Slides Andrew Hsu recently used in his discussion w/ mentees of The Product Mentor. Synopsis: Roadmaps are altered by user feedback, new strategies and changing client needs. Help your team adapt and keep clients aligned with these documents, meetings, and conversations. The Product Mentor is a program designed to pair Product Mentors and Mentees from around the World, across all industries, from start-up to enterprise, guided by the fundamental goals…Better Decisions. Better Products. Better Product People. Throughout the program, each mentor leads a conversation in an area of their expertise that is live streamed and available to both mentee and the broader product community. http://TheProductMentor.com

1. tips and stories to help you
execute a road map effectively6
Andrew Hsu

2. About me...
Past
Electrical engineer for oil-refineries
Product manager
Present
Building high performing cultures

3. tip #1
Spend time with what’s difficult

4. a story about...
Users reporting the site is down
before we know.
Spend time with what’s difficult

5. Client - “The site is down.”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

6. Client - “The site is down.”
Me: “Client’s saying the site is down,
what’s going on?”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

7. Client - “The site is down.”
Me: “Client’s saying the site is down,
what’s going on?”
Engineering: <silence>
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

8. Client - “The site is down.”
Me: “Client’s saying the site is down,
what’s going on?”
Engineering: <silence>
Me: “Marco?”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

9. Client - “The site is down.”
Me: “Client’s saying the site is down,
what’s going on?”
Engineering: <silence>
Me: “Marco?”
Engineering: “We’re looking into it.”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

10. Problem is fixed.
Service restored.
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

11. Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult
Client replies are sent.
I hope we retro properly and it doesn’t happen again.

12. Me: “How can we not know the site’s
down before someone else?”
Engineering: “It’s complicated.”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

13. 1 month later
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

14. Client - “The site is down.”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

15. Me: ugh.
Client - “The site is down.”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

16. “Seriously, again?”
“It’s complicated.”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

17. Spending the time required.
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

18. Don’t just hope it was fixed.
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

19. ● “What broke?”
● “How did it break?”
● “How are the broken pieces interconnected?”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

20. ● “Access completely revoked when one item fails.”
● “The front end sends false alarms.”
● “The back end alert is not interpretable.”
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

21. Definitive next steps defined and put into our work queue.
Spend time with what’s difficultSpend time with what’s difficult

22. How to notice, where you need to spend time...
● People you regularly shy away from speaking with
● Persistent problems that aren’t improving
● Any problem without definitive next steps
● “That’s so weird”
● Where you feel a sense of urgency and your team does
not match that
Spend time with what’s difficult

23. tip #2
Answer your own first questions

24. a story about...
shifting strategies
Answer your own first questions

25. The strategy keeps
changing.
Answer your own first questionsAnswer your own first questions

26. You’re upset
The team is upset.
Answer your own first questionsAnswer your own first questions

27. “What are YOU doing?”
“Why does the strategy keep shifting?”
“How can we ship if everything keeps changing?”
Answer your own first questionsAnswer your own first questions

28. Answering the first questions.
Answer your own first questionsAnswer your own first questions

29. “What are YOU doing?”
They’re trying to make the company successful.
“Why does the strategy keep shifting?”
They’ve learned something new, seen something new, noticed
that what was planned is not working.
“How can we ship if everything keeps changing?”
We need to prime the team to adapt more quickly because the
market keeps shifting.
Answer your own first questionsAnswer your own first questions

30. Shape your new convo.
Answer your own first questionsAnswer your own first questions

31. “The strategy has shifted a lot lately which is causing the team and I
anxiety. I’m guessing this is due to: the old plan not working, you
found something better, you learned something new.
To help us adapt better, what did you learn? What changed? etc...
<conversation>
To keep us moving, I believe (1) This is the new impact goal (2) I
will convey new goals for the team as X, Y, and Z (3) Can we start
regular Friday sync ups so I can update the team on Mondays.
WDYT?
Answer your own first questionsAnswer your own first questions

32. Application
● Write down your first questions / reactions
● Answer them on your own
Use your answers to:
● Present your understanding of the current situation
● Present a potential solution
● Ask stakeholders what’s changed and what they think
Answer your own first questionsAnswer your own first questions

33. tip #3
Find a translator

34. a story about...
Why doesn’t anyone else feel my
urgency
Find a translator

35. I look at JIRA and know
we aren’t going to “make
it.”
Find a translator

36. Stress
Find a translator

37. We don’t deliver.
Find a translator

38. Repeat.
Find a translator

39. One day I start talking to
an engineer about my
frustration.
Find a translator

40. I’ve found a translator.
Find a translator

41. Me: “I’m stressed….”
Find a translator

42. Me: “I’m stressed….”
Engineering: “Why?
Find a translator

43. Me: “I’m stressed….”
Engineering: “Why?
Me: “I know we’re not going to deliver”
Find a translator

44. Me: “I’m stressed….”
Engineering: “Why?
Me: “I know we’re not going to deliver”
Engineering: “I understand what you’re
saying, but I don’t know how to fix it.”
Find a translator

45. Engineering: “There’s nothing in JIRA
and no obvious problems for us to act
on.”
Me: “What do you mean you don’t
know…”
Engineering: “I understand what you’re
saying, but I don’t know how to fix it.”
Find a translator

46. Immediate: Fill JIRA sooner with bugs and tickets so people
can act upon the issues.
New problem: Find a way to convey standard % of sprint
that’s taken by QA, bug fixing, and “urgent requests.”
Find a translator

47. How to know you likely need a translator
● How do they not get this?
● I can’t seem to get my point across
● I can’t explain what I see to people
● You’ve been struggling to change things for months,
and things are not changing
Find a translator

48. tip #4
Keep pulling to understand
customer impact

49. a lesson from
performance review conversations
Keep pulling to understand customer impact

50. “I feel like I’m being micro-managed”
“You are being micro-managed.”
Keep pulling to understand customer impact

51. “I always hit my deadlines.”
“You always hit YOUR deadlines.”
Keep pulling to understand customer impact

52. We always need to be asking questions and helping each
other hit the client deadlines and client impact.
Keep pulling to understand customer impact

53. “If you don’t want to be pushed, you need to pull.”
Keep pulling to understand customer impact

54. How to know when you need to pull
● Lack of clarity on how client will be delivered
● Lack of clarity on when client delivery is
● Not confident we can deliver
● Any time you are blocked
● When you see holes in your logic
● Lack of consensus with all stakeholders for client launch
Keep pulling to understand customer impact

55. tip #5
Teach in story

56. a story about...
timelines
Teach in story

57. Monday kick off structure
● Week 1 - client dates
● Week 1 - features
● 4 week - client dates
● 4 week - features
Teach in story

58. Monday kick off
Invites need to be sent to
launch a client this
Wednesday.
Teach in story

59. Thursday
“Hey did you send those
invites?”
Teach in story

60. Thursday
“Hey did you send those
invites?”
“What invites?”
Teach in story

61. … I trust nothing
Teach in story

62. Tell stories about what the expected stakeholder
experience is.
Teach in story

63. “On Wednesday, our Agent (George Clooney), will be
presenting to 150 people at Universal Studios.
After he presents, he will direct them all to register. They will
go to their emails while in this meeting and look for the
registration link.
We need to make sure the client has the email and George
doesn’t have a terrible time”
Who is on point for this?
Teach in story

64. How to know when to tell stories
● Anything that has a client impact
● Features
● Releases
● Timelines
Teach in story

65. tip #6
Be positive

66. a story about...
me
Be positive

67. a story about...
me + Esley
Be positive

68. How to notice you’re not optimistic
● I’m bored
● “I have to do this”
● “I should do this”
● Not being excited about going to work
Be positive

69. How to be more optimistic
● Ask yourself “how have I already achieved what I’m
seeking to do.”
● Ask yourself: “what’s the story I would tell someone
about what went well last week.”
● Go visit your clients and help them
● Work with people who work with clients
● Work with someone optimistic
Be positive

70. Recap
1. Spend time with what’s difficult
2. Answer your own first questions
3. Find a translator
4. Keep pulling to understand customer impact
5. Teach in story
6. Be positive

71. thanks!!

72. Questions?
andrew.hsu@vegafactor.com
www.vegafactor.com

73. Appendix