Are You Struggling to Scale Your Organization ? Need agility but dubious of process BS/dogma? I share reflective, pragmatic, principled takes on how to approach scaling your organization leveraging the essence (rather than theater) of product operating models, agile practices and frameworks, and business operating systems such as EOS and OKRs.
š”āļøš Can a Product-Led Organization use a PROJECT Operating Model?
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Over the years, I have worked with many tech startups. Reader Heidi asked an interesting question as a follow-up to yesterday's email about Product-Led Growth, Product-led Org, and Product Operating Models: "Can a Product-Led Org have a Project Operating Model?" First of all - I'll admit that I ran my product delivery organization using a Project operating model in a Product-led Org, 20 years ago. So it is factually possible (but not necessarily recommended...) Over the years, I have worked with many tech startups. Most were Product-led but managed their product organization using a project operating model. They run agile sprints, they might even deploy and release continuously, but they manage to scope and timeline. The movement towards a Product operating model means aligning these teams around clear, strategic outcome-oriented goals and measures and empowering them to determine what products and capabilities to build to delight their customers and achieve these goals. Even most product-led organizations are stuck in a feature factory, which shows how hard it is for other organizations to adopt a real product orientation and operating models. But that's also where the promise is... the ability to leverage agility to deliver awesome products. |
Scaling w/ Agility
Are You Struggling to Scale Your Organization ? Need agility but dubious of process BS/dogma? I share reflective, pragmatic, principled takes on how to approach scaling your organization leveraging the essence (rather than theater) of product operating models, agile practices and frameworks, and business operating systems such as EOS and OKRs.
Ever feel like your product organization is stuck in the mud? Youāre not alone. Many teams start strong, laser-focused on delivering value and achieving product-market fit. But as success scales, things get messy. Dependencies pile up, alignment fades, and suddenly, youāre running a feature factory instead of an empowered product organization. Why Do Product Organizations Stall? Hereās the typical lifecycle: Early Days: One team, minimal dependencies, clear goals. Itās all about finding...
Leading an agility journey can often feel lonely. These days, especially, thereās plenty of complexity, and rapid changeāwhat weāve come to know as VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous) or even the newer BANI framework (Brittle, Anxious, Nonlinear, Incomprehensible). Building and growing a consulting/advisory business in the agility/product/scaling field also provides plenty of VUCA and BANI. Peer groups, like Masterminds or the Forums used in the Entrepreneur Org (EO) / Young...
I often discuss developing your company/operating model using product techniques. Today's post is a collaboration with my fantastic wife, Vered, where she outlines a somewhat concrete playbook for doing just thatādeveloping your product playbook like it was a productācollaboratively, iteratively, focusing on outcomes, steering with evidence. It's the essence of Product Operations. Enjoy! This article is inspired by recent conversations I had with Product Leaders about product operating...