What if you could see the end-to-end journey of real leaders and teams who successfully launched a product, and could compare it to the journey of those who failed to launch? With Highland's latest Digital Innovators Journey Report, that’s exactly what we’ve done. Join Highland President Jon Berbaum and CX Practice Director David Whited as they share findings from in-depth qualitative interviews with product leaders who were responsible for the failure or success of a new digital product in the last 6 months. We’ve cataloged over 100 insights about the product development journey and distilled the most significant indicators of success or failure. Attendees will learn: 1) Why successful and unsuccessful journeys look different from the very start 2) How leadership can significantly influence outcomes 3) What nearly every team—successful or not—forgets to plan for

1. ORIGINAL RESEARCH SERIES

2. 2
Agenda
● Why this research?
● Successful journeys
● Unsuccessful journeys
● Key learnings
● Now what?

3. The Catalyst
What can we learn from the actual journeys of
Product Managers launching new digital products?

4. 4
Learning Goals
WHAT ARE WE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND?
● Are there observable differences between successful
and unsuccessful journeys?
● Do successful and unsuccessful projects originate differently?
● Do journeys have common characteristics that act as
warning signs for failure?

5. Spoiler Alert
Yes

6. 6
What Did We Do?
Product Managers Thoughts, Feelings,
& Actions
Experience Maps
PROCESS

7. 7
Who Did We Talk With?
PARTICIPANT QUALIFICATIONS
● Seasoned Product Managers (2+ years experience)
● Launched a product recently (last 3-12 months)
● At an organization that is mid-sized or larger

8. 8
How Did We Define Success?
SURVEY
“How would you rate the success of the
product on a scale of 1 to 7, where one
is not at all successful and 7 is couldn’t
be better?”
Survey Question,
Highland DIJ Research
● Success: A rating of 6 or 7
● 62% thought their product was successful
● Unsuccessful projects averaged a rating of 4

9. “Making sure the end user is happy. So
then everyone up the chain is happy.”
“When you hit the North Star
metric, but the people on the team
also feel satisfaction. They have
learned & grown through being on
the project.”
“If the objectives you defined at the
beginning are something your users are
actually achieving, that is success.
What’s the point on spending months of
effort if the user is unhappy?”
“[Success] doesn’t mean we’re
done and doesn’t mean we’re not
going to continue to do more.”
How Did Product Managers Define Success?
WHAT DOES SUCCESS MEAN TO YOU AT THE END OF A SUCCESSFUL PROJECT?

10. The Successful Journey
The Marathon

12. THE CRUCIBLE

13. IN SUCCESSFUL DIGITAL INNOVATION PROJECTS
WE SAW
EARLY CLARITY

14. EARLY CLARITY
● Every part of the plan is brought into contact with as
much reality as can be known at this stage
● Establish if there is a problem worth solving
● Talk to customers
(75% did upfront qualitative research)
“I had to prove this was
worthwhile for the business.”

15. IN SUCCESSFUL DIGITAL INNOVATION PROJECTS
WE SAW
CUSTOMER CENTRICITY

16. CUSTOMER CENTRICITY
● Willingness to adjust based on customer feedback
● Teams and leaders make decisions based on
customer research, even if it isnʼt what they
wanted to hear
● Deep belief in value is reliable fuel for the journey
“...realized customers wanted
different things...”

17. IN SUCCESSFUL DIGITAL INNOVATION PROJECTS
we saw
BUILDING ONLY WHAT MATTERS

18. BUILDING ONLY WHAT MATTERS
● The earlier stages make The Crucible manageable
● PMs experience pressure for speed and results
in all journeys
● Early Clarity leads to building smaller
● Customer-centric alignment make hard decisions easier
“We can’t do everything”

19. IN SUCCESSFUL DIGITAL INNOVATION PROJECTS
WE SAW
SUPPORTIVE LEADERSHIP

20. SUPPORTIVE LEADERSHIP
● Creates stability
● High participation, high accountability, low control
● Supports customer-centricity
“Leadership is looking for
results....When is this going
out?”

21. IN SUCCESSFUL DIGITAL INNOVATION PROJECTS
WE SAW
MORE MILES IN THE MARATHON

22. MORE MILES IN THE MARATHON
● All the pieces for launching a new product – supporting users,
legal hurdles, marketing & sales effort – were found here,
at the end.
“Success doesn’t mean we’re
done and doesn’t mean we
don’t have more to do”

24. The Unsuccessful Journey
Initial Conditions are Crucial

26. THE CRUCIBLE IN THE
VALLEY OF SUCK

27. IN UNSUCCESSFUL DIGITAL INNOVATION PROJECTS
WE SAW
A STORM BREWING EARLY ON

28. A STORM BREWING EARLY ON
● Starting with the solution first
● 60% skipped customer research
● Pressure from leadership to move fast early
“There just wasn’t time to waffle
on things. It was all decision
making in the moment”

29. IN UNSUCCESSFUL DIGITAL INNOVATION PROJECTS
WE SAW
MAGICAL THINKING

30. MAGICAL THINKING
● Goals are based on untested assumptions
● The PM withholds growing unbelief in viability
● “The next phase will be better” hopes begin
“They had ideas that
didn’t mesh and solutions
for questions that weren’t
being asked”

31. IN UNSUCCESSFUL DIGITAL INNOVATION PROJECTS
WE SAW
FAILED HEROICS

32. FAILED HEROICS
● Pushing back milestones and timelines
● Political decision making continues
● PM acting as a shield to protect team from executives
“The people that pitched to leadership
that this was a simple thing
that could be done in 1 ½ months…
that continued to haunt us”

33. IN UNSUCCESSFUL DIGITAL INNOVATION PROJECTS
WE SAW
PEOPLE LEAVING

34. PEOPLE LEAVING
● Executives abandon the team
● Burnout and exhaustion peak
● 80% resulted in PM quitting or team being disbanded
“I tried to shelter my team and
shelter the exec burden but it
was a huge time suck”

36. Compare & Contrast
What can we learn by looking at both experiences?

37. ● Customer research
● Customer-driven decisions
● Substitute research
● Politically-driven decisions
Successful Unsuccessful

38. ● Have an MVP mindset
● Walk hand-in-hand with execs
● Try to fit in as much as possible
● PM splitting attention
Successful Unsuccessful

39. ● Feel strain and pressure
● Launch is stressful...
● ...but victory is in sight
● Exhaustion builds
● No celebration at launch
● Product value is not evident
Successful Unsuccessful

40. * sales, marketing, legal, support, etc.

41. ● Grappling with reality early on is key
● Organizational health has the most
impact overall
● Set regular rhythms of engagement
● Ensure the team has targets they
believe they can hit

42. ● Qualitative customer research is a must
● Clarity gets harder over time, not easier
● Pressure is normal, Reboots are not
● Plan for the effort to launch (training,
enablement, marketing, support, etc)

43. Free 45-minute consultation on Highlandʼs
Digital Product Innovation Process
Let’s Talk

44. Register for the next
Guided Storytelling & Experience Mapping
virtual masterclass at Highland Academy
academy.highlandsolutions.com
Cohort Starts September 15th!

45. WHAT’S NEXT
● Read: Full report on Digital Innovatorʼs Experience
● Quantitative Research: Customer-Centricity & Success

46. FOLLOW UP
President
jon@hs.lc
Director, CX Practice
david@hs.lc

47. Thank you!