AMA: GitLab VP, Product, Mike Flouton on Product Vision

This is a great question. In fact, it might be easier just to focus on what teams actually get right because there might be fewer answers. In all seriousness, I think a few things spring to mind. Number one is not being conscious of the problem. Really focusing on what problem are we trying to solve, what value are we creating, and how will life be better after we bring our solution to market is huge. I think not thinking big enough is also a big challenge that we see into. There was another question about the difference between a positioning statement and a product vision. Not thinking big enough would be an example of something that might lead you to write a positioning statement when you should really be writing a vision.

So a vision and positioning statement may seem similar at first, but they're actually wildly different. Product vision is long-term, aspirational, inspiring, speaks to a broad audience, and paints a picture of what could be in the future. A positioning statement, on the other hand, is much more present-day, marketing-oriented, and is typically something that you'd write to position a feature, product, or capability towards a specific target audience. Both are incredibly useful pieces in your toolbox, and you should master both.

This really depends on the organization, the stage, and how much detail you want to include in your vision. I'd say if you're just starting out, it's much more important to just get something down on paper that you can then iterate on as you go forward. I'd say if you're a mature company, really thinking through where you want to be in five years, this is something you should spend a lot of time on and you should take to review with a lot of people. So there's no simple answer. I think it really just depends.

So my answer to this question is absolutely. However, you really do need to be aware of a few caveats. First off, remember that users are very good at seeing small problems. They're good at recognizing difficult pain, but oftentimes they miss the bigger picture. So feedback is always important. You should always bounce things off customers, but don't be afraid to take what they say with a grain of salt and focus on testing their reaction to the problem and not the actual solution you're building.

Wow, this is a really interesting question. I hadn't really thought about this before. I love the bravado and the eagerness to jump right in. That's a really strong action bias and it's great to see. I guess I'd kind of caution you a few things. I'm kind of of two minds here. Number one, I do want to say, yeah, absolutely go for it. Start thinking about what this market is, what people want, what types of solutions, you know, might be useful. Really ideate and try to stretch your thinking because you're going to bring fresh ideas to the table that all the people at your new company probably haven't thought of before because they're too close to the problem. My other mind says actually just stop. Don't focus on setting a vision in advance. What you really want to focus on is getting to know the market, getting to know the customers, understanding their pain, understanding their problems, and really just kind of getting the lay of the land before you start trying to redefine the company's vision. So, you know, I'd probably lean towards the second one. But, you know, you can probably do the first just taken with a grain of salt that you know that what you're doing, you know, should be thrown away. Should you learn that the ground truth is different and that customers actually have different ideas?