Tips for Balancing Product Discovery and Stakeholder Needs

Your research findings are useless if they don't drive decisions. After watching countless brilliant insights disappear into the void, I developed 5 practical templates I use to transform research into action: 1. Decision-Driven Journey Map Standard journey maps look nice but often collect dust. My Decision-Driven Journey Map directly connects user pain points to specific product decisions with clear ownership. Key components: - User journey stages with actions - Pain points with severity ratings (1-5) - Required product decisions for each pain - Decision owner assignment - Implementation timeline This structure creates immediate accountability and turns abstract user problems into concrete action items. 2. Stakeholder Belief Audit Workshop Many product decisions happen based on untested assumptions. This workshop template helps you document and systematically test stakeholder beliefs about users. The four-step process: - Document stakeholder beliefs + confidence level - Prioritize which beliefs to test (impact vs. confidence) - Select appropriate testing methods - Create an action plan with owners and timelines When stakeholders participate in this process, they're far more likely to act on the results. 3. Insight-Action Workshop Guide Research without decisions is just expensive trivia. This workshop template provides a structured 90-minute framework to turn insights into product decisions. Workshop flow: - Research recap (15min) - Insight mapping (15min) - Decision matrix (15min) - Action planning (30min) - Wrap-up and commitments (15min) The decision matrix helps prioritize actions based on user value and implementation effort, ensuring resources are allocated effectively. 4. Five-Minute Video Insights Stakeholders rarely read full research reports. These bite-sized video templates drive decisions better than documents by making insights impossible to ignore. Video structure: - 30 sec: Key finding - 3 min: Supporting user clips - 1 min: Implications - 30 sec: Recommended next steps Pro tip: Create a library of these videos organized by product area for easy reference during planning sessions. 5. Progressive Disclosure Testing Protocol Standard usability testing tries to cover too much. This protocol focuses on how users process information over time to reveal deeper UX issues. Testing phases: - First 5-second impression - Initial scanning behavior - First meaningful action - Information discovery pattern - Task completion approach This approach reveals how users actually build mental models of your product, leading to more impactful interface decisions. Stop letting your hard-earned research insights collect dust. I’m dropping the first 3 templates below, & I’d love to hear which decision-making hurdle is currently blocking your research from making an impact! (The data in the templates is just an example, let me know in the comments or message me if you’d like the blank versions).

As a brand marketing leader on the hook for Innovation and growth, you likely aren't short on ideas, but picking the "best" ones can be a conundrum. Innovation agencies often focus on idea generation, and because they're good at what they do, the output can be overwhelming.  What’s more, you know it's a survival of the fittest for your finite money and focus. I've learned that 𝙖𝙣 𝙪𝙣𝙨𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙝 𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙨𝙪𝙘𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨. You've got your no brainers 👍, and your clear Heck to the No's 👎. Then, you’re left with the rest: the stretch ideas, the exciting ones you want to nurture, but that you can foresee will be HARD. So, how to move forward? Suit up in your armor of 𝗩𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 & 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. Every company does it differently, but it doesn't have to be complicated. Here's a Checklist of criteria to help you and your team Focus and Stick to your Strategic Guns as things get hairy (which they will). If you use this list consistently, you're winning way before you launch! ☑️𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘤 𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵: Ideas that fit your company's mission and goals are more likely to get internal momentum 👏and succeed in the long run. ☑️𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵 𝘍𝘪𝘵: my drum to beat! Conduct whatever degree of research fits your risk profile and budget to understand trends, consumer, and customer needs. Ideas that address real pain points make the story easier to tell...for ALL your stakeholders. ☑️𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘋𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯: Ask whether it fills a gap to stand out in a crowded space--i.e., most markets today! If not, is it 'a better mousetrap'? ☑️𝘊𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘐𝘯𝘱𝘶𝘵: If you're going to retail, early feedback from top accounts will give you points for partnership AND help refine your ideas before going too far down the path. ☑️𝘌𝘹𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘍𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺: Ask the experts what it will take to deliver, then assess the likelihood you can overcome the obstacles--financial, technical, or human. ☑️𝘙𝘪𝘴𝘬 & 𝘚𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨: Think ahead to the potential pitfalls and how you’d handle them, to try to head off issues before they turn to roadblocks🚧. ☑️𝘉𝘢𝘤𝘬-𝘰𝘧-𝘵𝘩𝘦-𝘌𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘴:  the sooner you can gauge the potential to make💰, the faster you can move on the ideas that have a prayer. Innovators know the winding road ϟ from idea to launch is not for the faint of ♥...there will be blood, sweat 😬and even😢. But if you've pressure tested & prioritized, the winners 🏆will be primed to make the 🎆 you and your stakeholders are counting on. GO GET EM! 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵 𝗢𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀? #innovation #strategy #brandgrowth

We don't need louder solutions in L&D, we need better listening. Pull up a chair buddy, this one's a deep dive. I know I've been guilty in my L&D career to rush to build before I've really heard what's going on. It's only natural, we're driven by a need to problem solve and help people. We spin up courses, academies, or toolkits based on assumptions, not evidence. The result? Low adoption, “meh” impact, and stakeholders who see L&D as a cost centre. Sooooo.... what if we slowed down to speed up? 1) Find the heartbeat of the problem first: - What are this quarter’s revenue, product, customer, and people priorities? - Which metrics are red or amber? Where are we winning? Where are we leaking value? Don't know? Find the people who do and talk to them (spoiler alert, if nobody does...you've got an immediate need to address) 2) Listen before you design. I'm talking stakeholder interviews with Senior Leadership, HRBPs, frontline managers, and especially staff. If you're rolling out a programme and you've not spoken to anyone, you may as well pour your budget down the sink. Ask, “What outcomes matter most in the next 90 days?” and “Where does work get stuck?” 3) Think like a product team and get yourself some focus groups. Mix your high performers, new starters, and especially your skeptics (like it or not, we NEED them for change) Probe real workflows, not preferences - because people will get stuck in preferences, it feels safer. 4) Get on the floor. Observe calls, stand-ups, ticket triage. Reality beats opinion every time. I'm not a sales coach, but you bet I've listened in on customer calls so I can coach and support better. 5) Get clear on your data. What's time-to-productivity, cycle time, error rates, win rates? Define the delta you’ll move - otherwise you're walking around in the dark. 6) Co-create, don’t prescribe. Bring SMEs and managers into solution design. Pilot with willing teams and find your champions. Keep cycles short. 7) As for the resources we so love? Build for the workflow - job aids, checklists, nudges, peer practice, then formal learning to anchor it in. Why does this approach win? It earns trust: Leaders see their language, their metrics, and their reality in your plan. It saves money: You stop funding “nice to have” and focus on value density. It scales: When solutions live in the workflow, they travel faster than courses ever will. And the questions every L&D team needs to ask themselves: - What problem are we solving? - How do we know it’s real? - How will we know we’ve solved it? - Who needs to do what differently tomorrow, and how will we help them? (pssst, are we even the right people to be doing this...?) L&D is at its best when we’re curious first and creative second. The most strategic thing we can do is listen, to the business, to the data, and to the people doing the work, and THEN build only what moves the needle. Agree? Disagree? What's missing?👇

🧭 How To Manage Challenging Stakeholders and Influence Without Authority (free eBook, 95 pages) (https://lnkd.in/e6RY6dQB), a practical guide on how to deal with difficult stakeholders, manage difficult situations and stay true to your product strategy. From HiPPOs (Highest Paid Person’s Opinion) to ZEbRAs (Zero Evidence But Really Arrogant). By Dean Peters. Key takeaways: ✅ Study your stakeholders as you study your users. ✅ Attach your decisions to a goal, metric, or a problem. ✅ Have research data ready to challenge assumptions. ✅ Explain your tradeoffs, decisions, customer insights, data. 🚫 Don’t hide your designs: show unfinished work early. ✅ Explain the stage of your work and feedback you need. ✅ For one-off requests, paint and explain the full picture. ✅ Create a space for small experiments to limit damage. ✅ Build trust for your process with regular key updates. 🚫 Don’t invite feedback on design, but on your progress. As designers, we often sit on our work, waiting for the perfect moment to show the grand final outcome. Yet one of the most helpful strategies I’ve found is to give full, uncensored transparency about the work we are doing. The decision making, the frameworks we use to make these decisions, how we test, how we gather insights and make sense of them. Every couple of weeks I would either write down or record a short 3–4 mins video for stakeholders. I explain the progress we’ve made over the weeks, how we’ve made decisions and what our next steps will be. I show the design work done and abandoned, informed by research, refined by designers, reviewed by engineers, finetuned by marketing, approved by other colleagues. I explain the current stage of the design and what kind of feedback we would love to receive. I don’t really invite early feedback on the visual appearance or flows, but I actively invite agreement on the general direction of the project — for that stakeholders. I ask if there is anything that is quite important for them, but that we might have overlooked in the process. It’s much more difficult to argue against real data and a real established process that has led to positive outcomes over the years. In fact, stakeholders rarely know how we work. They rarely know the implications and costs of last-minute changes. They rarely see the intricate dependencies of “minor adjustments” late in the process. Explain how your work ties in with their goals. Focus on the problem you are trying to solve and the value it delivers for them — not the solution you are suggesting. Support your stakeholders, and you might be surprised how quickly you might get the support that you need. Useful resources: The Delicate Art of Interviewing Stakeholders, by Dan Brown 🤎 https://lnkd.in/dW5Wb8CK Good Questions For Stakeholders, by Lisa Nguyen, Cori Widen https://lnkd.in/eNtM5bUU UX Research to Win Over Stubborn Stakeholders, by Lizzy Burnam 🐞 https://lnkd.in/eW3Yyg5k [continues below ↓] #ux #design

Requirements Engineering aligns your data project with stakeholder needs. Here’s how you can effenciently gather requirements: 1. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄𝘀: Begin with in-depth interviews to understand business objectives and the challenges stakeholders are facing. Document their specific needs and expectations, ensuring alignment with the project's goals.     2. 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗢𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀: Translate stakeholder insights into clear, actionable objectives. Define what "success" looks like and how it will be measured. Having a strong objective framework helps prevent scope creep later.     3. 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Clearly outline the project scope by identifying what data will be used, the analysis techniques required, and the expected deliverables. Ensure all stakeholders are on the same page about what will (and won’t) be included.     4. 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Not all requirements hold equal weight. Work with stakeholders to prioritize the most critical objectives first, balancing them against time, resources, and technical constraints.     5. 𝗜𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: Requirements are rarely static. Build flexibility into the process to refine and adjust as new insights emerge. Regularly revisit requirements to ensure they remain aligned with evolving business needs.     6. 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸: Regularly validate that the project's outcomes are meeting stakeholders' expectations. Incorporate their feedback into iterative improvements and adjust your analysis as necessary.     7. 𝗗𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Maintain comprehensive documentation of the requirements, analysis process, and key decisions. This ensures continuity across teams and provides a reference for future projects. By implementing these requirements engineering principles, you can significantly enhance the clarity, focus, and impact of your data projects. Aligning technical work with clear business needs ensures that insights translate directly into actionable business decisions. What challenges have you faced in translating stakeholder requirements into data analysis projects? ---------------- ♻️ Share if you find this post useful ➕ Follow for more daily insights on how to grow your career in the data field #dataanalytics #datascience #businessintelligence  #requirementsengineering #stakeholdermanagement

🗓 Product Management Interview Prep – Day 5 ⚖ Question: How do you balance user feedback with business goals? ✅ Why it’s asked: PMs sit at the intersection of user needs and business outcomes. Interviewers want to know if you can drive growth without losing sight of the user—or vice versa. 🧠 How to approach this question: Balancing user feedback with business goals is an art and science. Use this framework to guide your answer: Start with clarity on business goals - → Be clear on what you’re optimizing for: revenue, retention, engagement, market share, etc. Continuously gather structured user feedback - → Use surveys, interviews, usability tests, NPS, support tickets, and usage data to deeply understand pain points and desires. Prioritize based on impact alignment - → Ask: Which feedback aligns with business KPIs? Which changes will move the needle? Use prioritization frameworks like RICE or Impact/Effort. Spot patterns, not one-offs - → Don't react to every request. Focus on common themes and validated insights. Club multiple products ask from different teams and internal tracks in logical groups. Know when to challenge or educate users - → Sometimes what users ask for isn’t what they really need. It’s your job to dig deeper and solve the root problem. Communicate trade-offs transparently - → When making tough calls, align stakeholders on why certain features are delayed or deprioritized in favor of strategic goals. 📝 Sample answer: "I start by understanding key business priorities—say increasing retention or entering a new market. When user feedback comes in, I look for recurring themes that align with these goals. For example, if many users ask for a collaboration feature and that supports our goal of increasing team adoption, I’ll prioritize it. But if something doesn’t align, I either deprioritize or find a creative compromise that meets both needs. I believe in being transparent about why we’re building what we’re building—it helps build trust with both users and internal stakeholders." 💬 How do you handle this balancing act as a PM? Share your thoughts below 👇 #productmanagement #pminterviewprep #productstrategy #customerobsession #linkedintips #LinkedInNewsIndia

Design research involves embracing the challenges of working with stakeholders. Almost always. Research isn’t naturally seen as the go-to method for making design decisions. New agreements must be created regularly: setting clear expectations, supporting the team, and encouraging stakeholders to get involved. Integrating research into ongoing workflows means understanding stakeholder involvement and the challenges it creates. Over the past five years of continuous research and iterative design, we've encountered several challenges–here are some steps to overcome them. I created a quadrant graph to illustrate these challenges, with the X-axis showing how important research is to stakeholders and the Y-axis showing their motivation. Pressure Cooker ↳ Stakeholders value research and desire perfection. This creates a high-pressure environment with an intense focus on getting the correct answer with the proper methods, leading to stress and potential strain on the research process. Suggestion: Set clear goals and break the research into manageable steps. Keep stakeholders updated and realistic about what’s achievable. Confirmation Bias ↳ Stakeholders here may not prioritize research but still want to confirm their beliefs or ideas. The risk is that they may selectively use research to validate their preconceptions, disregarding findings that challenge their views. Suggestion: Present a balanced view with data that supports and challenges their views. Encourage open discussions about different perspectives. Resistant to Change ↳ Stakeholders value research as necessary but primarily focus on avoiding mistakes. This leads to a reluctance to embrace new ideas or changes, as they prefer to stick with what is known and safe. Skepticism Suggestion: Introduce small, low-risk changes with solid evidence. Show how these changes can lead to positive outcomes. Skepticism ↳ Stakeholders are not invested in research and are more concerned with avoiding errors. Their skepticism towards research can result in disengagement, making it difficult to convince them of the value of research findings. Suggestion: Deliver quick wins that directly address their concerns. Use previous examples to show how research solves their problems and builds trust over time. What challenges have you experienced? #productdesign #productdiscovery #userresearch #uxresearch

Knowing when to push for perfection vs. when to ship quickly is a critical skill for product leaders. During a recent Supra Q&A, George O'Brien (CPO at Maze) shared a framework that's changed how I think about this tension: "What's the cost of getting this decision wrong and what's the cost of delaying it?" Here are two real-life examples that George shared that bring this framework to life: 1/ During COVID at Instacart: When preppers began emptying Costcos, their logistics systems broke. The cost of delay was enormous. The team created "Project Shield" with minimal research, ran the company like a scrum team, and fixed mistakes as they went. 2/ At Dropbox in 2013: Leading the sharing model redesign, George faced pressure to ship quickly. But the cost of getting it wrong was potentially breaking the growth engine for the entire business. He slowed down, invested in proper research, and discovered they were heading in the wrong direction. So how do you apply this framework tomorrow? 1/ Explicitly name both costs: ↳ Cost of delay: Revenue impact? Market opportunity? Team momentum? ↳ Cost of error: Customer trust? Technical debt? Strategic misalignment? 2/ Make the tradeoff visible to stakeholders: ↳ "We can ship this feature next week with 70% confidence it's right." ↳ "Or we can spend two more weeks on research and ship with 90% confidence." ↳ "Here's what's at stake either way..." 3/ When truly stuck, find the middle path: ↳ Identify what you KNOW you'll need regardless of direction ↳ Build that foundation while continuing discovery in parallel ↳ Create rapid feedback loops to course-correct quickly The beauty of this framework is that it shifts conversations from abstract debates to concrete discussions about specific risks and opportunities. The job of a PM isn't to make everyone happy. It's to make informed decisions that: 1) Will help the company win 2) Everyone understands What's a decision-making framework that has been invaluable in your career?

Product discovery is a team game, and like it or not, you'll have to deal with some tough team members. By team members I really mean stakeholders. May it be management, sales, marketing, CX, design or engineering. I feel you. I've been there. I got the battle scars to prove it. Showing everyone's input is considered and valued will be essential in running successful discovery. And most importantly, that the outcome will be accepted and acted upon. Here are 5 tips I actively used in the past. Screenshot this, save it or send it directly to your stakeholders. 🚜 Allow the dump. Everyone should be able to voice their opinions and concerns. This "dump" helps you understand the environment you're doing your discovery in, making everything that comes after smoother. 🤝 Collaborate. Don't disappear in "discovery mode" and then suddenly pop up with results. Instead, iclude your stakeholders. Run a OST workshop with them, involve them in finding experiments to test solutions. It's a reality check that shows just how challenging the process can be, and trust me, it might just make them think twice before bombarding you with feature requests. 🤸🏼♂️ You are not blocked. If you're waiting for approval from every corner of the organization, you'll be waiting forever. Get proactive. Chat with a user this week, start something—anything. Whether it's through customer-facing teams or directly via your product, the important thing is to begin. 👑 Flat hierarchy. All opinions are welcome, and valid. Yes, even the Head of Sales who's driving you up the wall. They're getting their insights from somewhere, probably the market, just like you. Communicate on eye level. You both want to solve your users' problems in a business smart way. 📣 Overcommunicate. Discovery can often feel like you're working in a secret lab. Share what you are learning as you go. It helps demystify the process for everyone involved. I've dropped a couple more nuggets of wisdom over at nikonoll.com. I'm pouring everything I've learned into creating resources that actually help. Go check it out, and let's make product management a bit less of a rollercoaster ride together. --- I post 5x a week here in an attempt to get 1000 companies to iterate weekly. I'm at 11/1000. Which is one more than three weeks ago. Follow along to see if I make it before turning 90 - and shoot me a message if you need a little help to get your Discovery rolling. #productmanagement #productdiscovery #uxresearch

How Not to Waste Time and Effort Building the Wrong Things There's no one sure-fire approach, but these principles should help: 1. Start with (outcome-based) goals, not ideas 2. For any given goal think of multiple ideas. Most ideas will not create a measurable improvement, so we need to have more than one. 3. To find the ideas that work, you have to repeatedly evaluate and test them, then invest only in those ideas that show supporting evidence (product discovery). 4. Managers and stakeholders don’t have the time, tools, skills, and subject-matter expertise to evaluate and test ideas and to analyze evidence. Product teams should do this work, but they have to do it transparently and objectively, working towards agreed and measurable goals, and with feedback from managers. 5. Having product teams own product discovery as well as delivery is not disempowering managers and stakeholders. On the contrary it's making them far more effective at their roles. #productmanagement #productdiscovery