Mike Lyons breaks down why value means different things to different people. A polling-place locator serves voters, election officials, and county government each differently. Product owners have to figure out what actually matters to their organization, then say no to everything else.
Value. It's the cornerstone of effective product ownership. Yet it's a concept that often sort of eludes a simple definition.
Please, can you explain it to me?
Okay. In Agile, product ownership, value is as diverse as the customers we serve and the organizations that we work within. In my role as product owner for the county elections office, I also was tasked with developing a new polling place locator system. Initially, I thought the value was pretty straightforward. Help voters find their polling locations quickly. However, as I delved deeper into the project, I kind of realized that value meant different things to different people. For voters, value meant not just finding their polling place, but also getting information about accessibility and parking and expected wait times. For election officials, value included reducing the number of misdirected voters and minimizing election day confusion. And for the county government, value translated to increase voter turnout and improved public perception of the election process. The experience taught me that value is not a one size fits all concept. It's a complex interplay of multiple factors, each of them important in their own right. Okay, well, that's in the government space. But consider in the corporate world. Value often equates to financial metrics. Cha Ching, Cha Ching. Good for you. It might mean increased revenue, improved profit margins, or enhanced market share. For a tech startup, value could be rapid user acquisition or retention rates. But value isn't always about dollars and cents. I worked at a global nonprofit where I was a product manager. And there value was measured in lives improved, in communities strengthened. But whatever the case is, it's crucial to understand that value can be both tangible and intangible. Tangible value is often easier to measure. Things like cost savings or time efficiency, maybe increased productivity. Intangible value, that's harder to measure. Consider this coffee mug. You see a fairly cheap chipped mug with a letter on it. I see the mug my dad used right before he passed away. It's extremely valuable to me, although quite intangible. And so intangible value that might include things like improved user satisfaction or enhanced brand reputation, or even increased employee morale. The key is to remember that true value solves a real need for the customer in a way that's viable for the organization. It's not about building features for the sake of building features, but about delivering solutions that make a meaningful difference. Factors that impact how value is defined include the organization's mission and goals, the specific needs and preferences of the target customers, market conditions and available resources, regulatory requirements, the competitive landscape, and even technological capabilities and advancements. Those also play a role in shaping what constitutes value in any given context. And as product owners, our job is to navigate these various factors and align them into a coherent vision of value. It's important to note also that value is not static. What constitutes value can change over time. Customer needs evolve as the market shifts and organizational priorities change. We've got to consistently reassess and realign our understanding of value. And listen, value is not about just delivering everything the customer asks for.
Have you ever heard the expression the customer is always right?
Sometimes the most valuable thing we can do is say no. Just a pro tip from the field here, product owner. You're going to need to get really good at saying no. And you'll be saying it a lot. But Jason Fried at 37signals put it this way. No is no to one thing. Yes is no to lots of things. The key is to make your no constructive, whether it's not now or let's put that in the backlog or help me understand the value proposition. Remember, your job isn't to make everyone happy. It's to maximize value delivery for your product and your organization. Understanding value is not just an academic exercise. It guides all our decisions as product owners. By continually refining our understanding of value, we can ensure that our products truly meet the needs of our customers and our organizations.
