Build as a Service (BaaS) - Product Development

Deciding what to develop should be a deliberate process of scrutinizing your ideas. An excellent framework for this scrutiny is considering the key dimensions of product development innovation;  feasibility (can we technically achieve it?), viability (does it make good business sense?), desirability (do customers need or what it?), and more recently, responsibility (should you do it?). Do not skip this process - Start here before moving into subsequent stages to understand where your product indexes against each dimension. 

Deciding what to develop and when can be daunting, yet it could not be more important to get this right. Always consider a prioritization framework that will help you identify quick opportunities (low hanging fruit) vs. where you might need to be more strategic in investing resources. Identifying your main objectives and drivers can plug right into scoring models and value matrices that will add structure that informs your decision-making process

When more rigor is required to prioritize projects or endeavors, a cost-benefit analysis is a framework that should leave no room for guesswork. A proper analysis furnishes as much empirical data that can be compiled, supplemented with estimation techniques where facts are not wholly understood while reserving some space for expert judgment. The result is decision-making with high confidence. 

Project Management is an essential competency for any organization. Executing the proper PM methodologies for any endeavor in any industry is key to delivering on objectives with high-quality outputs. Product Development is no exception. The development of new products is almost always predictive in its constraints (scope, budget, time), and depending on the product, hybrid methodologies can be applied. Nonetheless, are carefully planned endeavors where project management skills will significantly benefit the development process's efficiency, quality, and overall execution. Without dedicated project management, the time, cost, and quality of the development process and the end product are at great risk. Additionally, a PM ensures that key stakeholders can spend their time contributing value to the project in their key areas of domain expertise and avoid getting lost in the weeds of day-to-day task management and oversight of the development process. Ultimately, someone will have to manage the process - who will (or should) that be?

What is needed today vs what is needed tomorrow? Developing product roadmaps helps achieve alignment on primary objectives and is essential in motivating teams to row in the same direction. More practically, however, roadmaps are vital to understanding when and where you'll spend the organization's resources - This includes capital and human resources. Once a prioritization framework has been developed, you'll have greater clarity on where to set milestones and focus resources. The typical direction vector would be a path that starts with concept > wireframe > mockup > prototype > MVP > future iterations. Depending on the complexity of the product, not all stages along this path are necessary - However, consider the logical sequence of the development toward clear and identifiable achievements in the product's maturation.

Once your roadmap is in place, it's time to develop and work toward each milestone. Developing a new product should always be executed in planned phases (not to be confused with development stages or release cycles). Inside the project execution process group, tailor product development phases to the product itself. It would be best to consider general phases such as ideation, concepts, wireframes, mockups, prototypes, or ultimately moving to minimal viable product production. 

Once developed products are introduced to the market and put into the hands of sales and service delivery teams, the fulfillment of those services will validate the product's readiness. Development teams are not generally released in the product's Introduction cycle but remain in place to ensure no significant flaws exist in the process or the product itself. The product development teams continue working towards resolution before disbanding to other projects should flaws be discovered. 

Expect ongoing development with most products after their initial release. The degree of needed development will depend on the product and its maturity. Although not limited to cloud-based products, continuous development is of particular need with SaaS or other digital products or applications. Release cycles should methodically and meticulously move through some variation of Pre-Alpha, Alpha, Closed Beta, Public Beta, Stable Release/Production Release (General Availability). The goal is not speed of releases, but continuous improvement, compliance, and added value to products.

Once products are developed and released into the market, they will naturally mature along predictable lifecycles; introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. A unique set of challenges greets each cycle and requires strategic focus to ensure the sustained viability and success of the developed product.