Product Strategies for Non-Strategists

Presented byDustin LevyDecember 6, 2015

Product Strategies for Non-Strategists

Overemphasis on product roadmapping can lead to:

- introduction of products that customers do not want to buy- introduction of products into unattractive markets- overinvestment in product development- underinvestment in other areas critical to market success- lack of alignment with corporate strategy- too much reliance on gut feel

Product Strategy > Product Roadmap

A Product Strategy focuses the organization’s resources and capabilities on maximizing the profitability derived from customers and markets.

Product Strategy defined:

Framework #1, The Strategic Sweet Spot:

Unfulfilled Customer

Expectations

Your Capabilities

Attractive Markets “Sweet Spot” – where you want

to focus your resources

Framework #2, Roadmaps in Context:

Customer ExpectationsExternal

Internal

Now Future

New Product Development

Capability Investment

1. Do we have the capabilities required to meet the future expectations of our customers?

2. Does our current market definition allow us to meet stated corporate objectives?

Two fundamental strategic questions…

…whose answers drive six strategic initiatives

Do we have the capabilities required to meet the future

expectations of our customers?

Does our current market definition allow us to meet

stated corporate objectives?

Bring new products to market

Invest in new or enhanced capabilities

Raise engagement with our customers

Expand profitably in current market spaces

Identify new market expansion opportunities

Deepen understanding our of current markets

Yes

No

Don’t know

Yes

No

Don’t know

The building blocks of product strategy are pre-ordained.

The task at hand is to prioritize the strategic elements and define the tactics, which is within most people’s comfort zones, regardless of their capacity to think strategically.

Implications for you and your team:

Opinion Driven

Opinion Driven

DataDriven

•Market segmentation•9-box models•Porter’s Five Forces•PEST, PESTLE, STEEPLE, etc.• Internal capability assessments•Competitive benchmarking•Customer research•SWOT analysis•TOWS analysis

Available tools to reveal strategic insights:

•S O: Use strengths to maximize opportunities•S T: Use strengths to minimize threats•W O: Minimize weaknesses to take advantage of opportunities•W T: Minimize weaknesses to avoid threats

The TOWS Matrix: Creating action statements

•S O: Use strengths to maximize opportunities•S T: Use strengths to minimize threats•W O: Minimize weaknesses to take advantage of opportunities•W T: Minimize weaknesses to avoid threats

For example, if your customer loyalty is strong, but you are facing increasing threats from low cost competitors, you could:

- incentivize your customers with long-term agreements

The TOWS Matrix: Creating action statements

•S O: Use strengths to maximize opportunities•S T: Use strengths to minimize threats•W O: Minimize weaknesses to take advantage of opportunities•W T: Minimize weaknesses to avoid threats

For example, if your customer loyalty is strong, but you are facing increasing threats from low cost competitors, you could:

- incentivize your customers with long-term agreements- engage with your customers on social media to build word-of-mouth

The TOWS Matrix: Creating action statements

•S O: Use strengths to maximize opportunities•S T: Use strengths to minimize threats•W O: Minimize weaknesses to take advantage of opportunities•W T: Minimize weaknesses to avoid threats

For example, if your customer loyalty is strong, but you are facing increasing threats from low cost competitors, you could:

- incentivize your customers with long-term agreements- engage with your customers on social media to build word-of-mouth- exit the market space and bring your customers to a new place

The TOWS Matrix: Creating action statements

•Discover •Action•Organize•Affinitize•Prioritize•Validate•Socialize

Checklist

“focus the organization’s resources and capabilities on maximizing the

profitability derived from customers and markets”

Organize

Bring new products to market

Invest in new or enhanced capabilities

Raise engagement with our customers

Expand profitably in current market spaces

Identify new market expansion opportunities

Deepen understanding our of current markets

Action A1 Action A2 Action A3Action A4 Action A5 Action A6…

Action B1 Action B2 Action B3Action B4 Action B5 Action B6…

Action C1 Action C2 Action C3Action C4 Action C5 Action C6…

Action D1 Action D2 Action D3Action D4 Action D5 Action D6…

Action E1 Action E2 Action E3Action E4 Action E5 Action E6…

Action F1 Action F2 Action F3Action F4 Action F5 Action F6…

Affinitize

Bring new products to market

Invest in new or enhanced capabilities

Raise engagement with our customers

Expand profitably in current market spaces

Identify new market expansion opportunities

Deepen understanding our of current markets

Action A1 Action A2’Action A4‘ Action A6

Action B1 Action B2 Action B3Action B4 Action B5’

Action D1 Action D2‘Action D5‘

Action E1’ Action E3’ Action F3Action F6

Action C2’ Action C3Action C5 ‘

Action F2’

Prioritize

Bring new products to market

Invest in new or enhanced capabilities

Raise engagement with our customers

Expand profitably in current market spaces

Identify new market expansion opportunities

Deepen understanding our of current markets

Action B1’ Action B3 Action B2

Action D5’ Action D2

Action C2’ Action C5

Action A1 Action A4’

Action E1’

Action F2’

1

2

3

4

5

6

Strategies Tactics

Validate• Is the strategy non-obvious and unique?•Are the major competitive threats addressed?• If we do this, can our corporate objectives be achieved?•What is the common theme or enabler?

SocializeThe strategy is worthless if it can’t be communicated clearly to all involved.

Common theme or enablerKey strategic elementsLink to corporate objectives

“We will be best in breed at leveraging big data to drive

increased profit from our existing customer base, create new market

spaces, and inform future capability investments to grow earnings by

30% by 2017.”

Stakeholder Management

General audience Elevator pitch

Managers, team membersPrioritized strategies and tactics

Deep-divers

Product roadmap is a part of this, in context of an overall strategy

Raw discovery data and justification

Validates the product roadmap and its position in your strategic hierarchy

Implications for Product Managers:•Your roadmap will now be understood in the context of a broader

strategy

•Your output will drive other functional strategies essential to your success

•Your title is “Product”, but your brand is “Value Creator”, and Value Creators will advance upward in the organization