Its easy to confuse output with product success
Plenty of Product Managers share output metrics (like the ones below) to show product success.
And for good reason.
First, it’s almost impossible to get anything done in a large organization….let alone release a product.
Second, management spends an inordinate amount of time focusing on time and money.
And third, the data is easily available.
But does showing output really matter?
Does showing the 2 big releases, 5 feature updates, 110% budget consumed, and 3 months late, really tell you anything about the product’s performance?
Other than the fact that the team needs to do better with managing time and budget (something that you already know), these metrics are unfortunately meaningless.
They shed little to no information on the impact to the customer and the business. And, to make matters worse, provide zero guidance on what to do next.
A products true success is its impact
A better approach would be to measure the impact of your efforts against key business metrics.
The benefits of focusing on impact are three fold.
First, it forces the team to think in terms of results.
In the above example success is defined by meeting certain user adoption metrics. By setting targets, it’s no longer just about building features, it’s about driving outcomes.
Second, it leads to better decisions.
The team continued to release 1.1 and 1.2 only because 1.0 did not achieve the abandonment rate target. By monitoring impact….PMs can rely on data, not gut, to decide if they need to add features, improve current features, and / or pivot.
Third, especially for product executives, it allows for efficient funding.
Notice how the team stopped all development past 2.1 after they observed the negative adoption trend. A better use of resources would be for leaders to fund new experiments (maybe a 3.0 release), that will be able to deliver better results. No point throwing good money after bad.
So what does all this mean for you?
The next time you meet with your product team, ask them what does success looks likes. Ideally before any coding has taken place.
If the answer is that success = releasing something / anything on time and on budget, send them back to the drawing board.
Ask them to
- Identify key user behaviors that they would like to track post release (Google’s HEART framework is a good place to start if you are looking for inspiration)
- Formulate targets, and
- Create a plan on how it will be measured
I know it sounds hard and requires a lot of work. And in the beginning it is. Just like when Project Management or Total Quality Management practices were introduced 20 – 30 years ago.
But, if you want to win in the digital race, impact is what is going to get you there.
After all, what gets measured gets done.
How do you measure success?
What metrics does your team use to measure success? Do you focus on output or outcome? What are some of your favorite metrics?
Would love to hear from you in the comment section below
