The Designer's Guide to Product Vision: Learn to build your strategic influence to shape the future

The Designer's Guide to Product Vision: Learn to build your strategic influence to shape the future

by Laura Fish, Scott Kiekbusch
Released August 2020
Publisher(s): New Riders
ISBN: 9780136654339

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Book description

Today, design is a critical business competency, and designers need to play a leadership role. This guide helps you transform yourself into a strategic designer and take your seat at the table where key decisions are made. Youll master a breakthrough process for creating innovative product and service visions and translating them into high-value market offerings.

Defining an effective product vision requires deep discipline and multiple skills. Drawing on their pioneering experience, Laura Fish and Scott Kiekbusch guide you through every step, helping you organize strategy, plan for innovation, and tell a clear story of your customers future experience.

Once youve defined a strategy-led product vision, make it real. The authors agile Visioneering techniques help you navigate fast-changing product journeys iteratively and continuously improving experiences while staying aligned with your mission and purpose. With these tools and insights, you can lead business-critical projects today, shape your companys future, and achieve more than you ever thought possible.

Learn How To:

  • Move from tactical to strategic designer, and gain a more influential leadership role

  • Create strategy-led product visions the organization can rally around and deliver

  • Lead the unification of design, engineering, and business to mindfully craft outstanding user experiences

  • Go beyond obsolete roadmaps to implement product visions in a world that wont stop changing

  • Influence and improve the long-term direction of your business to effect real-world positive change

Table of contents

  1. Cover Page
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Dedication Page
  5. Acknowledgements
  6. Contents
  7. Preface
  8. Features in this Book
  9. Manifesto: The Designer’s Declaration
  10. Part I: The Calling
    1. Chapter 1. The State of the Designer
      1. Strategy vs. Tactics
        1. A Demanding Journey
      2. History Lesson
        1. Early Days
        2. Democratization
        3. Rise Up
        4. Great Expectations
        5. Restored Balance
      3. The Product Vision
        1. Making an Airtight Case
        2. Ripple Effects
      4. Enter Visioneering
      5. Ready. Set. Go!
        1. Pre-Vision
        2. The Vision Essentials
        3. Co-Captaining the Expedition
        4. Callouts: Try It this Way
      6. #Influencer
        1. Interviews: Designing from Inside the Box
        2. Taking The Leap
    2. Chapter 2. Re-Design School
      1. A Dual Role for Strategic Designers
      2. A Note from the Butterfly
      3. Transforming Into the Strategic Designer
        1. Communication
        2. Develop a Holistic Understanding of the Product Team
        3. Creative Diplomacy
        4. By the Numbers—Analytics, Metrics and Money
        5. The Connector of the Dots
      4. Find Coaches and a Mentor
      5. Building Partnerships
      6. The Final Step: The Workshop Facilitator
        1. Preparation
        2. Facilitation
      7. Fair Warning
    3. Chapter 3. Master Class: First Principles Thinking
      1. Shadows on the Cave Wall
      2. What Are First Principles?
        1. Question Everything
      3. Applying First Principles: Verify Information
        1. User Feedback
        2. Surveys
        3. Usability Testing
        4. Observation and Interviews
        5. Internal Interviews
      4. On Diplomacy: Bringing the Message Back to the Cave
        1. Walk the Diplomatic Tightrope
      5. Living Outside the Cave
  11. Part II: The Vision
    1. Chapter 4. Getting Started with the A-Team
      1. The “Get Started” Proposal
        1. The Five-Slide Deck
        2. Slide 1: How Might We Do Things Differently?
        3. Slide 2: Statement of Intent
        4. Slide 3: Mood Board
        5. Slide 4: Requested Staff
        6. Slide 5: Commitment
      2. The Pitch
        1. Pitching Etiquette
        2. Documenting Result
        3. Trial Period
        4. Not Vision Ready?
      3. Your Product Vision A-Team
        1. Business
        2. Engineering
        3. Design
        4. Research
        5. Content
        6. Be Selective!
      4. Team Contract
        1. Core Values
        2. Working Agreements
        3. Trust
      5. A Laboratory Environment
        1. Co-Location
        2. Digital Vs. Analog
        3. Transparency
      6. Working Together as a Team
        1. Communication Standards
        2. Internal Reviews
        3. Stakeholder Check-ins
        4. Get Outside!
      7. Ready, Set, Go!
    2. Chapter 5. Strategy: Connecting the Dots
      1. Setup and Logistics
        1. Create a Dedicated Project Folder
        2. The Presentation Template
        3. Establish Presentation Deck Co-Owners
        4. Managing Up: The Stakeholder
      2. The Structure of the Strategy
        1. The Strategic Building Blocks
        2. Gather, Analyze, Synthesize
      3. Gathering Research
        1. Review Existing Research
        2. New Research Opportunities
        3. Research Red Flags
      4. Strategic Building Block 1: Where
        1. Notes On Opportunity
        2. Where: Gather, Analyze, Synthesize
        3. Slides: [To Be Determined]
      5. Strategy Building Block 2: Who
        1. Notes On All Things Customer
        2. Who: Gather, Analyze, Synthesize
        3. Slide: The Target Audience
        4. Slide: Customer Journey Map
        5. Slide: The Problem
      6. Strategy Building Block 3: What
        1. The Workshop: Ideation
        2. Slide: The Elevator Pitch
        3. Slide: How It Works
        4. Slide: Improved Customer Journey
      7. Strategy Building Block 4: When
        1. When: Gather, Analyze, Synthesize
        2. Slide: The Timing Is Now
        3. Slide: The Timing Is [ . . . ]
      8. Strategy Building Block 5: Why
        1. Why: Gather, Analyze, Synthesize
        2. Slides: Advantages
        3. Slide: North Star Alignment
      9. Final Touches
        1. The Cover
        2. Table of Contents
        3. The Team
        4. Appendix
      10. Plan To Pivot
      11. Next Steps
    3. Chapter 6. Telling the Story of the Future Experience
      1. Get Support from Above
      2. Future State
        1. More Than Words: A Vision
        2. A Four Step Plan
      3. The Art of Storytelling
        1. Empathy
        2. Empathy = Storytelling
        3. Adding Structure
      4. Step 1: Kickoff
        1. Review the Process
      5. Step 2: Storyboards
        1. What Are Experiences?
        2. Four Pillars Foundational to a Great Experience
        3. The Framework
        4. Storyboards
      6. Step 3: Concept Ideation and Prototype
        1. Ideation Exercise
        2. Sketching Exercise
        3. Remix Exercise
        4. Finalize the Storyboards
        5. Craft a Basic Prototype
      7. Step 4: Acceptance
      8. The Last Product Vision Phase: Final Production
        1. Determine Level of Effort
        2. Decide On Effort Level with Stakeholders
        3. Post to an Internal Audience
      9. Product Vision Complete!
  12. Part III: Visioneering
    1. Chapter 7. Setting Your Compass to the North Star
      1. Overview: The Phases
      2. Phase 1: Assessment
        1. Exercise: Mapping Actions to Resources
        2. Emphasize Prioritization
        3. Build The Teams And Identify Internal Resources
      3. Phase 2: Set Up the Teams
        1. The Triad
        2. Content Strategy
        3. Research
        4. The Experience Pillars and Teams
        5. Scrum Teams
        6. Investigative Services
        7. Scalability
        8. Awareness
        9. Meetings: Scrums, Seminars, and Summits
      4. Phase 3: Delivery
        1. Clearly Define Outcomes
        2. Specify Your Hypotheses
        3. Define Your Mvp (Means of Validating a Hypothesis)
      5. Let Go of Perfection
      6. Operating the Compass
        1. Evaluate
        2. Make a Decision
        3. Coordinate Next Steps
      7. When Lost…
    2. Chapter 8. Building Your Visioneering Practice
      1. Evangelizing Visioneering
        1. A Case Study Format
        2. Addressing Product Vision Deficit
        3. Acting as an Internal Consultant
        4. Help Me, Help You
        5. Promote from Within
      2. Contributing to a Company’s Design Maturity
      3. Culture Match
        1. Assess the Company’s Culture
        2. Core Components
      4. The Designer: Always Evolving
        1. Get Support
  13. Afterword: Purpose Driven
    1. Small Acts of Good
      1. Dark Patterns
      2. Pro Bono
    2. Purpose and Company Alignment
    3. In Times of a Pandemic
    4. Designing Our Future
  14. Glossary
  15. Index
  16. Credits

Product information

  • Title: The Designer's Guide to Product Vision: Learn to build your strategic influence to shape the future
  • Author(s): Laura Fish, Scott Kiekbusch
  • Release date: August 2020
  • Publisher(s): New Riders
  • ISBN: 9780136654339