In the course of conversations with startups that I’ve invested in, that I advise, or that I simply encounter, it’s very common to get into discussions about prioritization.
First off, some prioritization is still reasonable. If you have 5 things you're considering doing, you still need to pick one of them. The idea of velocity + focus is that it's better to have: "Prioritize 3 of your 5 best ideas" rather than "Prioritize 1 of your best 10."
Second, there's a ton that goes into shipping a great product that isn't strictly prioritization. GTM, research (better overall ideas at top of funnel), quality checking, adding velocity, etc. There's always lots to do.
Important points in this article. The distinction between prioritizing tasks and partitioning resources matters, and matching the prioritized task with the right resources is challenging. Of course, the most obvious mistake is allocating dedicated teams to fixed lanes (i.e., cementing yesterday’s strategy into the org chart).
When market conditions shift, those fixed lanes can cement your feet to the ground. Lately, I have been thinking and writing more and more about how to deploy a “portfolio of small bets” in my organization—creating enough focused movement to learn quickly, adapt early, and scale what proves true.
How do I build an organization that is not so efficient at executing yesterday’s plan that it loses the ability to notice the market sands shifting under our feet?
How does the role of a Product Owner changes then where big part of their job is prioritisation?
First off, some prioritization is still reasonable. If you have 5 things you're considering doing, you still need to pick one of them. The idea of velocity + focus is that it's better to have: "Prioritize 3 of your 5 best ideas" rather than "Prioritize 1 of your best 10."
Second, there's a ton that goes into shipping a great product that isn't strictly prioritization. GTM, research (better overall ideas at top of funnel), quality checking, adding velocity, etc. There's always lots to do.
Gold: "The better you are at moving fast the worse you can be at prioritization. "
Important points in this article. The distinction between prioritizing tasks and partitioning resources matters, and matching the prioritized task with the right resources is challenging. Of course, the most obvious mistake is allocating dedicated teams to fixed lanes (i.e., cementing yesterday’s strategy into the org chart).
When market conditions shift, those fixed lanes can cement your feet to the ground. Lately, I have been thinking and writing more and more about how to deploy a “portfolio of small bets” in my organization—creating enough focused movement to learn quickly, adapt early, and scale what proves true.
How do I build an organization that is not so efficient at executing yesterday’s plan that it loses the ability to notice the market sands shifting under our feet?