Timeline roadmaps suck – Janna Bastow’s Twitter TED Talk

Earlier this week, Janna Bastow, Co-founder and CEO at ProdPad, took to Twitter and published her very own self-proclaimed TED Talk on why timeline roadmaps suck.

The one where Janna Bastow went in hard on Twitter

And the product management world loved it.

What did Janna’s 19-tweet thread include?

The tweet thread began with an expert explanation on why timeline roadmaps set product managers up to fail. She then continued with a step-by-step guide on why ‘product people of the world’ should ditch these types of roadmaps. And to conclude, Janna revealed why everyone should be using lean product roadmaps instead.

Oozing with product-passion, a wealth of experience, and a few carefully chosen emojis – Janna’s tweets went viral. Above all, this resulted in some great conversations and discussions on product management.

Janna hadn’t planned the Twitter thread. However, she was prompted to do so after trying out a new eco-friendly search engine:

“I was testing Ecosia, a search engine that plants trees with its ad revenue, as opposed to lining Google’s pockets. I checked the search results for ‘product roadmap,’ as I wanted to see if Ecosia showed the same thing Google does. Oh yes, same problem – timelines everywhere. However, it spurred me on to revive a talk I gave on why lean product roadmaps are the way forward.” Janna Bastow, ProdPad.

Let’s learn about lean roadmapping

Here’s why product managers need to be embracing a lean, outcome focused roadmap in order to become better product people. Please get in touch, or book a ProdPad demo if you’re looking to discuss your own product strategy. 

Janna will be putting together a Q&A – which will answer the most popular questions from this Twitter thread. Watch this space.

The old school way of roadmapping is a timeline format. You can tell it’s still popular by just doing an image search result for ‘product roadmap’ and seeing the resulting mess.

But here’s what’s wrong with the format… pic.twitter.com/kXWb36DDUa

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

If you deconstruct a timeline roadmap, it’s basically just a chart, with:
– ⏰ Time on the x-axis, creating a timeline
– ✅ Things to do on the y-axis

Which is simple at first, but the further out that timeline stretches, the more you’re making things up. pic.twitter.com/oLC9ye9oDC

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

A timeline roadmap, by its very format, means that you are giving a due date and duration to every thing you’re putting on that roadmap.

That’s a whole lot of assumptions you’re making there 🤨 pic.twitter.com/Xg99vIa7Mb

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

One assumption you’re making when you make a timeline roadmap is that you know how long each feature is going to take.

This might be easy in the short term when you’ve got clarity from your developers on delivery plans, but it gets harder and harder the further out you plan.

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

Having a timeline roadmap also forces you to assume that nothing else is going to come in and disrupt your plans.

No new competitors, no changes in the market, no need to change your plans…

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

You’re also assuming that each feature you build is going to work as soon as you finish it, and that your timeline roadmap can continue along at some magical cadence without looking back.

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

(For what it’s worth, I’ve never met a product team who gets everything right the first time. Every product and every feature needs to be open for iteration and therefore changes in their timeline!)

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

And the last assumption any product team working with a timeline roadmap is making is that each feature on the roadmap actually deserves to exist! That each one is the right thing to build and therefore should be assigned a delivery date and codified into the strategy.

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

📢 A timeline roadmap is just a big pile of assumptions that nothing is going to change.

And that’s a dangerous assumption given how fact things *do* change.

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

So this is why I implore all the product people of the world:

DITCH YOUR TIMELINE ROADMAPS!

There are alternatives that won’t set you up for failure:

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

Step 1: Start with a product vision

Here’s a format that works well. It’s the elevator pitch template from @geoffreyamoore‘s fantastic book, Crossing the Chasm, and it asks the right sort of questions to get you started on your vision statement. pic.twitter.com/LhjVqKdLlt

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

Step 2: Think outcomes, not output

Your roadmap should be tracked to company-level objectives, not a pile of features for features’ sake.

We here at @ProdPad like to use OKRs (Objectives & Key Results), and show the objectives off on our roadmap in bright colours. pic.twitter.com/swyienRK3f

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

Step 3: Switch out your timeline for time horizons

It makes sense: You’ve got greater visibility on the things right in front of you, and less on the things further away. Each column represents a change in visibility and flexibility in your roadmap. pic.twitter.com/JPfYQ2Fnyg

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

Combine the vision, your objectives, and your time horizons to articulate your product strategy in a new way. Ditch the timeline roadmap and embrace the lean product roadmap.

Here’s a couple ways yours might take shape: pic.twitter.com/6YwlkqAZ3T

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

Remember, your roadmap is not meant to be a perfect plan of everything you’re doing.

✨Your roadmap is a prototype for your product strategy.

It’s meant to change as you learn more, and a lean roadmap format gives you that flexibility.

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

At the end of the day, the value isn’t in the ‘roadmap’ itself. It’s in the process of roadmapping, which is inherently a discovery process.

(Just as the value of a prototype isn’t the prototype, but in the prototyping and all of the learning that comes from it).

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

And so that’s why timeline roadmaps are causing product teams to fail, and why the switch to lean, discovery-centric roadmapping processes is so important.

Thanks for coming to my TED talk 😅

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019

Woah, this hit a nerve!

This is probably a good time to mention that me and my team at @ProdPad do roadmap troubleshooting clinics to help #prodmgmt folks like you 🤲

Sessions are free and you can sign up here: https://t.co/2KWT32jhrB

— Janna Bastow (@simplybastow) September 2, 2019