Tag: Strategic & Business Management

10 Project Management Tools the World’s Top Companies Actually Use

Written by Vartika Kashyap on July 19, 2022. Posted in Articles. 5 Comments on 10 Project Management Tools the World’s Top Companies Actually Use

Netflix uses ProofHub, Uber uses Asana, Sony uses Podio.

Almost every successful business uses one or the other project management tool to handle their tasks, track their time, and manage their work in general.

Even numerous studies indicate that using project management tools increase performance and productivity. If you’ve also just started up a business and looking for a variety of tools that could soar your productivity, you’ve come to the right place.

We’ve compiled a list of the best project management tools that are being used by some big names in the world and you should too.

Let’s check them out:

1. ProofHub

ProofHub is one of the best project management tools in the business. It is simple and intuitive with features that help businesses to collaborate and deliver projects faster and better.

Business with remote teams can collaborate effortlessly with seamless file-sharing and effective document management. It supports many languages other than English, namely French, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, Norwegian, Polish, Danish, Dutch, Greek, Italian, Russian, and German.

Pros of ProofHub:
● Define different access levels for team members based on their responsibilities
● Gantt charts provide a visual timeline for tasks
● Online reports offer clear insights into projects, tasks, and resources

Businesses using ProofHub: Taco Bell, Netflix, Disney, NASA, Trip Advisor, Fractal Fox, and others.

2. Trello

Trello is a leading project management software that implements the concept of boards and cards. The cards contain tasks either to categorize things or track the project progress.

Trello is useful to enable collaboration in company by organizing and tracking tasks, files, and information at one place. Plus, you can anytime integrate third-party applications into your workflow to increase its effectiveness.

Pros of Trello:
● Intuitive simple boards, cards, and lists
● Simplifies collaboration
● Get a glance at who is doing what and what still needs to get done

Businesses using Trello: Adobe, Kickstarter, Google, and more.

3. Asana

Asana is a web and mobile application designed to help businesses organize, track, and manage work. The work management tool helps you prioritize, stay focused, and make more time for work that matters the most.

With Asana, you can also monitor the status of all your projects in real time, so you can keep strategic initiatives on track.

Pros of Asana:
● Set priorities and deadlines to plan work effectively
● Follow projects and tasks through every stage
● Create visual project plans to determine progress

Businesses using Asana: Deloitte, The New York Times, Uber, Airbnb, and more.

4. Basecamp

Regardless of how big or small your startup is, Basecamp is exactly what you need to get things done. It combines all the tools you need in a single and straightforward platform that makes work feel like less work.

Whether it’s about communicating effectively or keeping everyone in the loop, Basecamp can do it all for you.

Pros of Basecamp:
● Easily add tasks and other necessary details
● View tasks from every project together on one screen
● Available on the web and platforms like iOS, Android, and Mac

Businesses using Basecamp: PNMR, Novasyte, Animals Medical Center of MidAmerica

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5. nTask

nTask is a smart task management software designed to support collaboration, time tracking and monitoring, and project risk management. It’s built around the business needs that lets you do more much than usual.

It is supported by Google Calendar, Outlook, and many other third-party applications. Moreover, it also offers mobile applications for Android and iOS devices.

Pros of nTask:
● Simple and easy-to-use taskboard
● Multiple board views, task comments, meeting management
● Share files and notes easily

6. JIRA

JIRA is a great tool for running business projects that remains extremely popular with software development companies. It could help you prioritize and discuss your team’s work in full context with complete visibility.

What’s interesting with this project management software is that it lets you use an out-of-the-box workflow, or create one to match the way your team works.

Pros of JIRA:
● Interactive and customizable scrum boards
● Reports with real-time and actionable insights
● Automate processes with its robust set of APIs

Businesses using JIRA: Spotify, CISCO, eBay, Square, and more.

7. Wrike

Wrike is a cloud-based collaboration and project management software that scales across teams in any business. Companies can use it to simplify planning, gain visibility, streamline workflow, and also to enable collaboration.

It shows real-time reports and status for all of your team’s projects. Wrike helps distributed teams to discuss projects and tasks details with the full context of the work. You can also tag images and videos to provide specific feedback.

Pros of Wrike:
● Interactive dashboards
● Centralize communication with stakeholders
● Custom workflows, fields and project folder structures let you work the way you want

Businesses using Wrike: Google, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mars, L’oreal, and others.

8. Droptask

Droptask is a visual and intuitive task management software that helps you manage projects, tasks, and to-dos individually or as part of a team. It comes with a neat interface and real-time collaboration features.

The business plan gives you an unlimited access to flexible workspaces, innovative collaboration and integrates seamlessly with your favorite tools. Droptask has made collaboration easier, better, and faster.

Pros of Droptask:
● Kanban-style workflow boards
● Project templates and permission control
● Integration with Evernote, Google Calendar, Outlook, Gmail, iMindMap

Businesses using Droptask: Harvard University, Coca Cola, BBC, Ralph Lauren, and others.

9. Podio

Podio is a customizable work management solution leaders trust and employees love working on. It helps you create a consolidated process to get your teams working in sync.

Podio enables you to keep content, conversations, and processes structured at one place so that you can focus to get more work done. It is a perfect place to bring your clients and external parties to one place and eliminate lengthy email threads and time-consuming file sharing.

Pros of Podio:
● Granular admin capabilities
● Rigorous security standards
● Automated workflows and data visualization

Businesses using Podio: Volvo, Deloitte, Sony, NFL, and more.

10. Monday.com

Formerly known as Dapulse, Monday.com is a simple project management tool that helps you plan, organize, track in a visual platform. It’s quite flexible in approach and usability as it lets you customize your workflow to match different needs of your business.

Pros of Monday.com
● Plan everything visually
● Track progress with multiple views
● Simple and intuitive

Businesses using Monday.com: Discovery, Carlsberg, Philips, Fiverr, and more.

Conclusion

Now that you know about the modern tools world’s leading businesses are using, it’s high time even you should invest in one such project management tool to manage work effectively and get an edge over others in the market.

The Power of Decision Criteria

Written by George Pitagorsky on July 12, 2022. Posted in Articles.

Every decision is made based on criteria. Are you and your team conscious of your criteria?

Decision making is at the heart of project management. Doing it well requires skill and awareness of the process. This article addresses decision criteria and the need for up front and formal definition of them as part of a decision-making process. A previous article Get the Right Answers to Make the Right Decisions[1] discussed the need for the right questions to ensure high quality decisions. Among those questions is “what criteria will we use to evaluate options and decide?”

Poor decisions are made when people make them without consciously identifying their decision criteria. This happens at all levels, from individuals to decisions amongst project teams, executives, and members of boards of directors.

The Decision-Making Process

When decision makers are aware of their process it is less likely that they will overlook setting up mutually agreed upon decision criteria.

Being aware of the process means consciously recognizing that there is a set of steps for deciding. One of the steps is agreeing upon the criteria to be used.

There are many variations on the definition of the decision-making process. They share a common theme – consciously understand what you are doing and how you are doing it. Define your process and make it adaptable and flexible. Make it so that later steps influence earlier ones in an iterative refinement process.

Here are nine steps to sum up the process[2]

1) Define values, goals, objectives, and requirement specifications

2) Define the decision making and target environments

3) Agree upon decision criteria

4) Identify solution options

5) Analyze and compare solution options vis-à-vis the decision criteria

6) Decide

7) Implement the decision

8) Monitor and adjust

9) Reflect on the process for lessons learned.

The first step includes the definition of the desired outcome. The second step identifies who will make and influence the decision(s), levels of authority, process, tools, and techniques to use in decision making. It also makes sure that the decision makers have a good understanding of the nature of the environment that the decision will affect – the operational environment. Goals and objectives may be adjusted as step two is performed. Both steps one and two may be refined as criteria are identified. All three are subject to refinement as the process proceeds, as implied in step eight.

What are decision criteria?

Decision criteria are the basis for deciding. They “are the principles, values, rules, variables, and conditions that an organization or team uses to select an option or make a decision.”[3]

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Why Define Criteria

Consciously defining decision criteria improves the quality and rationality of decisions.

The criteria always exist. Every decision is made based on some criteria, which may be consciously known or not. Many are prone to subconsciously consider factors that skew their decision. For example, a bias towards reinforcing privately held values may get in the way of reaching a practical decision.

When decision criteria are consciously considered, prioritized, and agreed upon by decision makers, biases can be identified and managed, criteria that may not be immediately obvious can be discovered. Without consciously addressing decision criteria, decisions are suboptimal. They will take longer than necessary to make, and they are more likely to turn out to be ineffective.

Decisions take longer because criteria emerge over the course of discussions rather than at the onset. For example, a team charged with the design of the interior of elevator cars became aware after deciding, but before the design was implemented, that there were design options that were more likely to protect against damage. The team had not directly assessed damage resistance when making their decision. Once aware of the newly identified factors, the original decision was put aside while other options were identified and assessed, causing a several weeks delay.

The team had not explicitly stated their criteria. Informally, everyone had an understanding that aesthetics was the main criterion, with maintainability as a key factor. Cost and availability were also considered. They reviewed several options and selected one. If the decision had been acted upon the team could have made a poor choice that looked good but was easily chipped or cracked. The result could have been costly.

Time and Effort

Besides thinking it is unnecessary, a reason that decision makers do not spend adequate time and effort considering their decision criteria is the perception that it will take too long and that it is overly formal.

The time it takes to define decision criteria depends on the situation. With a team that often works together on similar projects, the criteria for choosing supplier, design, or plan options may be already available in a checklist. Little time would be needed to review the checklist and verify its fit for the decision at hand. If on the other hand the team was not used to working together, was operating informally, and had no checklist, setting decision criteria can be more complex, requiring convincing team members that some formality is needed.

In most cases all it takes to identify decision criteria is a brief brainstorming session among the decision makers, informed about typical criteria for the type of decision they are to make. Going further to evaluate the criteria, prioritizing them, takes more time and effort.

How Formal Do You have to Be?

A formal process improves performance. But how formal is formal?

The minimal degree of formality is to have a written list of criteria. If during the decision-making other criteria come up, add them to the list.

A next level of formality is to weight the criteria to identify priorities among them and then use the weights to score each option, so the score becomes a factor in choosing one.

In all decisions some criteria are more significant than others. Sometimes the degree of significance, the weights, are used informally or unconsciously. With more formality weights are used to calculate scores in a documented process. This brings a greater degree of objectivity to the process, though making decisions purely on the numbers can be unskillful. Do not underestimate the power of intuition, particularly among experienced decision makers.

The degree of formality depends on the complexity and impact of the decision, the team’s confidence in their decision-making process, and their accountability for their decision. In some cases, rules and regulations mandate the documentation of decisions, in other cases it is useful to be able to show others that a rational process was used to make the decision.

How to Set the Criteria

Identifying the criteria for a decision is not a particularly creative process. Use readily available lists via a quick web search for decision criteria lists. For example:

Performance
Appearance – look and feel, aesthetics
User experience
Stakeholder acceptance
Cost – of implementation, operation, and replacement
Benefits
Risk
Security
Maintainability
Reliability
Resilience and flexibility
Environmental, social and governance considerations
Sourcing and availability
Time to implement
Reviews.

Use this list or one that is more specific to your decision as a starting point to craft your criteria.

Bottom Line

Consciously agreeing upon and documenting decision criteria in the context of a defined decision process promotes high quality decisions and avoids unnecessary delays. To apply this principle most effectively tailor formality to the nature of your situation, with the minimum being a list of agreed upon criteria.

[1] https://www.projecttimes.com/articles/get-the-right-answers-to-make-the-right-decisions/

[2] Adapted from Pitagorsky, Managing Conflict in Projects: Applying Mindfulness and Analysis for Optimal Results

https://www.amazon.com/Managing-Conflict-Projects-Applying-Mindfulness/dp/193558958X

[3] How to Write Decision Criteria (With Tips and Examples) | Indeed.com Canada

What Is Expected From Businesses In a Post-Pandemic World?

Written by Ian Chambers on June 22, 2022. Posted in Articles.

By Ian Chambers, CEO – Linea

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic represented an era-defining paradigm shift for the world of business. Even though the most noticeable impacts of the pandemic have now abated in many parts of the world, the changes it has brought about in the way businesses operate are unlikely to be undone.

The dramatic changes to regular working patterns brought about by pandemic-era lockdowns, combined with a renewed focus on health and wellbeing, have dramatically shifted expectations of what professionals want from their roles. At the same time, customers now also expect a more flexible and conscientious approach to service delivery and are willing to favour companies who are able to provide this.

As such, every organization needs to adjust the way it operates to accommodate these changing realities. By implementing the necessary changes as part of an ongoing process of business improvement, companies can put themselves in a position to capitalize and thrive.

Shifting attitudes and expectations among workers and clients

Many of the changes that the pandemic has brought about can be explained by clear practical requirements – namely, businesses were forced to be a lot more creative and flexible in the way they operated during lockdown, and their employees and customers are now reluctant to give up that flexibility.

For employees, this means that staff have gotten used to being able to work from home and adjust their own working patterns or are keen to retain the additional health and wellbeing benefits they may have received during the pandemic. Expectations among customers and clients, meanwhile, have evolved in complex ways: some have grown accustomed to receiving more flexible terms and conditions, or improved remote access to services, while others may have become frustrated by the lack of face-to-face interaction with customers, and would prefer to return to pre-pandemic ways of working.

There are also an ethical or value-driven dimensions to this evolution, as the pandemic has made many people aware of existing failings and issues of unfairness with the previous status quo. Management can no longer expect to monopolies the highest salaries, while offering only limited flexibility to the workers responsible for generating value, without a risk of undermining their own recruitment capabilities or alienating socially conscious consumers.

As such, the challenge for organizations operating within these rapidly evolving markets is to show they can reflect and operate by the changing values of society. If they fail to do so, they risk being left behind.

How must businesses change to adapt to post-pandemic realities?

With all of this in mind, it is essential for companies to regularly review and implement necessary changes to their operating practices and service models, committing to an ongoing process of business improvement to ensure they are meeting the expectations of modern professionals, consumers and clients.

Here are some of the key areas in which we have seen businesses committing their efforts and resources in the wake of the pandemic:

Developing new core business values and principles that can be closely aligned to post-pandemic norms and expectations, and working to ensure that every member of the organization has bought into these goals and can exemplify them in how they work
Enshrining workforce wellbeing, engagement & stability as a central business value, by embracing of flexible working models, strong staff support, and opportunities for progression, to ensure the organization can attract and retain talent
Mitigating actual & perceived biases that could contribute to systemic unfairness or barriers to success, by viewing decisions from different stakeholder perspectives
Focusing on true customer-centric value and service flexibility, aligning with modern market expectations, to stand out in an increasingly competitive marketplace
Maximizing the use of diverse marketing channels to capitalize on current trends, while acknowledging the need for mindful content and socially conscious messaging
Adopting agile business strategies and approaches, informed by the lessons of the pandemic regarding how quickly circumstances can change
Creating and maintaining financial liquidity to provide future flexibility, giving the organization greater protection against unexpected shifts in the market
Driving value for money & profitability, while sensitively managing concerns around doing so, as businesses can no longer be seen to be cutting corners simply to protect the bottom line
Using societal appetites for progress to help accelerate the adoption of necessary change within the company, and to challenge conversative or risk-averse viewpoints within the organization

Not all of these changes can be implemented with immediate effect – some will involve a long-term process of change management, which will require the business to holistically review its current processes and operations to chart a gradual path of transformation, as measured by definable metrics and achievable milestones.

This can be difficult and time-consuming to achieve, but as the post-pandemic era continues to take shape, it will be an essential step for organizations across multiple sectors. Professional expectations and customer values are evolving quickly – and companies must do the same to remain at the forefront of their respective markets.

Rise of the Agile PMO

Written by Mallika Gunturu on May 31, 2022. Posted in Articles.

The PMI PMBOK defines Project Management Office (PMO) as “a management structure that standardizes the project-related governance processes and facilitates the sharing of resources, methodologies, tools, and techniques”.

In practice PMOs are rolled out in any number of flavors across organizations and industries. There is no standardization, and the level of authority and autonomy varies across organizations and industries. The primary charter of a PMO should be to provide a framework that augments the organization’s ability to consistently deliver business value in alignment with strategic objectives. As organizations undergo agile transformation, there is a pertinent need to reflect on how PMO adapts itself to become agile and continue to stay relevant in the new way of working.

PMI’s 2021 Pulse of the Profession® survey reveals the emergence of gymnastic enterprise. These organizations and their project teams combine structure, form, and governance with the ability to flex and pivot—wherever and whenever needed. Their research indicates that gymnastic enterprises achieve greater success by developing a range of value delivery capabilities—and that unless traditional enterprises can emulate this approach, they risk becoming obsolete in an increasingly digitized and unpredictable world.

It is in this context the need for emergence of an agile PMO promoting organizational agility becomes obvious. By agile, we don’t mean usage of agile methodologies, rather a department that truly embraces an agile mindset.

Before looking at what it takes to have an agile PMO, let us quickly note some of the negative perceptions about PMOs:

Heavily process oriented and considered burdensome by other parts of the organization
Project prioritization not aligned with strategy
Focusses just on meeting senior management expectations and lacks focus on delivering any real value to the project teams.
Lacking visibility on Return on Investment (ROI) of project and program initiatives. Focus is primarily on getting the projects closed.

PMI Agile Practice guide proposes that an agile PMO should be a value driven, innovation driven and multi-disciplinary department. Let us look at the success factors for such an agile PMO.

Alignment with organization strategy. Portfolios, Programs and Projects are vehicles through which organizations invest valuable resources like staff, infrastructure, finances etc to achieve tangible and intangible outcomes creating a certain value or benefit. As these resources are never available in plenty and the expectations on time to market are becoming more stringent, it is crucial that these resources are invested in initiatives that matter the most to the organization’s aspirations and ambitions.

A typical organization at any point of time has a need to execute a large number of projects and programs. Further different business units and departments have their own preferences on delivery priorities. It is in this context a PMO has a great role to play to ensure that by means of prioritization of portfolio, programs and projects, resources are invested in initiatives that lead to the maximum realization of the organization objectives.

The true value of agile PMO becomes evident when this prioritization exercise is not aimed at merely pushing the senior leadership’s vision on to the delivery teams but rather focuses to converge the organization’s aspirations and the current execution capability and bring in an alignment between the two that leads to the overall benefit of the organization.

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An example here is that traditionally, resource managers are forced to assign their resources to multiple high priority initiatives. While on paper the sum of the hours a resource is allocated to different projects and programs adds up to 100%, in reality it is not so. Valuable time is lost in context switching. Also, having to do this for long periods of time ultimately impacts the quality of work and can lead to burn-out.

Another example could be when a new technology has to be introduced to achieve an organization goal. A pragmatic review of whether the necessary skills and knowledge are available in the organization and if not, what it takes to build those is important to be considered. It is in this context that by acting as a glue between the various departments and teams and aligning all teams to march towards well balanced goals that a PMO can prove its true value.

Light weight processes and governance – Delivery and governance processes are essential to ensure a consistent approach for achieving outcomes. Equally important is to have clear escalation protocols for taking corrective actions when needed. In the current times where agile delivery practices are becoming the norm, it is important to realize and appreciate that one size fits all approach does not always work. Different delivery methodologies suit better for different kinds of projects and outcomes. It could be that traditional waterfall, or a hybrid combination of waterfall and agile practices suit certain projects and teams. An agile PMO should acknowledge this and be able to guide the project teams on the most suitable delivery methodology along with a light and effective set of processes and governance models. PMO should not be an enforcer but be a partner fully invested in the successful realization of the project outcomes.
Contributing to delivery excellence – An agile PMO can deliver value to the rest of the organization by providing necessary tools, processes and metrics to monitor, track and report on how the teams are delivering the project and program outcomes. Tools and processes should include means to track and report progress of team deliveries, track and report inter team delivery dependencies, to roll up and map team priorities to the organization priorities. Teams should also have access to processes and tools to raise and monitor impediments and track risks. In addition, PMO should lay out a set of metrics that effectively measure business delivery excellence, operational and technical excellence of the teams and consequently that of the organization. These metrics should provide the necessary information needed for the organization to make better decisions.
Multi-disciplinary team – Organizations across industries are going through transformation and radical changes. It is a given that rapid advancements in technology like proliferation of AI/ML across industries, newer ways of working like remote, hybrid, citizen development etc. have a profound impact on how organizations function. PMO is one unit that, by the nature of its charter, is in a unique position to truly act as a change agent and enable the project teams to perform to their best. To be able to do so, PMO staff should be experts not only in project and program management methodologies, but they also need acumen in business and technology.

Conclusion

In these exciting times where businesses across the spectrum are undergoing transformations, re-inventing and optimizing product offerings, the agility of PMO is an important contributor towards the organization’s business agility.

References

https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/de/Documents/technology/pmo-excellence.pdf
Agile Practice Guide (2017).
PMBOK® Guide (2021).
Pulse of the Profession 2021 (2021).

Why Does a Project Need a Product Development Roadmap?

Written by Alex Khomic on May 18, 2022. Posted in Articles.

Many teams work on software development projects: developers, testers, designers, and so on. Specialists have their own tasks, which they must complete by a certain date. How do you coordinate the actions of all teams? How to make sure that the design work goes according to plan and the product will achieve its goal? A product development roadmap helps to solve these issues. We will tell you why it is needed for a project.

What is a product roadmap?

A product roadmap is an important document, it is as necessary as Vision&Scope, SRS, Backlog and User Story Mapping.

A product development roadmap is a visual communication tool for a project team that is used when outsourcing project management services. This document describes the vision of the product and records the current working progress and long-term project goals.

Source: venngage.com

The main stages of work on the product are included in this plan, without dividing them into separate tasks. There, the names of performers and deadlines are indicated. Information is drawn up in tables, presentations or special programs. The picture must make it clear who is working on this or that task at a certain time.

The purpose of a roadmap is not to describe each project task but to give a visual representation of the global stages of work. It explains to the team why they need to implement certain functionality by a specified time. It illustrates what goals the product will achieve in the future. If specialists understand how the product will develop, it is easier for them to set up work on individual tasks.

Source: habr.com

In other words, a roadmap is a product guideline for project teams, the marketing department, and customers. Project managers can change the roadmap when:

the client modifies the requirements.
it is necessary to enable a new feature at the request of users.
there are internal problems.
the market is changing.

The product development roadmap informs the project team and external interested parties (shareholders, customers, partners) about the main ideas and work progress.

Who needs a product development roadmap?

The product roadmap is used by internal development teams and external interested parties. Each professional benefits from this document and applies it differently:

The roadmap clearly illustrates to the project team how the product will develop. Engineers plan sprints and follow the progress of the project and the performance of the team. They see when additional specialists need to be involved in the project and rely on the document to bring the product to its final goal.

The marketing department relies on the product development roadmap when developing an advertising strategy and building a pricing policy.

The customer support department is using the product roadmap to answer user questions for future updates.

Project managers use a roadmap (product development roadmap) to report on the work done to the customers, investors, and partners. They see how the team is working on the product and how it will be developed in the future.

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Why a product roadmap is important for a project?

A roadmap helps project team members to understand the essence of a product. It also gives several benefits:

It helps to define the product strategy.

Experts see what kind of work needs to be done right now and in the future. Project managers and customers see the full picture of what is happening on the project as part of the strategy.

It is a good means of communication.

Usually, reviewing projects with each of the leaders takes hours of calls and discussions. The roadmap clarifies all the issues of software development. It is easy to create and update and takes less time to learn than during online discussion.

The map can be shared with everyone associated with the project (colleagues, management, and so on). With the help of this document, it is easier to convince investors of the prospects of the product and get funding.

It helps to “navigate the terrain”.

When a team works on a new project, they face three obstacles:

it is easy for them to “get lost” because they don’t know how to get to their destination.
team members may be late because they don’t know how quickly they need to complete tasks.
the team may run out of specialists when they are not aware of what work they have to cope with.

The product development roadmap addresses all these issues. Project participants see the current state of affairs and prospects. They know that this month they need to create an admin panel, and next month they need to do a third-party integration. They understand that a mobile version is being designed alongside the web application.

The roadmap proves that the custom software development company’s team is moving in the right direction at every stage of development.

How to create a product roadmap

For a separate project, a unique product roadmap is built. But there are general principles that should be considered when building. It is necessary to:

Define the project strategy.

For a roadmap to be useful, the following issues need to be considered:

It is important to focus on the results of product development. Detailed tasks with estimation are not included in the map. They will simply confuse the workers of project management outsourcing companies, external departments, and investors. This information is recorded in other documents.
You should create a document for all project participants. Each specialist (manager, marketer, or customer support employee) looks at the roadmap differently. Some are interested in business goals, others focus on product areas, prioritization and timing, and so on. So as not to create a separate roadmap for different departments, it is worth considering one that will be useful for everybody.
You should communicate the vision of the product. The map illustrates the history of product development. The team members see this and take steps in the same direction.
The product roadmap must be regularly updated. Changes often occur in projects: the customer changes requirements, asks to implement a new function, and so on. These changes must be included in the product roadmap, otherwise, it will become useless, and the team will go astray.

Gather product requirements.

To determine the stages of work on the product, you need to know what functionality needs to be created. To do this, a business analyst collects product requirements, which are then documented (Vision & Scope, SRS, Backlog and User Story Mapping). This data can be used to point out top features, prioritize them, and build a product development roadmap.

Select the roadmap format.

A product development roadmap can be drawn up in Excel, PowerPoint, or special tools. However, whichever program the project manager uses, they will choose one of the three traditional types of the roadmap:

Product roadmap without dates. It is used on agile projects where priorities change quickly.
Hybrid product roadmap. Such a map has approximate dates (by months) and stages of work sorted into current, upcoming, and future periods.
Product roadmap with dates. Stages of work are planned with an accuracy of days in a month. This is especially convenient on projects where several departments are involved, and their tasks are related.

If the PM does not need strict deadlines, they choose the first and second options. Usually, this means planning works for a month or a quarter.

Adapt the roadmap for all participants.

The product development roadmap is a guideline for internal and external teams:

The management wants to see in it a product strategy and information about the current state of the market.
Marketers are interested in seeing the product in comparison with competitors and its potential.
The sales department is more concerned about the time of the release of the product and its competitive advantages.
For developers and other IT professionals, requirements, deadlines, and sprints are more important.

Therefore, it is worth considering how to include this information in one document.

Share the product roadmap.

The roadmap illustrates the team’s work progress and future goals. If the project manager shares the map with everyone, the participants will always be aware of the current state of the product and possible changes. Therefore, specialists will not spend hours clarifying the details of the project and other issues.

Customers value transparency in the work of their IT partners. Constant feedback, honesty and openness are big advantages for custom software development companies.

Which projects need a product roadmap?

Roadmaps can be used on traditional (Waterfall, Spiral) and flexible (Agile, Scrum) projects. This document focuses on the strategy of the product, not on the methods of its implementation.

For classic projects, a product development roadmap with dates will do. Flexible projects are limited to monthly and quarterly scheduling without clear dates.

The main difference is in the following:

Waterfall projects are usually business-oriented and based on financial metrics. Agile teams are focused on customers and customer satisfaction.
Waterfall roadmaps are usually scheduled for a year. An Agile map illustrates quarterly work.
Waterfall teams communicate sequentially as new specialists join the project. Agile project participants work in a cross-functional environment and are simultaneously involved in the project.
Roadmaps for Waterfall projects are more static. Maps for Agile projects are as flexible as the methodology itself.

Either way, both classic and agile teams will benefit from a product roadmap. They will be able to follow the strategy, meet deadlines and lead the product in the right direction.

Conclusion

A product development roadmap is created to make life easier for all project participants. It is a tool that developers, testers, designers, sales teams and businessmen are guided by. It ensures that the product develops according to plan and reaches the market on time. With a roadmap, the product is not a mere abstraction. It is a completely tangible solution with short-term and long-term goals and a visible result.