TU-E5040 - Product Management D, Lecture, 4.9.2023-12.10.2023

THE TASK

Pick an app or other product and define a feature that either a) extends range of goals that current users can achieve with the product or b) makes the product useful for current non-users, that is, extends the group of users that can use the product for their goals. Define the user’s goals and needs and translate these to a new feature. 

WHAT’S THE POINT?

The assignment links the concepts of the week to one possible workflow associated with connecting the insights on customer value to product development, using a tool, job-to-be-done -framework. This assignment consists of 1) defining user problem, target segment and its need for a feature, 2) applying a conceptual tool, Job-to-be-done framework (popular, but still one of the many possibilities), 3) forming high level definition of user experience, and 3) reporting the results. 

WHAT IS A FEATURE? 

Product (or service) is typically seen as an entity that has enough functionality to be valuable to user. In contrasts, a feature is not a stand-alone product but a characteristic or additional functionality in an existing product. In terms of JTBD, a product is something that can help user to do the job that needs to be done. A new feature can expand what jobs (and how) a user can achieve with the product. Therefore, a new feature can build more value for the existing users or to capture new user segments. Features can also build differentiation in terms of competition.

In product management, “Feature work” are the PM’s efforts that aim to create and capture value by extending a product's functionality and markets into incremental and adjacent areas. 

THE TASK IN STEPS

Part 1: Define the user and user’s goals.

1. Choose your case: Choose an existing app or other (consumer) product that you either use regularly or know that other people use.
2. Consider the “Problem space”. By choosing the app, you largely fix the “solution space” = the range and type of technical solutions that your feature will build on. Acknowledge this, but put the solution space aside, and consider the “Problem space” = what are the goals and needs why the user uses the product.
   1. Consider, who is the user that you are focusing on. You can consider “user” as a prototypical representative of a broader group of users (=a segment). Definition needs to be specific enough to be concrete, and broad enough to make sense business-wise. Products are seldomly built for one user, but it they address ‘everyone’, they are built for no-one.
   2. Define the broader context of the users: What are the goals that they are trying to achieve? E.g., the goal related to the use a navigator app is not to see the route from A to B, but to be in point B, regardless of the method of getting there.
   3. Re-consider alternative solution spaces from the perspective of the goal: What other products / solutions would help to achieve the user’s goal? You are doing this right if the alternative solutions are categorically different from your chose product. E.g., a navigation app, taxi service, and a friend giving a ride are all competing solutions for getting to point B.
   4. Finally, revisit your user definition. Are the goals and uses consistent across the whole segment, or do you need to focus the user definition?
3. Define the user problem:  Use a job story to articulate what are the context and goals of the user.
   A Job Story is an application of a broader Job-to-be-done framework, and has three elements: Situation, Motivation, and Expected Outcome. These are wrapped together in a short sentence: “When [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [expected outcome]” 
   
   This seems simple but can be surprisingly hard. If formulating the story seems elusive, you are most likely lacking data, that is, you don’t know why users use the product. Solution is to stop trying to come up with a fictive story and talk to (other) users.
   
   Then return to the task and synthesise your empirical observations to the job story.

Part 2: Define the feature

1. Define the needed feature, user experience and its value proposition: Based on the Job Story, define a new feature that is needed so that the product would serve as a solution for the users for them to achieve their goals. The (high level) user experience should describe the following:
   • What does the feature do?
     
   • What are the entry points for the user to this feature?
     
   • How does the feature interact with other areas of the product?
     
   • What other requirements there are, like security, quality etc.?
     

Part 3: Report the results

1. Present the results: The reporting should provide an argument why solving the problem matters, and how it should be done in terms of augmenting the case app with a new feature. Use reporting that details the aspects of your solutions visually. Your visualizations should present 
   1. The user’s problem and the job story, or other JTBD application (with definition of user segment), and the related need for the feature (and naturally the app you’ve chosen). 
   2. Definition of user experience with user story, feature description and other requirements.
2. Check that the reporting conveys the following (this is just a check list for content, not a guideline for structuring it): 
   • What is the problem you’re solving?
     
   • How will this solution benefit your customer?
   • What is unique about how you’re solving this problem?
• Why this would make sense?
3. Return as a single pdf-file:  Report the above on a single page. If needed detail sources and potential validations on a second page.