The World's Best Book Summaries
How can you organize and structure an effective team? What are the three key roles in a product development team? In the book Inspired, Marty Cagan says that there are five key steps to structuring a product development team. Additionally, there are three key roles plus supporting players who all come together to create an effective team. Here’s how to go about creating your development team.
What is a free business model? How do companies finance the provision of their product/service for free? A free business model is where one or more customer groups receive value at no cost (e.g. a software company offering a limited suite of features for free). Free users are always financed by another part of the business model or by another customer segment. In this article, we’ll look at the different types of free business models, and how they generate revenue.
What does the product ideation process look like? How does this process aid in product discovery? In his book Inspired, Marty Cagan explores the product development process. One part of this process is product ideation or the process of creating and sharing new ideas. There are four parts to the product ideation process: interviewing customers, concierge testing, customer exploration, and hack days. Keep reading for an explanation of each step.
What is the open business model? How do companies with open business models create value for their customers? An open business model is where a business creates value through collaboration with external partners. There are two main ways to do that: 1) integrate their internal resources with the partner, or 2) supply their resources for a fee. We’ll break down both of these principles below.
What ten innovation principles can help your company with the product discovery process? What two strategies can help your teams innovate? In the book Inspired, Marty Cagan shares the innovation principles and strategies that will help your company through the discovery process. Additionally, he helps wean your team off of roadmaps with two strategies. Continue reading for Marty Cagan’s advice from Inspired.
What makes a successful business model? What are the different types of business models? A successful business model is one that creates, and over time, builds upon a competitive advantage. In their book Business Model Generation, authors Osterwalder and Pigneur discuss five different types of business models: 1) unbundled, 2) long tail, 3) multi-sided platform, 4) free, and 5) open. We’ll take a look at the key elements of each of these formulas below.
What is story mapping in reference to product planning? How does the customer discovery process help you find reference customers? There are two techniques you should use during the planning stage in product development: story mapping and customer discovery. Story mapping helps companies plan how to build products and customer discovery helps you find your loyal customers. Read about each technique below.
What are the main reasons why new products fail? Does it mean that it’s a bad product? What could the creators have done differently? In his book Inspired: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love, Marty Cagan says that many new products tend to fail when they’re introduced in the market. However, this is often due to the product development process and not because of the product itself. Here are the top reasons why new products fail and how to avoid the common pitfalls.
Who are the most important players on a product development team? What are each person’s roles and responsibilities? Product development teams are made up of three key positions: the product manager, the UX designer, and the engineers. Without these three key roles, a product is doomed to fail no matter how good the concept is. Continue reading to learn about each key role, plus the five additional roles.
Do you know how to build a tribe? What does it require to start one and keep it going? A tribe is a group of people with a shared vision and the drive to achieve it. You can build a tribe from scratch, or you can infuse a stagnating group with new vision and energy. To keep your tribe going strong, focus on improvement and communication. Keep reading for more on how to build a tribe.