Startup Leadership Program Product Design

8/19/2019 Startup Leadership Program Product Design

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PRODUCT DESIGNSTARTUP LEADERSHIP PROGRAMFEB 2016

Alex Cowan


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ABOUT ME

Entrepreneur (5x)Intrapreneur (1x)


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THE VENTURE DESIGN PROCESS

S C A L

E ?

P I V O T ?

PRODUCT &PROMOTION

USER STORIES& PROTOTYPES

CUSTOMERDISCOVERY &EXPERIMENTS

VALUEPROPOSITIONS &

ASSUMPTIONS

S H

O W

M E …

?

W H A T

I F ?

Is the problemrelevant? Is theproposition bettervs alternatives?

Do we understand

this person? Whatmakes them tick?

Did theimplementationdeliver on the story?

Was the implementedstory relevant to theproposition?

How did the customer /user react?

WHO?PERSONAS

W H A T ?

PROBLEMSCENARIOS &

ALTERNATIVES


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www.alexandercowan.com

ABOUT ME


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bit.ly/hiagile

ABOUT ME


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© 2015 COWAN+

ALEX COWANalexandercowan.com

@cowanSF

CREATING SUCCESSFUL PRODUCTS

ScaleFriendly

InnovationFriendly

$ !?

? !? ? ?


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S C A L

E ?

P I V O T ?

PRODUCT &PROMOTION



VALUEPROPOSITIONS &

ASSUMPTIONS

S H

O W

M E …

?

W H A T

I F ?


Do we understand





WHO?PERSONAS

W H A T ?

PROBLEMSCENARIOS &

ALTERNATIVES


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© 2015 COWAN+Paul Holloway via Wikimedia Commons


@cowanSF

AGILE: BLOCKBUSTER EVENT OF 2001


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THE AFTERPARTY


@cowanSF


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THE MANIFESTO WAS SIMPLE

INDIVIDUALSINTERACTIONS

PROCESSESTOOLS

WORKINGSOFTWARE COMPREHENSIVEDOCUMENTATION

CUSTOMERCOLLABORATION

CONTRACTNEGOTIATION

RESPONDING TOCHANGE

FOLLOWINGA PLAN ALEX COWAN

alexandercowan.com@cowanSF


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3: SMALL BATCHES2: NARRATIVECOLLABORATION

1: THE USER STORY

AGILE: THE GOOD STUFF


@cowanSF


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THE IMPORTANCE OF FORM & NOTATION


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Epic Stories

Stories

Test Cases

“As a [persona] ,

I want to [do something]so that I can [derive a benet] ”

Who is this user? What makes them tick?

Who’s an example of such a person?

Why do they want to do this? What's the benet/reward?

How will we know of it’sworking?

bit.ly/youagile

(THE WHOLE) AGILE USER STORY


@cowanSF


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EPIC STORY1) ’As the HR manager, I want to create a screening

quiz so that I can understand whether I want tosend possible recruits to the functional manager.’

CHILD STORY A1A) “As an HR manager, I want to match

an open position’s required skills withquiz topics so I can create a quiz relevant

for candidate screening.”

CHILD STORY B1B) “As an HR manager, I want to send a

draft quiz to the the functional manager so Imake sure I’ve covered the right topics on

the screening quiz.”

…STORY N

EXAMPLE: AGILE USER STORIES AT ENABLE QUIZ


@cowanSF


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THE EPIC: NOT QUITE AS BIG AS IT SOUNDS


@cowanSF

Epic Stories

Stories

Test Cases

Epic sounds big.But the are still specic &discrete.


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EXAMPLE: AGILE EPIC STORIES AT ENABLE QUIZ


@cowanSF

Draft a set of epic stories(Next: pick an epic and detail it w/ child stories.)

EXAMPLE EPICS1) ’As the HR manager, I want to create a screening quiz so that I can understand whether I

want to send possible recruits to the functional manager.’2) ’As the HR manager, I want to try out the screening quiz so that I can make sure it works as I

expected and that I’m ready to both give it to candidates and share the results with thefunctional manager.’

3) ‘As the HR manager, I want to give the screening quiz to a job candidate so I can assess their skill sets against the needs of the position.’

4) ‘As the HR manager, I want to share and explain the results of our screening with thefunctional manager so they can decide who they want to interview.’

“As a [persona] ,I want to [do something]so that I can [derive a benet] ”

(5 min)


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EXAMPLE: AGILE EPIC STORIES AT ENABLE QUIZ


@cowanSF

Draft a set of epic stories(Next: pick an epic and detail it w/ child stories.)

EXAMPLE EPICS1) ’As the HR manager, I want to create a screening quiz so that I can understand whether I

want to send possible recruits to the functional manager.’2) ’As the HR manager, I want to try out the screening quiz so that I can make sure it works as I

expected and that I’m ready to both give it to candidates and share the results with thefunctional manager.’

3) ‘As the HR manager, I want to give the screening quiz to a job candidate so I can assess their skill sets against the needs of the position.’

4) ‘As the HR manager, I want to share and explain the results of our screening with thefunctional manager so they can decide who they want to interview.’

“As a [persona] ,I want to [do something]so that I can [derive a benet] ”

(5 min)


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EPIC‘As the HR manager, Iwant to create ascreening quiz so that Ican understand whetherI want to send possiblerecruits to thefunctional manager.’

WALKING THROUGH AN EPIC

bit.ly/dostory


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USING THE STORYBOARDING SQUARES

bit.ly/dostory

}} }1 Panel

StoryboardArea

Notes

Area

Optional notes here tosupplement your storyboard


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TRIGGER

How does the

problem scenarioinitiate?

ACTION

How is the action

executed? Howeasy is it?

REWARD

How is the persona

gratied?

SKETCHING YOUR NARRATIVE

source: adapted from Nir Eyal’s Hook Framework

bit.ly/dostory


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EPIC‘As the HR manager, Iwant to create ascreening quiz so that Ican understand whether

I want to send possiblerecruits to thefunctional manager.’

WALKING THROUGH AN EPIC

Pick an epic andstoryboard it with ~6squares

(8 min)


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EXERCISE: STORYBOARDING THE BEFORE SCENARIO

IndependentNegotiableValuableEstimableSmallTestable

Could this beimplemented on astand-alone basis ordoes it presupposeother content?


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Stories are not

spec’s. This is aninput for you to arriveat an optimalimplementation with

the developer, not afunctional‘requirement’.



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What problemscenario does thisaddress? How haveyou validated yourvalue propositionfor it?



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How hard is this vs. the team’sexperience? Is itdiscrete enough?



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EXERCISE: STORYBOARDING THE BEFORE SCENARIOA big part of what makesagile (and lean) work is theuse of small batches with

measurable results. Makesure your stories arebroken down to workablesizes.



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How will you knowif it’s working in away where you can

validate its value?



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CHILD STORIESA) “As an HR manager, I want to match an open position’s required skills with quiz topics so I can create a

quiz relevant for candidate screening.”B) “As an HR manager, I want to send a draft quiz to the the functional manager so I make sure I’ve covered the right topics on the screening quiz.”

C) “As a functional manager, I want to send feedback on the screening quiz to the HR manager so I make sureI’m getting the best possible screening on candidates.”

D) “As an HR manager, I need to purchase an upgraded service tier so I can add additional topics to my quiz.”

E) “As an HR manager, I want to add custom questions to the quiz so we cover additional topics that areimportant to the functional manager.”

EPIC STORY‘As the HR manager, I want to create a screening quiz so that I can understand whether I want to send possiblerecruits to the functional manager.’

EXAMPLE: AGILE USER STORIES

Detail one epic withchild stories (8 min)


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Item

Your stories have all three clauses

Usability and motivation are both linked to stories, but tested separately

Usability is testing feels easy, frequent, and effective

Every story is linked to a value proposition (small or large)

Every proposition is linked to a problem

Every story, proposition, and problem is linked to a vivid persona

AGILE: YOU’LL KNOW IT’S WORKING IF…


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S C A L

E ?

P I V O T ?

PRODUCT &PROMOTION



VALUEPROPOSITIONS &

ASSUMPTIONS

S H

O W

M E …

?

W H A T

I F ?


Do we understand





WHO?PERSONAS

W H A T ?

PROBLEMSCENARIOS &

ALTERNATIVES


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The Twin Anti-Poles of Design Failure

Doing precisely what the user asks

Assuming you know what’sbest and ignoring the user

! " # $ %

THE PRACTICE OF DESIGN THINKING


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THE PRACTICE OF DESIGN THINKINGFinding the Right

PROBLEMFinding the Right

SOLUTION

time

a l t

e r n a

t i v e s

divergence convergence divergence convergence

source: adapted from ‘The Design of Everyday Things’

User Stories

PersonasProblems

Alternatives

FieldDiscovery

Value Hypothesis &Assumptions

ProductHypothesis

Software

Prototypes

Experiments on Motivation


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THE PRACTICE OF DESIGN THINKING- WHY IS IT HARD?

Survival

Then

Design Thinking

Now


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THE PRACTICE OF DESIGN THINKING- FOUNDATIONS

Empathy Creativity


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Entry1

Urinate as they go2

Edges preferred3

Speedy4

PB > cheese5

Empathy


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1

2

3

4

5

Check & Repair

UV Validation

Relevant Placement

A Better Mouse Trap

Powered by Better Bait

Creativity


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THE VENTURE DESIGN PROCESS- PERSONAS

Do we understand this person? Whatmakes them tick?

WHO?PERSONAS

W H A T ?

PROBLEMSCENARIOS &

ALTERNATIVES


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DESIGN THINKING: EMPATHY & PERSONAS


@cowanSFbit.ly/2persona


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DESIGN THINKING: EMPATHY & PERSONAS


@cowanSFbit.ly/2persona


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• Women• Age 28-45• Has kids• Socialize with other mom’s• Online with Facebook

• 86% said they’d like to be moreorganized

• 70% said they’d use an application that organizes them

PERSONA: BAD


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Bullet points are almost never vivid or detailed

Stock photo- not real

This is a huge population-not exact

These responses are ‘fake actionable’-survey responses like this are

unreliable

PERSONA: BAD

• Women• Age 28-45• Has kids• Socialize with other mom’s• Online with Facebook

• 86% said they’d like to be moreorganized

• 70% said they’d use an application that organizes them


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THE ART OF CUSTOMER DISCOVERY


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Mary is a mom by choice. She had a successful career inaccounting, but welcomed the opportunity to be a stay at home

mom. She loves it. But it’s not like having kids purged hercreative, social instincts. She wants to connect, she wants tolearn, she wants to interact. Being a mom is a job and she wants to do it well. That means corresponding with other mom’s onchild education and keeping track of what works. She posts toFacebook at least twice a week and responds to other moms’

items more often than that.She has a few blogs and publications she reads regularly…

Mary the MomPERSONA: BETTER


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the use of a rst name helps w/vividness (a little)

these full sentences look like a goodstart towards something vivid and

detailed

this is a real photo of a relevantperson taken with an iPhone in the

real world

PERSONA: BETTER

Mary is a mom by choice. She had a successful career inaccounting, but welcomed the opportunity to be a stay at home

mom. She loves it. But it’s not like having kids purged hercreative, social instincts. She wants to connect, she wants tolearn, she wants to interact. Being a mom is a job and she wants to do it well. That means corresponding with other mom’s onchild education and keeping track of what works. She posts toFacebook at least twice a week and responds to other moms’

items more often than that.She has a few blogs and publications she reads regularly…

Mary the Mom


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ivid

ealctionable

dentiable

xactetailedE

RAV

D


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EXERCISE- PERSONA CREATION

Mary the Working Mom

Susan the Stay-at-Home Mom

Douglas the Dad

Nathan the Nanny

Ivan the Infant

…

List at least 3 personas

(4 min)

use 1 index card/ persona


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Day in the LifeWe look at a few photos for a given persona (not a full picture, just snippets)You make some guesses about themThere are no right answers BUTThere is a right process: observe and infer

OBJECTIVE:Get a feel for what’s real; start to create something vivid

A LITTLE GAME FOR BETTER PERSONA DISCOVERY


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Sally theSingle Mom

OUR CAST


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WAKE UP!


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WAKE UP!


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GEARING UP FOR THE DAY


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AT WORK


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AFTER WORK


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PRE-BED


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BED


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GEAR


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IF I HAD 3 EXTRA HOURS…


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What’s her favorite kind of music?

Where did she buy her last pair of shoes?

What movie did she last see?

What did she drink with dinner last night?If she had a dog, what kind?

What’s her favorite magazine?

bit.ly/daynthelife

ABOUT SALLY THE SINGLE MOM…


@cowanSF


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PERSONAS- THINK SEE FEEL DO


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PERSONAS- ‘THINKS’?

Thinks: (The cognitive part. Often: the tension between how they’d ideally like things to be and how they are now.)

Sees

Feels

Does


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EXAMPLE- ENABLE QUIZ & HELEN THE HR MANAGER


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Thinks: Helen thinks the hiring process should be so much better- more systematic, fewer bad hires. Professional development issomething they’ve identied that they want to do better, but the functional managers aren’t engaged enough to get the whole thing started.

Sees

Feels

Does

Example: Helen the HR Manager


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EXERCISE- DISCOVERING WHAT THEY THINKQuestion Form Examples Questions (‘Enable Quiz’)

Tell me about [yourself in the role of the persona]? - Tell me about being an HR manager?- What do you most, least like about the job?- What are the hardest, easiest parts of the job?- I’ve heard [x]- does that apply to you?

Tell me about [your area of interest]? - Do you do screen new candidates? If not, who?- Can you tell me about the last time? What was the trigger?- Who else was involved? What was it like?

Tell me your thoughts about [area]? - How should it ideally be done?- How is it actually done? Why?

Draft discovery questionsin the areas above(If complete, convergewith your group)(7 min)


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Thinks: Helen thinks the hiring process should be so much better- more systematic, fewer bad hires. Professional development issomething they’ve identied that they want to do better, but the functional managers aren’t engaged enough to get the whole thing started.

Sees

Feels

Does

Draft the ‘Think’ portion for your top persona (If done, converge with your group.)

(4 min)



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CAN YOUR PERSONA DO THIS?

CaptureAttentionvia GoogleAdWord

Secure theinfamous‘click through’

Engage Interest,Desire onlanding page

Action,onboarding,retention


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CREATING AN ADWORD AD


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EXERCISE: CREATE AN ADWORD AD: THINK ANGLE

1. Select keywords (put in Notes section)

2. Draft ad copyHow does the draft follow from your personas?Are you speaking in the language your customers use?Are you connecting with the THINK in your Think-See-Feel-Do?

(NO RULE AGAINST UPDATING YOUR PERSONA WHILE YOU DO THIS!)

Create at least one Google AdWords ad on the paper template- specificallyusing the ‘think’ angle on your persona


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PERSONAS- ‘SEES’?


Sees: (The interactions that shape their Thinking- media, peers, education, training, casual observation.)

Feels

Does


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Thinks: Helen thinks the hiring process should be so much better- more systematic, fewer bad hires. Professional development issomething they’ve identied that they want to do better, but the functional managers aren’t engaged enough to get the whole thingstarted.

Sees: Helen is at the tail end of every bad hire and sees the damage it does to the employee and company, alike. Helen sees thatonline learning has rocketed forward in the last few years. If someone wants to learn a specic skill, there’s a number of highquality options online, many of them free. They just need a way to help employees organize select into these courses.

Feels

Does



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EXERCISE- DISCOVERING WHAT THEY SEEQuestion Form Examples Questions (‘Enable Quiz’)


Tell me about [your area of interest]? - Do you do screen new candidates? If not, who?- Can you tell me about the last time? What was the trigger?- Who else was involved? What was it like?

Tell me your thoughts about [area]? - How should it ideally be done?- How is it actually done? Why?

What do you see in [area]? Where do you learn what’s new? What others do? Who do you think is doing it right?How did you make your last decision?

Draft discovery questions

in the areas above(If complete, convergewith your group) (4 min)


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Feels

Does

Draft the ‘See’ portion for your top persona. (If done, converge with your group.)Example: Helen the HR Manager


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EXERCISE: CREATE AN ADWORD AD: SEE ANGLE


2. Draft ad copyHow does the draft follow from your personas?Are you speaking in the language your customers use?Are you connecting with the SEE in your Think-See-Feel-Do?


Create at least one Google AdWords ad on the paper template- specificallyusing the ‘see’ angle on your persona


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PERSONAS- ‘FEELS’?



Feel: (The emotional driver. What are the predominant emotions around the relevant activity? What is the emotional outcome of the actions they take around the activity?)

Does


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Feels: Helen feels like crap whenever they have to let someone go. She hates it. The employee hates it. The manager hates it. It’sincredibly destructive and de-motivating for everyone involved. Helen would love to be more involved, more included infunctional skills evaluation and improvement. She’s love to have a success story to talk about. Most HR departments don’t do awhole lot in this area.

Does



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EXERCISE- DISCOVERING WHAT THEY FEELQuestion Form Examples Questions (‘Enable Quiz’)


Tell me about [your area of interest]? - Do you do screen new candidates? If not, who?- Can you tell me about the last time? What was the trigger?

- Who else was involved? What was it like?Tell me your thoughts about [area]? - How should it ideally be done?

- How is it actually done? Why?

What do you see in [area]?Where do you learn what’s new? What others do?Who do you think is doing it right?How did you make your last decision?

How do you feel about [area]?Tell me about the last time? What motivates you? What parts of it are most rewarding? Why? What would it be like in your perfect world?

Draft discovery questionsfor the ‘feel’ area(If complete, convergewith your group)

(4 min)


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Feels: Helen feels like crap whenever they have to let someone go. She hates it. The employee hates it. The manager hates it. It’sincredibly destructive and de-motivating for everyone involved. Helen would love to be more involved, more included infunctional skills evaluation and improvement. She’s love to have a success story to talk about. Most HR departments don’t do awhole lot in this area.

Does

Draft the ‘Feel’ portion for your top persona. (If done, converge with your group.)Example: Helen the HR Manager


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EXERCISE: CREATE AN ADWORD AD: FEEL ANGLE


2. Draft ad copyHow does the draft follow from your personas?Are you speaking in the language your customers use?Are you connecting with the FEEL in your Think-See-Feel-Do?


Create at least one Google AdWords ad on the paper template- specificallyusing the ‘feel’ angle on your persona


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PERSONAS- ‘FEELS’?



Feel: (The emotional driver. What are the predominant emotions around the relevant activity? What is the emotional outcome of theactions they take around the activity?)

Do:The ‘actuals’. As applicable: What triggers? How often? For how long? How much money?


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Feels: Helen feels like crap whenever they have to let someone go. She hates it. The employee hates it. The manager hates it. It’sincredibly destructive and de-motivating for everyone involved. Helen would love to be more involved, more included in functionalskills evaluation and improvement. She’s love to have a success story to talk about. Most HR departments don’t do a whole lot in this area.

Does: Helen’s relatively responsive to new ideas, particularly if someone knowledgeable is willing to come in and talk about it. Ifshe likes it, she’ll bring it to the functional managers, who are usually the ultimate decision makers since without their supportshe can’t get the system online and working. Post-sale, Helen will help keep the program organized, moving, and otherwise on the functional managers radar. All this is predicated on Helen being equipped with the right messages, facts, and best practices to make the purchase and use of Enable Quiz effective.



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EXERCISE- DISCOVERING WHAT THEY DOQuestion Form Examples Questions (‘Enable Quiz’)


Tell me about [your area of interest]? - Do you do screen new candidates? If not, who?- Can you tell me about the last time? What was the trigger?

- Who else was involved? What was it like?Tell me your thoughts about [area]? - How should it ideally be done?

- How is it actually done? Why?

What do you see in [area]?Where do you learn what’s new? What others do?Who do you think is doing it right?How did you make your last decision?

How do you feel about [area]?Tell me about the last time?What motivates you? What parts of it are most rewarding? Why?

What would it be like in your perfect world?

What do you do in [area]? How many new openings/quarter?How many interviews/position?

Draft discovery questionsfor the ‘do’ area(If complete, convergewith your group)

(4 min)


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Feels: Helen feels like crap whenever they have to let someone go. She hates it. The employee hates it. The manager hates it. It’sincredibly destructive and de-motivating for everyone involved. Helen would love to be more involved, more included in functionalskills evaluation and improvement. She’s love to have a success story to talk about. Most HR departments don’t do a whole lot in this area.

Does: Helen’s relatively responsive to new ideas, particularly if someone knowledgeable is willing to come in and talk about it. Ifshe likes it, she’ll bring it to the functional managers, who are usually the ultimate decision makers since without their supportshe can’t get the system online and working. Post-sale, Helen will help keep the program organized, moving, and otherwise on the functional managers radar. All this is predicated on Helen being equipped with the right messages, facts, and best practices to make the purchase and use of Enable Quiz effective.

Draft the ‘Do’ portion for your top persona. (If done, converge with your group.)Example: Helen the HR Manager


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EXERCISE: CREATE AN ADWORD AD: DO ANGLE

1. Select keywords (put in Notes section)2. Draft ad copy

How does the draft follow from your personas?Are you speaking in the language your customers use?Are you connecting with the DO in your Think-See-Feel-Do?


Create at least one Google AdWords ad on the paper template- specificallyusing the ‘do’ angle on your persona


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PERSONAS & PROBLEM SCENARIOS

Do we understand this person? What

makes them tick?

WHO?PERSONAS

W H A

T ?

PROBLEMSCENARIOS &

ALTERNATIVES


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XPROBLEM SCENARIO


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XWhat job(s) are you doing for thecustomer?What existing need or behaviorare you fullling?

PROBLEM SCENARIO


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X

?

PROBLEM SCENARIO

ALTERNATIVE(S)


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X

?If they currently usespreadsheets, watch them use itand get a copy of it.If they currently put notes on the familyfridge, ask about it, photograph it.

PROBLEM SCENARIO

ALTERNATIVE(S)


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XIt’s hard for the HR manager to send good notes on

candidates to the functional manager.(Too Detailed, A Feature vs. a Product/Venture)

‘Hiring technical talent is difcult.’(Too Broad, Abstract)

‘Screening technical talent is difcult.’(Probably About Right)


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X

?

PROBLEM SCENARIO

ALTERNATIVE(S)


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ALTERNATIVE(S)?

PROBLEM SCENARIOXProblem: Helen doesn't have a softwareengineering background, so it's hard for her toscreen engineering candidates. She ends upsending the functional manager too manyunqualied candidates. .

Alternative: She calls references and mostly endsup taking their word for it.

Brainstorm Problem Scenario+Alternative Pairs.

(4 min)


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EXERCISE: CREATE AN ADWORD AD: PROBLEM SCENARI


2. Draft ad copyHow does the draft follow from your problem scenarios?Are you speaking in the language your customers use?(NO RULE AGAINST UPDATING YOUR PROBLEM SCENARIOS WHILE YOU DO TH

Create at least one Google AdWords ad on the paper template- specificallyusing the your top problem scenarios (and alternatives as you see fit)


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XPROBLEM SCENARIO

?ALTERNATIVE(S)

YOUR VALUE PROPOSITIONS !


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XPROBLEM SCENARIO

?ALTERNATIVE(S)

YOUR VALUE PROPOSITIONS !Are they better enough than thealternative(s)?


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ALTERNATIVE(S)?

PROBLEM SCENARIOXProblem: Helen doesn't have a softwareengineering background, so it's hard for her toscreen engineering candidates. She ends upsending the functional manager too manyunqualied candidates. .Alternative: She calls references and mostly endsup taking their word for it.Value Proposition : New ability for meaningfulscreening of technical candidates, increasing % ofsuccessful hires and lowering Frank the FunctionalManager's workload on recruiting.

Brainstorm Problem Scenario+Alternative Pairs.(If done, converge with yourgroup.)

(4 min)

YOUR VALUEPROPOSITIONS!


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EXERCISE: CREATE AN ADWORD AD: VALUE PROPOSITIO


2. Draft ad copyHow does the draft follow from your value propositions?Are you speaking in the language your customers use?(NO RULE AGAINST UPDATING YOUR PROBLEM SCENARIOS WHILE YOU DO TH

Create at least one Google AdWords ad on the paper template- specificallyusing the your top value propositions


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AND NOW THE ‘PRODUCT HYPOTHESIS’

X

?

!

… and they have a certainPROBLEMS(S) …

… where they’re currently using certainALTERNATIVE(S) …

… and I have a VALUE PROPOSITION that’s better enough than the alternatives to cause the persona to act (purchase,use, etc.).

A certain PERSONA exists…


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S C A L

E ?

P I V O T ?

PRODUCT &PROMOTION



VALUEPROPOSITIONS &

ASSUMPTIONS

S H

O W

M E …

?

W H A T

I F ?


Do we understand this person? Whatmakes them tick?




WHO?PERSONAS

W H A T ?

PROBLEMSCENARIOS &

ALTERNATIVES


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RECORDING ON THE BUSINESS MODEL CANVASWhy do they buy? Who are they?

Broad Selection

Competitive Prices

Convenience

Do-it-yourselfer’s

Casual Shoppers

Contractors

Example: Home Depot

CustomerSegments

ValuePropositions


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RECORDING ON THE BUSINESS MODEL CANVAS

!"#$&'()#$*#+,-$,./-.,(0", 1(,20#3, 1'44'-$500(#6/0#'-78"2(, 5*#), 9:;


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HYPOTHESIS-DRIVEN INNOVATION VIA ‘LEAN STARTUP’Do I have real evidence from my buyer that this is compelling?

01 IDEA!

What is our ‘value hypothesis’ and what areits key assumptions?

02 HYPOTHESI S

How do I denitely prove or disprove the

assumptions with a minimum of time andeffort?

03 EXPERIMENTAL DESIG N

04 EX PERI MENTATION

Am I reacting or am I focused onvalidating my pivotal assumptions?

‘Pivot or persevere?’

VALUEHYPOTHESIS

source: adapted from ‘The Lean Startup’


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HYPOTHESIS-DRIVEN INNOVATION VIA ‘LEAN STARTUP’

What is our ‘value hypothesis’ and what areits key assumptions?

02 HYPOTHESI S

VALUEHYPOTHESIS


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EXAMPLE: ENABLE QUIZ

Persona(s)Helen the HR Manager- responsible for sourcing and screening job candidatesFrank the Functional Manager- hiring manager responsible for acquiring and managing talent

ProblemScenario

Helen: hard to screen for technical skillsFrank: never has enough time for recruiting and doesn’t want to be a jerk during interviews

AlternativesHelen: call references, take their word for it (on skills)Frank: ask a few probing questions

Value Prop. A lightweight quizzing app that has Helen can use to do quick, effective screening.

What is the core value hypothesis?


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EXAMPLE: ENABLE QUIZCore Value Hypothesis

If Enable Quiz offers companies that hireengineers lightweight technical quizzes thatscreen job candidates for engineering positions,

then these companies would trial, use, adopt, andpay for such a service.


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EXAMPLE: ENABLE QUIZAs a group, draft yourcore value hypothesis

If Enable Quiz offers companies that hireengineers lightweight technical quizzes thatscreen job candidates for engineering positions,

then these companies would trial, use, adopt, andpay for such a service.

As a group, converge your product hypothesis

(5 min)


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UNBUNDLING THE VALUE HYPOTHESIS INTO ASSUMPTIO

If we [do something] for [persona], they will [respond in a certain way]Example Assumptions (Enable Quiz)

If we get HR managers to a landing page with a demo, 10% will sign up forour email product announcements.If we create position-specic quizzes for HR managers, they’ll use them~100% of the time and, after two positions, be willing to pay.If we offer the service at [x] price with [y] supplemental assistance,companies that hire a lot of engineers will pay [z].


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TESTING YOUR ASSUMPTIONS VIA AN ‘MVP’

iableWill it give us a denitive

result? What are theactionable metrics?

M

VP



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roductiable

inimumis not necessarily actual software/product (seeconcierge MVP)

is a rst and foremost learning vehicle …

vs. a project plan

(OK to do those things but always subordinate them to the learning mission)

vs. a product development project

M

VP



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MVP Archetype NotesWizard of Oz Show or fake the customer experienceConcierge Hand create the user experienceSales See if you can sell some.


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MVP Archetype Example Assumptions (Enable Quiz)Wizard of Oz If we get HR managers to a landing page with a demo, 10% will sign up for

our email product announcements.

ConciergeIf we create position-specic quizzes for HR managers, they’ll use them~100% of the time and, after two positions, be willing to pay.

Sales If we offer the service at [x] price with [y] supplemental assistance,companies that hire a lot of engineers will pay [z].

If we [do something] for [persona], they will [respond in a certain way]


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CASE STUDY: DROPBOX

OPPORTUNITYUnderlying demand and supportinginfrastructure ready for a great le sharing app.

CHALLENGEBuilding a great cross-platform app. requiredVC funding. VC’s saw a space with lots ofexisting competitors struggling to get traction.


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CASE STUDY: DROPBOX

Persona Tom the Techie- early adopter who works on projects that require swapping a lot of les between a shiftingnetwork of collaborators.

ProblemScenario

It’s difcult to share les between a network of collaborators, particularly if they’re: big or numerous or change alot.

Alternatives Many existing products, but none of them super compelling and widely adopted.Also, custom setup’s which work but are cumbersome to set up and maintain.

ValueHypothesis

If Dropbox created a le sharing service that truly felt transparent to the user across all major platforms- OSX, iOS,Windows, etc., then a mass market of users would prefer it over the alternatives, subscribe to it and use it over time.

What Minimum Viable Product (MVP)?

That you can bootstrap?

That doesn’t require software at all?


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THE WIZARD OF OZ MVP

Result: Excellent traction andconversion to sign-up’s.Strong validation signal.

Created a synthetic web demo tailoredfor early market (techies), promoted it,and measured email sign-up’s.


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OPPORTUNITYHiring quality technical talent is critical formany companies, but screening for skill sets is time consuming and awkward.

CHALLENGEThe founding team wants to bootstrap withoutexternal funding so they need to focus on aspecic technical domain, one that will get them strong early traction.


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Persona(s) Helen the HR Manager- responsible for sourcing and screening job candidatesFrank the Functional Manager- hiring manager responsible for acquiring and managing talent

ProblemScenario

Helen: hard to screen for technical skillsFrank: never has enough time for recruiting and doesn’t want to be a jerk during interviews

Alternatives Helen: call references, take their word for it (on skills)Frank: ask a few probing questions

ValueHypothesis

If Enable Quiz offers companies that hire engineers lightweight technical quizzes that screen job candidates forengineering positions, then these companies would trial, use, adopt, and pay for such a service.





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THE CONCIERGE MVP

Metrics:Do the HR managers use them? How often?Do they want one for their next open position?Do the functional managers care?

Work with a set of HR managers to produceposition-specic quizzes by hand on paper (orGoogle Forms, etc.).


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A QUESTION?There are dozens of technical/engineer topicsEnable Quiz could offer. How can they assesswhich topics are most marketable?


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THE GOOGLE ADWORDS MVP

Metrics:Which topics have the highest click-through rate (CTR)?Which then convert to sign-up’s to newsletters, etc.?

Pair their qualitative research with topics trendingonline and then run a series of Google AdWordscampaigns with different topics.


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CASE STUDY: LEONID SYSTEMS

OPPORTUNITY(2007) Major disruption and new productopportunities among telecom providers withintroduction of voice-over-IP and cloud

communications.IT systems need to be rethought.

CHALLENGEAs a one-person startup, Leonid had actionable

ideas but not enough resources to execute anend-to-end solution.


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Persona(s) Chris the CTO- has funding and mandate to transition the business towards hosted services; many bases to cover

ProblemScenario

IT is the most expensive, most risky area when making changes to the business.

Alternatives 1) Place large, risky bets on major new system upgrades. 2) Make small incremental updates (but risk not keepingpace).

ValueHypothesis

Leonid will offer modular, integration-friendly applications in two critical areas: 1) services provisioning and 2) enduser self-service portals.





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Started with consulting as a ‘concierge’ vehicle to create tactical solutions, focus problemscenarios, evolving to full-edged product.

Result: Steady step-wise growth withconsistently better understanding of keycustomer problem scenarios.


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CASE STUDY: ZAPPOS

OPPORTUNITY(1999) An observed problem scenario around the difculty of nding the right shoe at localretail and a giant (but nascent) market in onlineretail.

CHALLENGEConsumers still in the early stages of adoptingand habituating to online retail. Founder (NickSwinmurn) wanted to bootstrap.


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Persona(s) Sam the shoe-hound- knows what he wants but not where to get it.

ProblemScenario

Sam is unable to nd the shoe he wants at local retailers, wasting time and getting frustrated.

Alternatives Possibly mail order or wait until he’s in a bigger market to go to the store.

Value

Hypothesis

Make the shoe Sam wants accessible online and make sure he has a great experience so he’ll come back and nothave to think about where to nd the shoe he wants anymore.




CASE STUDY: ZAPPOS


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Result:

It worked and the rest is history.

Photographed shoes and put them online toobserve whether anyone bought them.

CASE STUDY: ZAPPOS


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CASE STUDY: SPRIG

Startup looking for early traction for investors:Whole Foods (deli) meets Uber.

OPPORTUNITYLarge opportunity to re-segment and disruptfood prep. and delivery business. Desire tomove fast and learn fast.

CHALLENGESome existing competitors and slow

fundraising process. Food prep. and deliveryrequires infrastructure.

source: as told to Lean Startup Circle, SF (Jan 2014)


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CASE STUDY: SPRIG

Persona(s) Paula the Professional- health conscious, short on time, moderate to high income, already uses similar serviceslike Uber.

ProblemScenario

I want to have a nice, healthy dinner with no hassle and at a price I can afford (like $12).

Alternatives Going to the store or an expensive, take-out, or a slow delivery service (>20 minutes).

ValueHypothesis

If Sprig offers Paula a healthy meal like you would order a cab (on Uber), then she would use and reuse the service.




* This is me interpolating/guessing on an item; not part of the Sprig team’s explanation.



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THE CONCIERGE MVP

Result: Excellent traction and conversion to sign-up’s.Strong validation signal.

Created a synthetic web demo tailored for earlymarket (techies), promoted it, and measured emailsign-up’s.



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CASE STUDY: PAUL HOWE & ASSOCIATES

OPPORTUNITYFunded startup team rapidly iterating throughB2C concepts with lightweightexperimentation.

One idea: Some people would like to know howmuch their stuff is worth.

CHALLENGEIterate to a successful concept while the time

and money permits.



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Persona ?ProblemScenario

I have a lot of stuff around that I might want to sell and/or I’m just generally curious about how much it’s worth, howmuch I’ve spent.*

Alternatives Going through credit card statements or receipts.

ValueHypothesis

If Paul Howe & Co. offered a service where you could quickly, automatically know how much your stuff is worth,users would engage with such a service in large numbers.*




* This is me interpolating/guessing on an item; not part of the Sprig team’s explanation.




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Result: They don’t care. Time to move on to thenext concept.

Get a few sign-up’s with access to email and bankaccount info. Review by hand on a concierge basisand compile a statement for them. Do they care?




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CASE STUDY: STEALTH PHOTO-SOCIAL STARTUP

OPPORTUNITYLots of exciting things happening in the photo-social space.

CHALLENGEThe team had several ideas but few resources.


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Persona Existing poster of photos. Personas: Martha the Mom, Pat the Party Planner, Teresa the Teen Social Buttery

ProblemScenario [I want to do something interesting with my photos so that my social graph rewards me with interest and acclaim]

Alternatives Manually enhance photos, use alternative enhancers/ampliers like Instagram

ValueHypothesis

If we offers Facebook users a way to [do something novel] with their photos, they will try the service and convert toa paid version of the app.






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ASSUMPTIONIf the user shares a photowith this treatment, theuser’s social network willlike and share the app’s

output

What MVP?

That you canbootstrap?

That doesn’t requiresoftware at all?


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ABOUT SOFTWARE, TESTING MOTIVATION, AND MVP’S

You have to put the magic in the software.

(Not the other way around)

Concierge and other non-software MVP’scan be pretty magical.

Find 100 people that are really into it andyou can probably grow.


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MVP Archetype Example Assumptions (Enable Quiz)Wizard of Oz If we get HR managers to a landing page with a demo, 10% will sign up for

our email product announcements.

Concierge If we create position-specic quizzes for HR managers, they’ll use them

~100% of the time and, after two positions, be willing to pay.Sales If we offer the service at [x] price with [y] supplemental assistance,companies that hire a lot of engineers will pay [z].

If we [do something] for [persona], they will [respond in a certain way]

Individually, begin decomposing your core valuehypothesis into testable assumptions

Pair them with ideas for experimentation (includingMVP’s if applicable)


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