First Step to Creating a Great Product
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A Requirements Document (RD) is the first step to creating a great product. Because it is the first step, a RD has the greatest leverage of all product development activities. A small error in the direction at this stage can make a big difference in were the product ultimately ends up.
First Step to Creating a Great Product
- 1. First Step To Creating A Great Product By Steve Owens
- 2. A Requirements Document (RD) is the first step to creating a great product. Because it is the first step, a RD has the greatest leverage of all product development activities. A small error in direction at this stage can make a big difference in were the product ultimately ends up.
- 3. Good is the enemy of great. If you want a great product, you must first have a great RD, not just a good one. Think about the iPod - the product that changed Apple from a company on the verge of bankruptcy to the most valuable company in the world. Good is the enemy of great. James C. Collins
- 4. Apple's great achievement was a great Requirements Document - and what Steve Jobs was really a genius at. Jobs defined a digital music player that simply met the needs of people who loved music better than any other product on the market.
- 5. Did they invent the digital music player - no, it was first patented in 1979 and several models were on the market before the Apple project started. Were they first to market - far from it, but they were Best to Market.
- 6. Was Steve Jobs a genius engineer who created some never seen before circuit or software - no, He was a college drop-out.
- 7. Here are some tips so you can do the same with your product: Two rules for a great Requirements Document: Rule 1: Requirements must be objective, not subjective. Low power is subjective. Battery Life greater than 100 hours is objective.
- 8. Rule 2: Requirements must be enumerated. Examining one requirement at a time focuses the team on making a decision. Long paragraphs with run-on sentences encourages a general consensus without focus on the fundamental trade-offs that is the essence of good engineering
- 9. Assemble a team. Requirements generation is very much a team sport. You will not win without a player in each position, and it is more about how well they play as a team, and less about how good any individual team member is. The positions you need are: Coach/Facilitator - someone who can extract the best ideas from a team
- 10. Voice of Customer - someone who knows the customer better than the customer knows themselves. Technology - someone who can help the team make the trade-offs that are the essence of great engineering.
- 11. Manufacturing - someone who can help the team with unit cost trade-offs Sales - someone who understands customer objections Marketing - someone understand how to create demand Manufacturing Sales Marketing
- 12. After 15+ years and 1,500+ projects, we have developed a great set of tools to help improve product development and are happy to share these with you. The RD Template as well as other tools can be found here https://www.finishlinepds.com/tools
- 13. Finish Line has completed more than 1,500 projects for 275+ companies, creating market-dominating products by combining clients ideas and market reach with our talents, team, and processes. We can do the same for you. Best Regards, Steve Owens 603-880-8484 https://www.finishlinepds.com