, they must be reinforced and integrated into the fabric of everyday operations. This integration is essential because without consistent reinforcement, old habits can quickly resurface, and the momentum of the transformation can be lost. Crucially, this requires strong leadership buy-in and role modelling, with leaders actively demonstrating their commitment to the new ways of working.

Make it Part of Everyday Life: Integrate the changes into daily routines and workflows. This change can include updating job descriptions, redesigning workspaces, and incorporating new technologies into standard operating procedures. This integration is essential because it ensures that the new working methods become the norm rather than an exception.
Keep the Communication Flowing: Maintain open and transparent communication channels to inform employees about the transformation’s progress, address concerns, and celebrate successes. Consistent communication is crucial for building trust, maintaining momentum, and ensuring everyone is aligned with the transformation’s goals.
Shout Out Successes: Acknowledge and celebrate both big and small wins throughout the transformation journey to maintain momentum, build confidence, and reinforce positive behaviours. Celebrating successes reinforces the value of the transformation and motivates individuals to continue embracing the change.

For Sunnies & Shades, this meant making the new digital tools and processes a seamless part of their customer and employee experience. They went all-in on their digital makeover. They redesigned their stores with interactive kiosks for customers to try on glasses virtually and updated their staff uniforms to match their new vibe. To keep everyone in the loop, they held regular “sundowner” sessions and used their intranet to provide updates, informally discuss concerns and share success stories. The leadership team actively participated in these sessions to demonstrate their commitment to the transformation and used the new digital tools themselves. They also gave kudos to their “Digital Stars” – staff who nailed the new tech – and shared good customer feedback online.

Organisations can create a lasting legacy for their transformation efforts by planning steps to reinforce and embed the changes.

Track Your Progress

Establishing a robust measurement and monitoring framework is essential to ensuring your transformation is on track and delivering the desired results. This involves setting clear goals, tracking progress, and using data to inform decision-making. Tracking progress is crucial because it allows organisations to measure their efforts’ effectiveness, identify improvement areas, and demonstrate the value of the transformation to stakeholders.

How often do you and your team invest the time to discuss your transformation objectives AND what metrics will indicate both progress and results? While leaders know they should do this, few do. Why? Because it takes time and effort away from the day-to-day. My advice from many transformations is to invest this time upfront; it will make the inevitable conversations about the transformation value more productive.

Set Clear Goals: Define specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals for the transformation to provide a clear roadmap and a benchmark for measuring success. Clear goals provide direction and focus for the transformation, ensuring everyone is working towards the same outcomes.
Regularly Check In and Analyse: Regularly monitor and analyse performance data to assess the transformation’s effectiveness and identify improvement areas. Regular monitoring and analysis allow for adjustments to the transformation strategy and plan, ensuring it remains aligned with the evolving needs of the business.
Harness the Power of Data: Leverage technology to gain a comprehensive understanding of your transformation’s impact. Utilise data analytics platforms and business intelligence tools to track key metrics and visualise progress. This visualisation makes information accessible to stakeholders, facilitating focused discussions and informed decision-making. Ultimately, technology provides valuable insights into the transformation’s effectiveness and identifies areas for optimisation.

For Sunnies & Shades, tracking progress was crucial to understanding the impact of their digital transformation on key metrics like sales, customer satisfaction, and loyalty. Sunnies & Shades set clear goals for its transformation, like boosting online sales and growing its loyalty program. They used web analytics, in-store data, and an interactive business intelligence dashboard to keep tabs on their progress. Ready access to this information gave them a complete picture of how they were tracking and helped them spot any trends or areas for improvement in their monthly review meetings.

By diligently tracking progress, organisations can ensure their transformation stays on course and delivers the desired outcomes.

Conclusion

Transformations are not merely about implementing new initiatives; they are about creating lasting change. Organisations can lock in their transformation investments and reap long-term rewards by curating a culture of continuous improvement, embedding changes into daily operations, and diligently tracking progress.

Lessons from Sunnies & Shades – The Sunnies & Shades scenario highlights the importance of a holistic approach to transformation. Sunnies & Shades demonstrates how to successfully navigate the complexities of organisational change and build a sustainable future by actively involving staff, celebrating successes, and continuously adapting to the business’s evolving needs.