Session slides from Future Insights Live, Vegas 2015: https://futureinsightslive.com/las-vegas-2015/ When I started my career in product management, the term hadn’t made it to the mainstream tech glossary. That was a decade ago. Since then both the vocabulary and the paradigms of building products have shifted and will continue to do so. Product Managers would be remiss if they still labor on specifications that make the author and readers want to die! And yet, we need to hold the burn notice on product managers who still believe in the power of documentation. Surely they too got the memo that outlined the Agile Manifesto, announcing that we must value “working software over comprehensive documentation.” On occasions, however, written artefacts – that don’t fit on the back of an envelope – are needed to deliver working software. In this session we’ll walk through a framework that helps a team arrive at the decision to create or to skip them. More important, we’ll look at updates to the traditional output so it matches the personality of my incredibly creative and sharp product peers who craft them.

1. In Defense of Documentation
@natashaawasthi
Future Insights 2015

2. 2

3. Product people love the messy but
satisfying business of building stuff.
3

4. Why and when will product people need
documentation?
…

5. Why and when will product people need
documentation?
(hint: reusable assets)
How can they be reimagined so authors
and readers don’t cry!
…

6. Why and when will product people need
documentation?
(hint: reusable assets for speed and consistency)
How can they be reimagined so authors
and readers don’t cry!
(hint: mainstream media is pooh-poohing print and engaging audience
in exciting ways, surely we can do better)
…

7. <rant>

8. <rant>
</rant> stop and go back to the future

9. Andreessen Horowitz
Software is eating the world.

10. Steve Case
Get ready, the internet is about to change
again. Here’s how.

11. Steve Case
The Internet, Infrastructure, Information
superhighway
and then,

12. Steve Case
Building on top of the Internet
and then,

13. Steve Case
Third-wave companies will take on some
of the economy’s largest sectors:

14. Steve Case
Third-wave companies will take on some
of the economy’s largest sectors: health
care, education, transportation, energy,
financial services, food and government
services.

15. Steve Case
Third-wave companies will take on some
of the economy’s largest sectors: health
care, education, transportation, energy,
financial services, food and government
services.
in other words…

16. Andreessen Horowitz
Software is eating the world.

17. Andreessen Horowitz
Software is eating the world.
Newsflash: The world is not going down
with out a fight.

18. Steve Case
Increasing Complexity of Product Landscape
Policy Partnership Perseverance

19. One more thing: The “Full stack start-ups”

20. “Full stack start-ups” care about every
aspect of their product/service, so they
need to get good at many different things
besides software -

21. “Full stack start-ups” care about every
aspect of their product/service, so they
need to get good at many different things
besides software - hardware, design,
consumer marketing, supply chain
management, sales, partnerships,
regulation, etc. - Chris Dixon A16z

23. IncreasingcomplexityofProduct

24. IncreasingcomplexityofProduct
Increasing “full-stack-ness” of ProductsServices

25. Solution
Task
Strategic
Relationship
IncreasingcomplexityofProduct
Increasing “full-stack-ness” of ProductsServices

26. Solution
Task
Strategic: High learning
curve, high need for
scaling knowledge and
empathy organization
wide*
Relationship
IncreasingcomplexityofProduct
*For agility you need all layers of your stack to be creative and
confidence, which comes from knowledge
Increasing “full-stack-ness” of ProductsServices

27. Solution
High learning curve with
low risk of disrupting
customer experience
Task
Low learning curve and
low risk of disrupting
customer experience
Strategic
Relationship
Low learning curve with
high need for cascading
product knowledge
organization wide
IncreasingcomplexityofProduct
Increasing “full-stack-ness” of ProductsServices

28. Solution
Task
Strategic*
Documentation need: High
Type: Engaging, Fun, reusable assets,
published on predictable rhythms
Focus: Breadcrumbs to solution not
limited to outcomes.
Relationship
IncreasingcomplexityofProduct
*For agility you need all layers of your stack to be creative and
confidence, which comes from knowledge
Increasing “full-stack-ness” of ProductsServices

29. Telling people what to do without backing
it up with why you think so, is the most
efficient way to disengage them.

30. 30

31. Solution
Task
Strategic: High learning
curve, high need for
scaling knowledge and
empathy organization
wide
Relationship
IncreasingcomplexityofProduct
Increasing “full-stack-ness” of ProductsServices

32.  Why and when will product people
need documentation?
 (hint: reusable assets)
How can they be reimagined so authors
and readers don’t cry!
…

33. The innovation isn’t in what artifacts
product managers will create but in how
we’ll deliver our insights, how we’ll
engage our teammates.

34. Interview insights Problem definition Empathy maps Systems maps and
landscape Vision Personas Storyboards
Blueprints Journey maps User stories Low fidelity prototypes Mock-ups
Roadmaps Business model design Use cases Business logic and constraints
Conceptual data models
State transition diagrams
34

35. Trying to inspire people to jump out bed,
thinking, “I can’t wait to browse my
product backlog,” is crazy talk.

36. Trying to inspire people to jump out bed,
thinking, “I can’t wait to browse my
product backlog,” is crazy talk.
Could we pique their curiosity, make
them wonder, “What’s new today?”

37. Why should the voice to the customers
be exciting but the voice of the
customer be boring?

39. Blog
Why should the voice to the customers
be exciting but the voice of the
customer be boring?
Social Newsletter Video

40. Implications:
Talent Internal processes Customer
Create routines Invest in training
Create space in your plans

41. <summary>

42. Andreessen Horowitz
Software is eating the world.

43. Andreessen Horowitz
Software is eating the world.
The world is not going down with out a
fight.

44. Solution
Task Relationship
Increasing “full-stack-ness” of ProductsServices
Strategic
Documentation need: High
Type: Engaging, Fun, reusable assets,
published on predictable rhythms
Focus: Breadcrumbs to solution not
limited to outcomes.
Partnerships
Policy
IncreasingcomplexityofProduct
Persevere

45. Telling people what to do without
backing it up with why you think so, is
the most efficient way to disengage
them.

46. Why should the voice to the customers
be exciting but the voice of the
customer be boring?

47. The innovation isn’t in what artifacts
product managers will create but in how
we’ll deliver our insights, how we’ll
engage our teammates.

48. Product people love the messy but
satisfying business of building stuff.
48

49. </summary>
thank you for playing @natashaawasthi