Maximizing Impact: The Power of Validation in Product Development
In recent discussions with my clients, the topic of rework has been at the forefront. Engineers complain that the product specs are not well thought out and “toss them back” to the product manager. Product managers are frustrated that beta customers are not satisfied with the solution that was built. In both cases, the product team has to reevaluate their proposed solution. This is frustrating for everyone, including the Go-to-Market (GTM) teams.
How can we minimize rework and increase our chances of building an impactful solution on the first try?
The answer lies in validation—a crucial step in the product development process that is often rushed or overlooked entirely.
Before handing over the final product specs to the engineering team for delivery, it is essential to validate three key aspects of the solution:
Feasibility
Value
Usability.
Although different team members may take the lead in each area, it is the responsibility of the entire Product Trio (PM, Designer, Tech Lead) to participate in the validation process. The goal is to quickly validate all major assumptions, allowing some corners to be cut in low-risk areas.
Validating Feasibility
Early involvement of the tech lead or architect is vital during the discovery phase. She serves as your thought partner, validating whether proposed solutions can be developed within given time, technology, and budget constraints. Time-boxed tech spikes can be employed to explore different approaches. This not only increases certainty in the feasibility of the solution, but also increases your confidence in estimating how long it will take to build.
Validating Value
The product manager takes the lead in validating value. This validation exercise is often intertwined with validating usability. However, there are cost-effective methods to assess value separately. For example, analyzing heatmap analytics and usage data from an app's existing workflow can reveal areas of value and even misaligned expectations. By paying attention to such data during the discovery process, teams can avoid costly mistakes and better align their solutions with user needs.
Validating Usability
Validation of usability primarily falls under the responsibility of the designer, but the product manager's involvement is crucial. Creating a high-fidelity prototype is an effective way to validate usability. Although it may initially seem like a waste of engineering resources, investing a few days in building a prototype can save weeks or even months of development time by ensuring the right solution is pursued.
Sometimes an existing solution can be repurposed as a proxy prototype for your scenario. For example, if you are entering a new global market, you can use the solution from a similar region as your alpha product. This approach often requires users to stretch their imagination, which can be demanding. Nonetheless, it offers the advantage of a plug-and-play prototype that can be presented to users quickly and inexpensively.
Real-World Example: Leveraging Existing Data
One of my clients, a food delivery company, was recently leading a project to redesign and improve the calendaring portion of their app. Given this was an improvement of an existing workflow, he had data on how customers used the app today - and also how they tried to use it. The current flow was such that if you wanted to order food for more than 30 people, you were automatically forced to order from two or more restaurants. However, the data showed that at least a third of users had discovered a way to bypass this system limitation and only order from a single restaurant. Users were working harder to bypass this limitation, which suggests that they see value in the solution (ie. ordering from a single restaurant).
Unfortunately, due to time constraints, the team decided to design the new experience with the same constraint as the original solution. When the new design was shared with beta customers, feedback came pouring in that users wanted to be able to order from a single restaurant, regardless of the size of the order. Now the team is in the tough spot of having to go back and rework their proposed solution, delaying their launch. In this case, if they had paid more attention to the data earlier in the discovery process, they could have avoided this situation.
Real-World Example: Borrowing a Prototype
Earlier in my career, I was Intuit’s first Product Manager in Asia Pacific. I was tasked with launching a localized version of QuickBooks Online in Australia within a tight deadline of only two months. To quickly validate the solution, I opted to share the Canadian version of QuickBooks Online as the local Australian alpha, given that both countries use GST. I acknowledged that the tax codes and rates were inaccurate and assured them that these issues would be addressed before the official launch.
Asking users, especially accountants, to overlook incorrect tax rates proved to be too much of a leap of faith. Every single tester highlighted this as a significant issue. However, I was able to confirm that the key workflows performed as expected. Additionally, I discovered an obscure tax rate that was not initially on our implementation list. As a result, I made the decision to postpone the launch by a week to include this rate, resulting in a product that better catered to the local market.
Conclusion
Validation is a critical step in product development to minimize rework and maximize impact. By validating feasibility, value, and usability throughout the process, teams can make well-informed decisions, save time, and deliver products that align with user needs.
