Value Driven Product Management Process by Terry Mosbaugh

Terry Mosbaugh

Value-DrivenProduct Management Process

Terry Mosbaugh

Value-Driven Product Management

WHAT IS IT?

6-Step Process to Drive Successful Business Growth

Product Lines Small Businesses Start-ups

WHAT IS IT?



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Provides thought leadership by bringing customer and market expertise to the strategic planning process

Categorizes strategy implementation to better manage details and apply best practices

Aligns the product team around a strategic vision to drive execution towards:

Provides thought leadership by bringing customer and market expertise to the strategic planning process

Categorizes strategy implementation to better manage details and apply best practices

Aligns the product team around a strategic vision to drive execution towards:

Building Products & Services

Customers Want !!


Gives market insights Don’t be tricked into focusing only on major customer unique needs

Drives alignment between executives and product management team

Aligns business strategy with product strategy

Communicates the strategic vision to internal stake holders

(i.e. Marketing, Sales, Product Development, Finance, Operations, Legal)

Provides market feedback to help adapt and improve along the way

Apply “Best Practices” within each step


6 Steps to VDPM:

1. Voice of the Customer [VOC] Assessment

2. Product Profile SWOT Analysis

3. Product Portfolio vs. VOC Gap Strategy

4. Order Fulfillment Strategy

5. Go-To-Market Strategy

6. Infrastructure Review


- Ask lots of open-ended questions then “Listen”

- Utilize multiple channels for collecting VOC

- Summarize details in a MRD (Market Requirement Document) Who are your target customers ?

- Influencers, End-Users, Buyers

- Enterprise, SMB, SOHO, Consumer

What do they do? What do their customers do?

What are their “problems, needs, and pains”?

- True requirements may not be obvious at the start

- They mostly emerge during customer interactions

What VALUE it is to them to address needs and /or eliminate pains?

- Ask lots of open-ended questions then “Listen”

- Utilize multiple channels for collecting VOC

- Summarize details in a MRD (Market Requirement Document) Who are your target customers ?

- Influencers, End-Users, Buyers

- Enterprise, SMB, SOHO, Consumer

What do they do? What do their customers do?

What are their “problems, needs, and pains”?

- True requirements may not be obvious at the start

- They mostly emerge during customer interactions

What VALUE it is to them to address needs and /or eliminate pains?

1.) Voice of the Customer (VOC) Assessment


What is the overall size of the market opportunity? Why are customers buying existing products / technology? What was their fundamental needs? How did you address their

needs? What was their alternative solutions? What was their ROI perception? Did your products meet, exceed, fall short of customer’s

expectations? What prospects did you forecast to purchase products but did not? Why? objections, barriers, competitive solution What is your competition [direct and indirect]? Do you have a differentiator over competition? Why now? What are the major roadblocks to you growing faster? Why?

1.) Voice of the Customer [VOC] Assessment (Cont.)


SWOT = Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats

What do you have today ?

Is it a solution or a product ?

Does it offer to your customers ?

● Solutions offer more value than products

● Customers do not buy features & benefits – they buy value

● Do not add to portfolio unless it brings value

How does it compare to competition ?

Is the product portfolio sustainable (roadmap strategy) ?

Do you have IP (patents or trade secrets) ?

2.) Product Profile SWOT Analysis

“Value”


Options to Fill Gaps:

Repackage what you have Private brand labeling Create custom product extensions Develop new products / services M & A strategy

Strategy ROI must meet goals of the business

3.) Product Portfolio vs. VOC Gap Strategy


Regular evaluation of the portfolio and development pipeline to

assign resource priority (what offers the best ROI)

Invest in product development technologies that improve the agility

and speed of the engineering portion of the product development

lifecycle

Product Management is key to bridging communications between

Voice of the Customer and Product Development teams

o LEAN - PDo Agile Development Methodology

3.) Product Portfolio vs. VOC Gap Strategy (Cont.)

Apply ‘Best Practices’


How do you accept and fulfill orders?

Manufacture Internally Outsource to Contract Manufacturer / ODM Private Label All of the Above

What is your Vendor, Logistics and Supply Chain Support

Strategy?

How do you accept and fulfill orders?

Manufacture Internally Outsource to Contract Manufacturer / ODM Private Label All of the Above

What is your Vendor, Logistics and Supply Chain Support

Strategy?

4.) Order Fulfillment Strategy


Product [Packaging, MOQ’s, Vertical’s]

Price [Standard, Tiered, Disty, eBusiness)]

Promotion [Social Media, eMarketing, Lead Gen, PR]

Placement [Sales Channels]

Position = “Targeted Value-Add Solutioning”

5.) Go-To-Market Strategy


Targeted Value Add Solutioning (Step 1)

1. Promote “Value” not Features / Benefits

Customers do not buy product features nor benefits

Focus sales enablement and marketing tools around the value features and benefits bring to addressing identified

customer’s needs or pains

5.) Go-To-Market Strategy (Cont.)

Value Driven Product Management


2. Develop “Solutions” not Products

Solutions can be a combination of products, services, messaging, and operational best practices

Solutions drive differentiating value resulting in greater revenue and higher margins

Solutions have less competitive pressures


Targeted Value-Add Solutioning


2. Develop “Solutions” not Products (cont.)

Four Samples of Solutions are:

Stand Alone: a product and/or service combined with Best-of-Class Customer Service

Vertical Market/Niche Market Specific: a product wrapped in value-add messaging crafted for specific users

Bundle: a combination of existing discrete products, services, and operational best practices into a solution possibly with promotional package pricing

Integrated Solution: an offering that integrates multiple components such as products, services, processes, intellectual property, and pricing that delivers value beyond which each individual component could provide on its own



3. Identify “Targeted Customer Needs”

Be the expert on "Targeted Customer Needs" and how your products are used to address the needs

In addition to existing customers be sure to evaluate the needs of new prospects, vertical marketing teams, sales engineers, and channel partners (MSP, VAR, SI, Dealers)

Focusing only on major customer unique needs can be dangerous




3. Identify “Targeted Customer Needs” (Cont.)

Influencers, Users and Buyers all have different needs

Enterprise customers have different needs than SMB, SOHO

or Consumer

Specific Vertical Markets have unique different needs

Hunter sales people have different needs than Farmer sales people




3. Identify “Targeted Customer Needs” (Cont.)

Prioritize Target Customers

“Execute” on GTM strategy



What infrastructure is required to support Steps 1 through 5?

Create Org Chart with boxes of functionality

Assess existing personnel / support groups

Assign personnel / groups to best functionality

Recruit / Hire / Train key performers – Fill function gaps

Develop KPI metrics reporting dashboards

Lead, Manage, Mentor and Motivate team(s)

Communicate Communicate Communicate

6.) Infrastructure Review


Generates: Business Strategy Product Line Strategy Product Roadmap

Gains Stakeholders Agreement Creates Milestones and Budget Allocations

Set Target Dates to Achieve Can Monitor Budgets Status

Monitors Progress via KPI dashboards Adjust Strategy [Pivot] as needed Be Flexible to Market & Customers Changes Anticipate vs. React

DIFFERENTIATION ISN’T ENOUGH YOU HAVE TO BE BETTER

VDPM Process


“One of the greatest challenges facing companies today is how to properly value product opportunities and make objective portfolio management decisions.”

Jim BrownVP - Global Product Innovation and Engineering

Aberdeen Group


WHAT IS IT?



WHAT IS IT?



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Thank You

Terry P. [email protected]

THANK YOU