May 2005-product management process and tools
1 like1,347 views
The panel discussion focused on product management processes and tools. Panelists from three companies discussed their approaches: 1) Ryma Technologies uses Pragmatic Marketing framework and their collaborative tool FeaturePlan. 2) Quadrus Financial focuses on balancing sales and market drivers with an operational approach using tools like Word, Excel and a requirements pool. 3) Xenos Group is evolving from a sales-driven to market-driven approach using tools like CRM and their knowledgebase, but still relies on manual analysis. The panelists shared challenges in their processes and lessons learned around gathering market data, prioritization, and communication.
May 2005-product management process and tools
- 1. Product Management, Process & Tools A Panel Discussion for the UK PMF May 4th, 2005 Sponsored by Ryma Technology Solutions & FeaturePlan pm@rymatech.com
- 2. Introductions • Chair: Peter Ganza, Product Manager Ryma Technology Solutions Inc. • Panelists: – Robin Lowry, VP of Product Management, Ryma Technology Solutions Inc. – Hugh K. Richards,Vice President, Products Quadrus Financial Technologies, Inc. – Lee Garrison, VP of Marketing Xenos Group.
- 3. Session Overview • Our panel will explore what works well for them in the day-to-day tools they use and the processes they have implemented, some successes… and some war stories too • There will be a chance to get interactive and ask questions at the end of the presentation
- 4. A process is a methodology that is developed to replace the old ways and to guide corporate activity year after year. It is not a special guest. It is not temporary. It is not to be tolerated for a while and then abandoned. —Thomas H. Berry, Managing the Total Quality Transformation
- 5. 7 Goals of a New Product Process • Goal #1: Quality of Execution • Goal #2: Sharper Focus, Better Prioritization • Goal #3: Fast-Paced Parallel Processing • Goal #4: A True Cross-functional Team Approach • Goal #5: A Strong Market Orientation with Voice of the Customer Built In • Goal #6: Better Homework Up-Front • Goal #7: Products with Competitive Advantage Winning at New Products: Accelerating the Process from Idea to Launch by Robert G. Cooper; Perseus Publishing © 2001
- 6. Product Management Process • Starts with the type of company you work for… – Technology-driven company – Sales-driven company – Market-driven company • Product Manager’s primary role is to serve as the “voice of the customer” – Responsible for the “4P’s” – Includes indirect management and cooperation with other members of various groups
- 7. Product Management Process • Product Manager’s day to day work revolves around executing four main tasks: – Developing the market requirements document – Managing the product feature list – Coordinating activities of different functional groups – Participating in and/or running the launch and post- launch marketing activities for a product.
- 8. Product Management Process • Goal of this work is to: – Ensure a market-driven “whole” product offering – Establish competitive and profitable pricing models – Ensure the existence and support of product distribution – Create effective marketing promotions that generate revenue
- 9. Methodologies for creating a Product Management Process • Pragmatic Marketing: Practical Product Management • ZIGZAG Marketing: 10-step Methodology • Blackblot: Product Manager’s Toolkit • Life Cycle Strategies: High Performance Product Management • Product Development Institute: Stage-Gate Process … and many others!
- 10. Tools for Supporting a Product Management Process • Microsoft – Word, Excel, Visio, Project, etc. • PM Focused Tools: – Ryma Technology Solutions – FeaturePlan – Deadline Software – ProductCompass – Accept Software – Accept Planner • Development Focused Tools: – Borland – CaliberRM – IBM/Rational – RequisitePro
- 12. Robin Lowry VP of Product Management • Montreal based company • Founded in 2000 • First company to deliver a collaborative tool specifically designed to support product managers • Based on Pragmatic Marketing framework • Over 1000 users of FeaturePlan across different market segments
- 13. Robin Lowry VP of Product Management • Three product managers • One software product manager • Two professional services product managers
- 14. Ryma’s Product Management Process • Pragmatic Marketing Framework – Support from Management – Define roles and responsibilities – Define boundaries of product management – Acquire Stakeholder buy-in – Begin implementation with PM department – Built a product to support the process • Challenges – Hiring process minded people
- 15. Ryma’s Product Management Process • Describe what tools you are using to support your process (pros and cons): – Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Email, Paper – Collaborative Enterprise Product Management Platform: FeaturePlan – Unlimited development resources
- 16. Ryma’s Lessons Learned… • For success, a process must be clear to all stakeholders, broken down into manageable areas and implemented one area at a time
- 17. Hugh Richards VP Products – Quadrus Financial Technologies • QFTI is a fast growing, international software solutions provider – Financial services - risk management marketplace – 40+ employees, global offices, headquartered in Canada – Selling to fast paced, global derivatives risk management and trading markets • Uses an operational based product management approach to balance out sales and market drivers – 3+ product managers with strong sales, development, and delivery teams • Established ’99 - with go to market strategy launched once technology was established in ’02/03
- 18. General Challenges • Market penetration driven requirements – Maintaining the general product road-map – Time varying requirement sets – Marquis prospects and accelerated development phases • Need for product management process that satisfies traditional stakeholder approach, but with a necessity of satisfying rapid sales growth – Establishing a road-map, while getting traction with a 4- segment product line required very flexible and adaptive processes – Balancing out solution, offering vs. component sales – In 2 years, have penetrated top international banking institutions and corporates • Effective communication and establishment of process driven prioritization was required
- 19. Required Processes & Information Pools • Understanding 5 interconnected product-centric information processes – Product strategy process: devising & review – Product implementation process: creating – Sales & services programs: pitch to delivery – Product lifecycle management: tracking – The central operations that drive them “Where does the time go?” • Deliverables – Tight feedback loops are required to reduce reactivity to volatile (volume & varying rate), but essential market feedback – Sales, pre-sales, solution, contracting, post-sales, and support channels; each have their own information deliverables – the key is knowing how to listen, participate and where to look – Understanding the multiple hats worn by any individual is fundamental
- 20. Process Information Tools/Sources • Product Strategy – Word • Strategic plan; ROI draws on requirement pool estimates (FeaturePlan) • Top down / high-level feature presentment – Excel • Product roadmap (new and add-on product feature pick-list) • Feature sub-coverage/detailed communication • Product Implementation – FeaturePlan: starting point for establishing scope from strategy/PLM processes – QA & bug tracking/reporting system – Document mgmt/requirement tool (in addition to FeaturePlan) • Sales & Services Programs – Sales pipeline management: CRM, XL, Other – Pre-sales solution scope, gaps, project initiation: XL, Word, CRM – Contracting processes: services plan, product gaps, legal; Word, Excel, Project – Post sales & support: support ticket systems, CRM, Word, Project • PLM – Drawing and presentment of cross-product requirements pool that allows each of step to feed / be-fed with, status of product(s): FeaturePlan – Getting all habitual communication media/processes aligned is critical to not losing valuable data; re-keying if necessary
- 21. Main Observations • PLM is a full time stewardship process – To get all data aligned, sized, rolled into a state useful to product strategy ROI or equiv processes – It is often easier to spot information dynamics with less people and higher volatility of data • Any product manager must understand the operations driving the information flow – This is often unknown, and an unknown black-hole to product mgrs merely wanting to follow product marketing processes – Operational information communication is often at the root of many politics • Time dependent product requirements pooling is a key issue to ROI pre-analysis Email: hugh_richards@usa.net
- 22. Lee Garrison VP of Marketing • Xenos Group - the data to e-content company • Origins in AFP/META transformation • Evolving a consulting business into products • The introduction of Product Management
- 23. The “Pre-Pragmatic” Process • Sales-driven product development and marketing • Product direction driven by customer enhancements and bug fixes • Building for individual customers, not markets
- 24. Building a “Pragmatic” Approach • Taking time to gather data and be market-driven • Keeping Sales and the CFO off your back • Executive support from the top • Socializing the concepts and vocabulary • Reinforcement – Lunch & learns, reference resources, go to experts
- 25. Current Challenges • Data collection is a messy business • Changing sales urgency is a cultural shift • Walking the tightrope – Strategic Firefighting – Paying today’s bills – Finding time… not a big budget
- 26. The Utopian Process • The company is the product management team • PM spends 50% of time market sensing as mentor and guide • The corporate knowledgebase as single view and core asset • Culture contributes and uses it as a learning organization • Individual contributors understand key problem statements • Building the market model
- 27. The Tools We Use • CRM, SFA and the islands of data • The lowest common denominator – MS Office, the Product Management Edition • The manual analysis process • Quality depends on people and how they use it
- 28. Eating Our Own Dogfood • Transforming data for a unified single view • Indexed, searchable data for quantitative analysis • Decision support and an intelligent tool
- 29. Lessons Learned • Building your own (HGS) – The Sitraka PM Site • db with catalog and metadata, yet another island of data – Blogging and Wikis • searchable, common views but no metadata or intelligence • The role of data – Critical mass of data but the decision is still up to you • Building the market model – Use tools for modeling users and new spaces – Communicate, communicate, communicate.
- 30. Open Question Period For any additional information, email pm@rymatech.com