focus on outcomes, not features for better product results · 2017-10-30 · adapted from gothelf...

v 3.4 © 1993 – 2017 Scrum.org All Rights Reserved@ScrumDotOrg 1Kurt Bittner | [email protected] | @ksbittner

Focus on Outcomes, not FeaturesFor Better Product Results

v 3.4 © 1993 – 2017 Scrum.org All Rights Reserved 2

Features versus Outcomes



Product

Feature Outcome



Product

Features

OLEDdisplay

Outcomes

Higher resolution

Longer battery

life

Better viewing

experience

Longer time

between charges

v 3.4 © 1993 – 2017 Scrum.org All Rights Reserved

What’s wrong with Features?

Product

Feature Outcome

???


The problem: most features don’t improve outcomes

Source: http://www.exp-platform.com/Documents/2015%20Online%20Controlled%20Experiments_EncyclopediaOfMLDM.pdf

Improves outcome

Does nothing

Makes things worse


What about User Stories?

7

As a <type of user>, I want <some feature>

so that <some outcome is achieved>.

Source: https://www.mountaingoatsoftware.com/agile/user-stories


What’s an Outcome?

8

An Outcome is some state experienced by the user of a Product.


Using Outcomes and Personas to identify Opportunities

Current Experience

Desired Outcome

SatisfactionGap

Opportunity=

Value of ClosingSatisfaction Gap

PersonaAnother technique: Empathy Mappinghttps://www.uxpin.com/studio/blog/the-practical-guide-to-empathy-maps-creating-a-10-minute-persona/


Size of Opportunity=

[#People Matching Persona](market size)

x [Their Perceived Value of Closing Satisfaction Gap]

(benefit of closing gap)


Evaluating Opportunities – Three Questions

Do Reasonable Alternatives for

Closing the Gap Exist?

What’s the Value of

Closing the Gap?

What’s the Gap Between

Current and Desired States?

Ways to identify opportunities• Marketing data• Survey data• Customer feedback• Direct Observation • Interviews• Instrumented

Application data

Ways to identify alternatives:• Mock-ups and focus

groups • Educated hypotheses

about possible solutions

• Design Thinking

Ways to value improved outcomes:• Focus groups and Surveys to understand how

much people will pay for improved outcome• Market data to estimate number of people who

would be willing to pay for improved outcome


Using Outcomes to define and guide Products

12

How many Personas? Products specialized for specific Personas


Finding a Solution that delivers the right Outcome can take time

13

http://cargocollective.com/central/The-Design-Squiggle


Using Outcomes to plan Releases

SatisfactionGap

One Persona One Outcome

“Minimum Marketable Capability”


Using Outcomes to plan Sprints

15

ProductOwner

DevelopmentTeam

Here’s the outcome I’d like

us to achieve this Sprint …

Great! We think that if we build these PBIs that we can achieve that outcome…


Expressing Hypotheses

Adapted from Gothelf and Seiden: Lean UX

We believe [doing this] for [these people] will achieve [this outcome] We will know that this is true when we see [this measurement] changed

FeaturePersona

Outcome

Measure


An Example for a Health Care SaaS Provider

17

We believe reducing the time required to collect 80% of an insurance claim for for a patient will achieve reduced follow-up time and better patient satisfaction. We will know that this is true when we see time spent following up on claims drops and patient NPS increases.


How to add Outcomes to your

agile approach

18

•Express Sprint Goals in terms of Desired Outcomes to achieve•Express Product Backlog Items as

Hypotheses•Measure Outcomes for feedback• Inspect results and adapt hypotheses

to improve results