Product roadmaps – a controversial topic that sparks debates within product teams. Are they an exercise in futility that lulls teams into a false sense of certainty? Or are they vital artifacts that keep product development aligned and purposeful? Let’s explore both sides of this perpetual roadmap quandary.
Writing Roadmaps can be wasteful..
At their worst, product roadmaps can indeed become a form of “corporate opium” – sedating teams with an illusion of direction while obscuring the reality. They run the risk of becoming outdated quickly as priorities shift and assumptions change. An overly rigid roadmap can actually prevent teams from adapting to new information or market conditions.
There’s also the tendency for roadmaps to prioritize stakeholder wishlists over genuine customer needs. You end up with a cargo cult of features checked off, rather than tangible value delivered. The roadmap becomes more theoretical busywork than practical guidance.
Furthermore, roadmaps can promote an unintentionally siloed, internal-facing view. Teams get so heads-down executing the roadmap that they lose sight of the bigger strategic picture and external forces at play.
..but roadmaps have many benefits on paper
While roadmap hazards are real, the biggest mistake is dismissing their importance altogether. A living, evolving roadmap acts as a crucial forcing function for intentionality in product development. It’s far too easy for work to become rudderless, reactive busyness without a guiding roadmap.
A thoughtful roadmap aligns everyone – leadership, cross-functional teams, customers – on not just where you’re going but why. It communicates the product strategy and vision in a cogent, understandable way. This sense of unified purpose catalyzes team motivation and customer confidence.
Roadmaps also instill a disciplined cadence for planning, prioritizing, and measuring progress over time. They demand that you accurately assess capabilities and surface assumptions up front. Used effectively, roadmaps enable data-driven pivots when assumptions are invalidated along the way.
Amplifying Value
As with most processes in product development, roadmaps exist on a spectrum between corporate opium and value multiplier. You need to be aware of when they’re being pursued dogmatically versus being embraced as living, inspiring artifacts.
Successful teams view their roadmap not as gospel, but as a transparent, shared iteration plan that recognizes inherent unknowns. They use roadmaps to focus energy, coordinate dependencies, and facilitate healthy debates. Roadmaps thrive when balanced with empowered team autonomy and customer feedback loops.
Don’t let roadmaps devolve into bureaucratic busywork that hinders your ability to rapidly adapt and deliver value. But also don’t deprive your teams and stakeholders of the strategic cadence and vision that an evolutionary roadmap can provide. Strike that balance, and roadmaps become potent value multipliers.