Recording of Kevin Burns, Matt Engstrom, and Jonathan Wentz (Thomson Reuters) presenting at Twin Cities Product Conf 2019.

1. Discovery Sprint Stories
Thomson Reuters
Presenters: Matt Engstrom, Jonathan Wentz, Kevin Burns
Product Conference Twin Cities April 29, 2019
REUTERS / Jason Reed

2. The Agility Journey @ Thomson Reuters
“Experience is the hardest kind of teacher. It
gives you the test first and the lesson
afterward.”
— Oscar Wilde

3. 3
The Agility Journey @ Thomson Reuters
Mindset – Values – Principles - Practices
Products Projects
Why – Who – What - How
Shared TR
Agile Culture
Shift Agile Conversation Left
Outcomes Output
Product Agility Dojo

5. 5
David Hussman

6. Consider doing a Discovery Sprint if…
You have big ideas but aren’t sure if these ideas resonate with
your customers.
You have big ideas but aren’t sure how best to design their
implementation.
You are testing new products and/or new markets.

7. We’re gonna build &
test a realistic prototype
in 5 days.
We sometimes modify this.

9. If not,
SUPER QUICK intros:
Venn diagram…

10. Quality
Innovation
Value
User Customer
Business
Valuable
Design Usable
Software Engineering
&
Quality Assurance
Business
Customer
Technically
Feasible
Do you have the right balance?

11. Do you have the right balance?

12. 1.
The Facilitator
is in charge of
the schedule.

13. 2.
The Decider
makes all
tough decisions.

14. We often have an uber-decider
and supporting deciders.

15. 3.
No devices in the room.
(You can use them at breaks. Or step out of the room any time.)

16. 3.
No devices in the room.
(Power Gloves are okay.)

18. We sometime modify
sprint length:
• Week 1 – Thing 1
• Week 2 – Thing 2
• Week 3 – Idea Testing

19. What problems are
we trying to solve
for who?

20. Nobody knows
everything, so you’ll
share info, ask
questions, and share
understandings.

21. Ask the experts
“How might we…?”

22. Make a map
This will be a simple diagram with around 5-15 steps.

23. Pick a target 1. Choose a customer
2. Identify opportunities
3. Prioritize opportunities

26. Sketch
The process goes step-by-step to make it easy.

33. You’ll make fast
decisions without
groupthink or sales
pitches.
We sometimes modify this

34. Sticky decision
Choose the best sketches
with silent review and structured critique.

40. If our product is on a
screen,
try tools like
Keynote or PowerPoint
and InVision or Marvel.

41. If it’s on
paper,
design it with
Keynote, PowerPoint,
or Word.

42. If it’s a
service,
use sprint team as actors.

43. If it’s a
physical space,
modify an
existing
space.
The Founder
'Speedy System' Featurette

44. If it’s an
object,
modify an
existing object,
3D print a prototype,
or prototype the marketing.

47. Interview 5 customers, 1:1.

48. The team watches over
video from another room.

51. FM T W T
If you do 3 sprints in a row…
FTWT FT
…they won’t all take 5 days.

52. 52
Focus on User Interactions
Story mapping keeps us
focused on users and their
experience, and the result is a
better conversation, and
ultimately a better product.
User Story Mapping, Discover the Whole Story, Build the Right Product – Jeff Patton
Good story conversations are about
who and why, not just what.

54. “I wish we could work like this all the time”
“Great team work and collaboration with business”
“Having business experts come explain what they do was very valuable and huge
learning opportunity…it allowed us to build deep understanding of product quickly”
“I loved how we removed role divisions…ideas come from everyone, not just the
business”
“Removing distractions was very valuable”
“While there are maybe 100 things we could have done differently or better, it was
undoubtedly one of the most rewarding and exciting experiences I can remember.”
What teams say about the experience…

55. • 100% team dedication (especially business owner) was crucial and led to each
individual being invested in the outcome of the product
• A neutral facilitator was key to sticking to a tight schedule, maintaining focus,
and creating urgency to force decisions
• Humility - find out where we were wrong and how we can be better
• Knowing we can change it afterwards, nothing is written in stone
• Tech involvement - contributing to recommendations, addressing early feasibility
concerns, planning code approach early
Key Insights

56. Consider doing a Discovery Sprint if…
You have big ideas but aren’t sure if these ideas resonate with
your customers.
You have big ideas but aren’t sure how best to design their
implementation.
You are testing new products and/or new markets.

57. Psst! Check out the checklist PDF.
thesprintbook.com/tools

58. ?
Matt.engstrom@thomsonreuters.com
Jonathan.wentz@thomsonreuters.com
kburns@sagesw.com