# 25Friday — full content bundle > Generated 2026-08-17T14:30:40.399Z. Source: TinaCMS snapshot at build time. > Canonical site: https://www.25friday.com This bundle concatenates published articles and case studies in markdown form for LLM ingestion. Use the lighter `/llms.txt` for navigation. ## Articles ### How to Build the Optimal AI-First Engineering Team - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/how-to-build-the-optimal-ai-first-engineering-team - Published: 2026-05-19T23:00:00.000Z ## Start at hiring AI-first starts before someone's first day. We have fundamentally changed our technical interview process. AI skills are now close to mandatory for every new hire. > I introduced AI coding challenges, where the developer has to solve a very complex challenge using only agentic code. Two years ago, this would have been almost impossible. — Francisco Velasco, CTO at 25Friday The point of the challenge is not just to evaluate the outcome. It is to observe how someone directs an agent, reviews a plan, and course-corrects when things go wrong. That skill is what separates an AI-first developer from someone who occasionally uses a code suggestion tool. ## Build a structural training program You cannot become AI-first through a one-off workshop. Our approach runs on three levels. **Weekly knowledge sharing**. Every developer joins a 30-60 minute session where teams share what they have learned, what works, and what does not. As things move fast, this cross-team sharing is one of the most effective ways to keep everyone up to speed. **Monthly intensive training**. A 3-4 hour deep dive into specific topics. Not a lecture but a working session where we go hands-on with real problems. **Mob programming sessions**. Francisco joins each team directly to tackle complex problems together using AI. This is where real knowledge transfer happens, not in a slide deck. ## Give every developer an exploration budget Every developer at 25Friday receives a monthly budget to explore tools outside of our enterprise stack. The reason is simple: no central team can keep up with everything that is changing. By letting developers experiment and share what they find, we learn as an organisation faster than any top-down decision could achieve. > They can spend it in training, also explore other tools in the market, just to try out. And not be restricted to the tool that we provide on an enterprise level. — Francisco Velasco ## Appoint one person for AI innovation Most developers are too focused on their daily work to follow every AI development in the market. That is not a criticism, it is reality. Francisco's solution: one dedicated person whose job it is to stay ahead, identify best practices, and share that knowledge across all teams. > My daily job is to see what are the best practices, what are the things that we need to improve, and share this information to all developers. — Francisco Velasco At 25Friday, that is Francisco as CTO. For a team of 10 to 50 developers, this does not need to be a full CTO role, but it does need to be someone with dedicated time, not a side responsibility. ## Choose your toolstack, but stay flexible At the time of writing, our recommendation is Claude Code or Codex as primary agentic tools. Copilot we currently advise against, because of recent changes in how they calculate token costs. Superset and Conductor work well as orchestration layers for parallel workflows and context handoff between models. > If you'd ask me, probably I'll say Codex, but today, probably I'll say Claude Code. The pace is so fast, that tomorrow the AI ecosystem can change on daily basis. — Francisco Velasco The specific tool matters less than your team's ability to evaluate and switch when something better comes along. Build that muscle, not a dependency on one vendor. ## Treat the agent like a new team member The most common mistake we see: teams point an AI agent at their codebase and expect good results. The agent has no context. It does not know your architecture, your conventions, or your business rules. > You have to imagine that Claude Code, or Codex, the agent itself, is like a trainee that is working for you, that doesn't know anything about your code. At least at the early stages. — Francisco Velasco The right approach works in three steps. First, research: give the agent time to read and understand the relevant part of the codebase. Then plan: ask it to propose an implementation plan, which a senior engineer reviews and adjusts. Only then, implementation: the agent executes step by step, under supervision, with a feedback loop until the result is correct. ## Define where you trust AI and where you do not Not every task is equal. We use a Trust Calibration Matrix internally to define how much autonomy the agent gets per type of work. Green — trust freely: Boilerplate code, CSS styling, new endpoints, documentation. Orange — proceed with caution: Business logic changes (always write unit tests first), database migrations (always have a rollback plan). Red — do it manually: Authentication code, security-critical components. Francisco is direct on this: things can get messy, and the risk is too high. > We need to be extra careful for scenarios where we need to touch code that is related with authentication, migrations or even with performance. — Francisco Velasco Without this structure, junior developers make calls they should not be making, and the consequences show up in production. ## Train your team on token awareness Tokens are money. Most developers on enterprise accounts do not feel that, which leads to waste. Francisco's baseline: a token corresponds to approximately 3.5 English characters. Asking an agent to read 5,000 lines of code uses a significant number of tokens. A large CLAUDE.md file that is reloaded on every interaction adds up fast. Extended thinking mode costs more. Vague prompts cost more than precise ones. > "Do you know what a token is and the hidden costs? Just be very careful what you are going to do with it, because that costs money to the company." — Francisco Velasco The practical advice: train developers to understand the cost of each interaction, keep CLAUDE.md files lean, start fresh sessions regularly, and always use specific prompts over vague ones. ## Change the role of the engineer deliberately The engineer is no longer an executor. They are a facilitator. They direct the agent, review the plan, guard the architecture, and decide what goes to production. > "You are the facilitator, but always you need to be in the driver's seat. Imagine that you are in the race, the co-pilot is on your right side, but you always need to drive the car." — Francisco Velasco This shift does not happen automatically. It needs to be named, taught, and reinforced. Teams that skip this step end up with agents doing things nobody reviewed, and problems that show up weeks later. ## Use the freed capacity deliberately When tickets go from two weeks to two or three days, the question is not how to fill that time with more tickets. The question is what you do with it. > "You can pick up one of those developers to go to the innovation part. And improve the product on the AI part. It is always a way to optimize the people on board." — Francisco Velasco The best teams we work with use the speed gain to move one developer into AI innovation for the whole team. That compounds. Teams that simply use the gain to ship more features miss the bigger opportunity. ## Conclusion AI-first is not a tool decision. It is an organisational decision. You build it with the right people, a structural training program, clear boundaries on where you trust AI, and a culture where knowledge is actively shared. The technology changes every week. The structure around it determines whether you can keep up or whether you are always catching up. --- ### Steer product development with the right goal-setting framework - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/steer-product-development-with-the-right-goal-setting-framework - Published: 2025-05-05T23:00:00.000Z ## Steer product development with the right goal-setting framework In our recent article on the use of metrics, [Connecting Product Effort to Business Success](https://www.25friday.com/articles/connecting-product-effort-to-business-success) we highlighted the importance of measuring the impact of product development. Knowing *if* your efforts generate results is crucial, but measurement alone doesn't set the course. Especially in SaaS (software-as-a-service), where consistent value creation is key, a proactive approach to steering is key. SaaS product teams must ensure that development effort consistently leads to measurable business results and genuine customer value. Among our clients, I see this as one of the main challenges these companies face. Strategy is often in place, although formalization and articulation leave room for improvement. However, strategy alone does not resonate in your operational teams. The answer to this challenge lies, for a large part at least, in strategically guiding the team’s efforts by setting clear goals, aligned with strategy, and consistently tracking progress toward achieving them. Here, goal-setting frameworks are of great help. These frameworks act as navigation tools, providing out-of-the-box structure, focus, and alignment, helping you translate abstract strategies into actionable plans that, unlike strategy only, *do* resonate in the operation. They define success and help prioritize what needs to happen to achieve it. This article explores several goal-setting frameworks that are commonly used in SaaS Product Management: OKR, North Star Metric, HEART, AARRR Pirate Metrics , Impact Mapping, and NCT. Each offers a unique lens, but all aim for the same goal: to stimulate targeted effort. Selecting and implementing them effectively, however, requires careful consideration and often a great deal of guidance - a nod to the complexity where expertise truly matters. ### Why goal-setting frameworks are essential to SaaS success The unique context of a SaaS product team makes structured goal-setting a necessity, not a luxury. This dynamic stems from its subscription-based model, where customer retention is as crucial as acquisition, demanding alignment across teams and frequent updates and improvements. Unlike the traditional software’s focus on projects and one-time sales, SaaS product teams thrive when continuously delivering value to retain and expand customers. - - **Retention is king:** Keeping customers is absolutely essential for a subscription model to remain sustainable, even if it's just to maintain a healthy CLTV/CAC ratio. Focusing on user happiness and engagement, frameworks like HEART and AARRR provide retention-centered approaches. - - **Continuous delivery and iteration:** Your customers and potential customers expect constant improvement. Frameworks like OKR and NCT, with regular evaluation cycles, support this iterative nature and align well with the Agile approaches to iterating. - - **Product-led growth:** Many SaaS companies, particularly scale-ups, rely on the product itself to grow their business. The North Star Metric (focusing on core product value) and AARRR (optimizing the in-product user journeys) are vital here. Goal-setting also shapes team culture. The trend is shifting focus from the delivery of features (output) to the achievement of results (outcomes). This cultural shift has a significant impact on SaaS success, and choosing the proper framework will support your organization in adopting this new mindset. So, in essence, these frameworks bridge the gap between high-level company vision and strategy and the product team's daily tasks. They prevent siloed efforts and the development of features disconnected from business objectives (a pitfall that I observed occurring at many of my clients, all with limited goal-setting practices). Without a framework, SaaS development often becomes reactive and misaligned, ultimately hindering growth and wasting already limited resources. ### A tour of goal-setting frameworks Let's examine the most relevant frameworks for SaaS product management. #### OKR (Objectives and Key Results) framework A popular goal-setting method developed by Intel and Google that encourages (stretch) goals using ambitious objectives (the what) and 3-5 measurable Key Results (the how). Transparency and regular check-ins are vital. - - **SaaS relevance:** Perfect for aligning cross-functional teams around shared outcomes such as MRR growth, churn reduction, etc. Fits well with quarterly SaaS cycles. - - **Pros and cons:** Strong on alignment, focus, ambition, accountability. Can be time-consuming, key results easily become task lists, and sometimes lacks the strategic why - - **Example:** - - Objective: Improve user onboarding. - - KR1: Reduce trial abandonment from 40% to 30%. - - KR2: Increase key feature X completion from 70% to 80%. - - KR3: Improve trial-to-paid conversion from 20% to 30%. #### North Star Metric framework The NSM framework defines your product’s true north by focusing on the North Star Metric; the single metric best representing customer value. A good NSM not only reflects customer value, but also predicts business success (leading indicator) and is influenceable. The framework adds 3 to 5 directly influenceable inputs that drive the NSM. - - **SaaS relevance:** Powerful for product-led growth companies. Focuses the organization on optimizing core user value, driving retention and long-term growth. Links product activity, customer value, and business success. - - **Pros and cons:** Provides laser-focus, alignment and data-driven prioritization. Finding the right metric can be hard and requires solid analytics. - - **Examples:** Nights Booked (Airbnb’s NSM) or Daily Messages Sent (Slack’s NSM) #### HEART framework The HEART framework was developed by Google UX researchers to measure and improve user experience quality across five dimensions, for a holistic UX view: Happiness, Engagement, Adoption, Retention and Task success. - - **SaaS relevance:** Essential for SaaS as positive UX impacts engagement, retention, and CLV. Helps quantify the soft UX aspects and link them to business results. - - **Pros and cons:** Strong focus on the user, prioritized UX. Requires data infrastructure, defining clear signals/metrics can be tricky and potential category overlap. - - **Examples:** - - Happiness: NPS, surveys - - Engagement: frequency, time in app - - Adoption: activation rate, feature use - - Retention: churn, return rate - - Task success: completion rate, errors #### Pirate Metrics (AARRR) framework The AARRR framework focuses on five customer lifecycle stages: Acquisition, Activation, Retention, Referral, and Revenue. By tracking users through a sequential funnel, focused on measurable conversion metrics per stage, it helps optimize the growth funnel. - - **SaaS relevance:** This framework is directly tied to the SaaS customer journey and supports scalable growth by identifying bottlenecks and optimizing conversion rates at each stage. - - **Pros and cons:** Clear funnel insight, bottleneck identification, data-driven optimization, actionable metrics. May be too linear, there’s a risk of optimizing stages in isolation, less focus on overall UX or strategy. - - **Examples:** - - Acquisition: signups, CAC - - Activation: onboarding completion, free-to-paid conversion - - Retention: churn, CLV - - Referral: invites sent, referral conversion - - Revenue: MRR, ARPU #### Impact Mapping Impact Mapping is a visual planning technique (rather than a framework) that connects goals (the what) to actors (who), desired impacts (behavior changes / how), and deliverables (features or the what). By doing so, it ultimately connects features to goals and ensures they contribute to achieving them. Note that it focuses on outcomes rather than outputs. - - **SaaS relevance:** Helps avoid the 'build trap' by linking features to strategy. Useful for prioritizing in complex SaaS products and communicating rationale. Supports discovery and roadmapping. - - **Pros and cons:** Strong goal alignment, prevents scope creep, aids prioritization, improves communication. Based on assumptions needing validation, it can be time-consuming. - - **Example:** - - Goal: Increase onboarding completion to 20% - - Actor: Prospective users - - Impact: Complete first order - - Deliverable: Simplified checkout - - Actor: Customer Success - - Impact: Proactively support stuck users - - Deliverable: Onboarding status dashboard #### NCT framework NCT (Narrative, Commitments, Tasks) is a modern framework emphasizing and starting with strategic context (the narrative) alongside measurable commitments and action-oriented tasks, in a quarterly cadence. Effectively addresses perceived OKR shortcomings. - - **SaaS relevance:** NCT is very useful for ambiguous projects, new products, or where deep strategic context is vital. It offers flexibility and connects daily tasks to strategy. Supports agile adaptation. - - **Pros and cons:** Strong strategic context, clear strategy-task link, flexible commitments (tasks). Newer framework, good narratives require significant effort, potential task-list focus if mismanaged. - - **Example:** - - Narrative: Launch new version with latest tech to attract users & improve performance. - - Commitments: - - Launch beta by end of Q - - Increase user base 10k to 15k - - Tasks: - - Develop marketing campaign - - Collect beta feedback While you should never introduce complexity from the start and therefore begin lean and small, these frameworks often work best in combination. For example: a team may use OKRs for high-level goals, AARRR to diagnose a funnel issue within a key result and HEART to evaluate the UX impact of the solution. ### Choosing the right framework There's no single best framework. The optimal choice depends on the - often unique - dynamic of your organization. This also implies that switching to another framework may be beneficial when your organization matures and its context changes. So far, we haven’t seen dogmatic adherence pay off. Instead, you should consider at least these six factors: - - Company stage & size - - Consider whether your organization is a startup needing rapid growth optimization and flexibility, or larger, requiring strong alignment across multiple teams. The scale and phase of your business influence the type of structure and focus needed. - - Team maturity - - Evaluate your team's experience with structured goal-setting and their capacity for handling ambitious targets versus needing more context and guidance. - - Strategic focus - - Identify your primary strategic priority at this moment. Is the main challenge optimizing the customer journey and conversion funnel? Is it enhancing the overall user experience and satisfaction? Or is the priority translating high-level strategy into concrete features and avoiding the 'build trap'? This main challenge dictates the perspective from which goals should be viewed. - - Organizational culture - - The framework(s) you choose should resonate with how your organization operates. Assess your company's cultural appetite for: - - ambition and its ability to handle potential failure versus deterministic goals - - deep strategic context versus straightforward execution - - reliance on data-driven decision-making versus gut-feeling - - Measurement capability - - Having a framework in place does not necessarily mean that goals can be tracked accurately. Your data capabilities will enable or constrain certain approaches. Determine your ability to track and analyze the metrics required by the frameworks reliably. Can you really measure detailed user interactions, funnel conversions, user sentiment, or complex value calculations? - - Complexity and overhead tolerance - - Consider the level of effort your organization is willing to invest in setting up, maintaining, and coaching teams on the use of a new framework. Some methods are lightweight and intuitive, while others demand more rigorous processes, tooling, and ongoing management. The selection process itself forces valuable strategic discussion. It's not a one-off choice; regularly evaluate your framework's suitability to avoid blind spots. ### Summarizing comparison of Goal-Setting Frameworks | **Framework** | **Focus** | **Metric Type** | **Cadence** | **Best for** | **Complexity** | | | **OKR** | Alignment, Focus, Ambitious goals | Qualitative Objectives, Quantitative KRs | Quarterly | Aligning cross-functional teams and driving specific measurable results | Medium | | | **North Star Metric** | Value delivery, Long-term growth | One leading metric (NSM), Input metrics | Continuous | Product-led growth companies, Focus on the core growth engine, Strategic focus on customer value | High | | | **HEART** | User Experience quality | Qualitative & Quantitative UX metrics | Continuous / project | Improving product UX, Linking UX to retention/satisfaction, Data-driven UX design | Medium- High | | | **Pirate Metrics / AARRR** | Growth Funnel Optimization | Conversion metrics per phase | Continuous / weekly | Startups, PLG, Identifying & solving conversion bottlenecks, Growth hacking | Low-medium | | | **Impact Mapping** | Strategy to feature alignment, Outcome-focus | No direct metrics | Project / initiatief | Preventing the build-trap,  Stakeholder communication, Product discovery | Medium | | | **NCT** | Strategic Context (the why), Flexible execution | Narratives, Commitments (metrics/deliverables) | Quarterly | Ambiguous projects, 0-1 products, Teams needing deep context, OKR alternative | Medium | | ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Connecting Product Effort to Business Success - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/connecting-product-effort-to-business-success - Published: 2025-03-20T00:00:00.000Z ## Goals, Business metrics and Product metrics One of the hardest parts of being a PM is proving the impact you and your teams make. Many product teams track product usage, customer feedback, and release timelines, but these metrics alone don’t tell the full story. To make data-driven product decisions that actually support business priorities, you need to understand three interrelated elements: - - **Goals**: define what success looks like - - **Business metrics**: measure the company's overall performance - - **Product metrics**: track how users interact with the product and influence business outcomes Each of these should play a critical role in your efforts to ensure that product work contributes to real business value rather than just feature releases. Let’s break them down. ### Goals link strategy and execution A goal is a clear and preferably shared statement of what a company or team intends to achieve. In the context of product management, goals ensure that product work is purposeful and outcome-driven. Effective goals help you turn big-picture business objectives into actionable product work, but it’s key to get them right. Poorly defined goals can lead to wasted effort, while well-crafted goals bring alignment between product teams and the company’s overall strategy. For example: - - **Poorly defined goal**: Improve the onboarding experience (vague, no measurable impact) - - **Well-defined goal**: Reduce time to value by 20% to increase free trial conversion (measurable, business-focused) Goals should be specific, measurable, and directly tied to business success. This is where business metrics come in. ### Business metrics are the company’s scoreboard Your leadership team isn’t thinking about sprint velocity or user engagement (sure, we know reality is sometimes different). What they are concerned about is things like revenue, profitability and growth. Business metrics track your company's overall health. These are the numbers the leadership (and let’s not forget about investors) focuses on when assessing performance. Unlike product metrics - which measure how users interact with the product - business metrics focus on financial and operational success. These are typically **lagging indicators**, meaning they reflect past performance rather than predicting future trends. Here are some common business metrics for SaaS companies that every PM should be familiar with: | **Business Metric** | **Description** | | | Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) | Cost to acquire a new customer | | | Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) | The total revenue a customer generates over their lifetime. | | | Churn rate | The percentage of customers leaving in a given period. | | | Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) | Predictable revenue from subscriptions each month. | | | Time to Value (TTV) | How quickly a user gets value from the product. | | These metrics are what your leadership cares about - or let’s be real: should be caring about. If you as a PM aren’t thinking about these metrics, you’re not thinking about how your product impacts the business. In other words: what makes your product successful. But business metrics alone don’t tell **why** the needle goes up or down. That’s where product metrics come in. ### Product metrics: leading indicators of business success While business metrics tell you **what** happened, product metrics help you explain **why** those outcomes happen, predict what’s going to happen, and more importantly, tell what you can do about it. These are the numbers product teams focus on to track how users engage, adopt, and retain the product. Unlike business metrics, product metrics are **leading indicators** meaning that they help predict changes in business performance before they show up in revenue, churn, or profit. For example: - - A *drop in activation rate* might signal *higher churn* in the near future - - An *increase in feature adoption* could indicate *higher CLTV* down the road Here’s how product metrics connect to business metrics: | **Business metric** | **Product metrics** | **Impact example** | | | Churn rate | Activation rate, engagement depth | Better onboarding reduces churn | | | Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) | Free-to-paid conversion rate | Improved trial flow lowers acquisition cost | | | Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV) | Feature adoption, upsell rate | Higher feature usage increases expansion revenue | | | Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) | Retention rate, trial conversions | Increased stickiness leads to revenue growth | | | Time to Value (TTV) | Onboarding completion, first-use success | Faster setup improves retention | | When product teams track the right product metrics, they can identify and fix problems before they show up in financial reports. ## Bringing it all together: Be a mini-CEO Product managers shouldn’t just own the backlog. They should think and act like a CEO and take ownership of business outcomes. Setting goals that can be tracked by business metrics, which can be predicted by product metrics is the foundation of outcome-driven product management and data-driven product decisions. This is what can separate PMs who just ship features from those who contribute to a company’s future. ## What’s next? However, knowing the metrics is only half the battle. The next step is learning how to set the right goals (that aren’t outputs) so that your team’s work has a direct and measurable impact on business success. In the next article, we’ll break down goal-setting frameworks like OKRs, HEART, and North Star Metric, showing you exactly how to apply them in your product strategy. Stay tuned! ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Nearshore Software Development: HR Challenges for Tech Companies - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/nearshore-software-development-hr-challenges-for-tech-companies - Published: 2025-01-28T00:00:00.000Z ## Introduction The trend towards nearshoring has gained traction recently as companies, especially in the software development context, reevaluate their business strategies. [Nearshoring](https://www.25friday.com/articles/local-sourcing-vs-outsourcing-vs-nearshoring-dutch-it-portugal) has emerged as a strategic alternative in how companies approach talent acquisition, bridging the gap between effective collaboration, cost optimization, and efficiency. Organizations can now benefit from cost efficiency, work seamlessly across time zones, and benefit from cultural alignment. Rethinking how companies manage talent, from recruitment to development and retention is key. As the guardian of the organizational culture, HR plays a crucial role in this process. This article delves into the changes, challenges, and opportunities that a nearshore model brings to HR, as well as the 25Friday journey in this field and the practices that can be adopted to address these changes. ## Global Recruitment The foundation of a successful nearshore setup begins with effective recruitment. Recruiting talent in a nearshore model requires more than just filling roles; the HR role is crucial when developing recruitment strategies considering the regional nuances and cultural differences. Identifying and attracting the right talent in a nearshore model is key - HR must ensure a strategic approach in the selection process to find the best candidates. At 25Friday, we’ve honed our focus on the Portuguese market, tailoring recruitment strategies to align both local nuances and cultural differences with the Netherlands market. Our recruitment team understands the regional talent availability, salary competitiveness, and local job market trends by doing a yearly benchmarking in the field allowing them to be one step ahead, filter a better search when starting the sourcing process, and craft an appealing employer value proposition (EVP) designed to meet the diverse needs of our employees, providing meaningful career paths and addressing various life stages. From the first contact with the candidate until the offer proposal, the candidate experiences a fully customized and efficient experience - our in-house back-office platform integrates a diverse range of functions that allow us to provide a seamless experience to the candidates and partners. We combine diverse platforms to find candidates who not only have the necessary hard and soft skills but also fit the company culture, such as LinkedIn Recruiter, our custom-built ATS that supports end-to-end recruitment, and our custom career page - as previously mentioned in our article ‘[Scaling Efficiency in Nearshoring: Our Journey to Fully Automated Processes](https://www.25friday.com/articles/scaling-efficiency-our-journey-to-fully-automated-processes)’. ## Onboarding Process and Integration Ensuring nearshore employees feel connected and valued from day one is critical for engagement long-term retention and productivity. Effective onboarding requires a structured approach in a nearshore context where the process is mostly remote. At 25Friday we designed an effective onboarding program that includes virtual onboarding on the partner side and an engaging and collaborative onboarding from our side. The employee journey starts with a Meet & Greet moment before the first day to meet the team members so that they can feel comfortable, welcome and included when starting their journey. On the first day, the employee embarks on a comprehensive session where we introduce the company culture and values, an overview of benefits and perks, and clear instructions on using all essential tools, ensuring that new hires feel integrated and prepared. After that, the onboarding from the partner side happens and we ensure they have all the onboarding preparations prepared to make this new job as smooth sailing as possible. We also believe that regular team gatherings are important, and for that, we have our three offices available in different locations - Porto, Aveiro, and Braga - allowing team proximity and effective collaboration. Regular team meetings in the Netherlands and visits to our offices are also part of 25Friday’s strategy to foster collaboration and connection. Bridging cultural differences by helping new employees feel part of the team despite physical distance is crucial. ## Talent Management and Retention Nearshoring requires a structured approach to talent management and retention. This working model can be challenging. Focusing on talent retention strategies, offering clear career paths, learning and development opportunities, competitive compensation packages and benefits, and an attractive work environment is the way to keep employees engaged. HR takes a crucial role in the development and implementation of retention policies based on competitive benefits and long-term incentives to keep the best people on board. At 25Friday we’re aware that a nearshore setup requires strategic effort and a people-centric perspective. Along the process, we’ve faced quite some challenges but throughout the journey, HR took the initiative to search and invest in programs that allowed us to keep people engaged and motivated while aligned with the company’s goals. Some of the challenges that we faced and how we overcame them: - - **Limited Face-to-Face Interaction**: Few in-person interactions can create a sense of isolation. At 25Friday, we address this by organizing regular meetups and team-building events to foster stronger connections and a sense of belonging. Additionally, our hybrid work-from-office policy nurtures a positive culture by encouraging employees to collaborate in person, build relationships, and create an even greater sense of community. - - **Career Development Opportunities**: Employees may perceive fewer growth opportunities in a nearshore environment. Internally, our management team invests heavily in mentorship, training, and clear career progression plans to help our employees thrive - for that to happen we make use of our internal Competence Framework that allows each employee to understand “where am I/to where can I grow”. - - **Cultural Disconnects**: Differences in work styles and expectations can hinder collaboration. Our HR implemented technological tools - HiBob and our internal BackOffice - that allow us to identify and address concerns promptly by having access to frequent feedback loops, such as pulse surveys. We believe that balancing the integration of onshore and nearshore teams through hybrid dynamics ensures cohesion and synergy. ## Local Compliance and Administrative Complexity Managing HR Operations can be complex, especially when adding different locations considering that labor laws vary significantly from country to country. HR has a crucial role here by ensuring that the company complies with local regulations. 25Friday focuses on nearshore teams in Portugal meaning that we need to be sure that we are adhering to labor requirements (contracts, benefits, tax, and social security policies, to name a few). - - **Payroll and Benefits**: At 25Friday, we partner with accounting experts and invest in modern platforms to streamline processes, like Spendesk and HiBob, that allow us to handle diverse payroll systems, taxation requirements, and benefits packages. Our compensation policies are aligned with the local market and we take a proactive attitude in this matter by doing a yearly benchmark to ensure a competitive compensation policy - this allows us to maintain a pay structure that is fair to all employees. - - **Regulatory Compliance**: We’re always looking to improve our labor laws knowledge and best practices. To ensure adherence to data privacy, we leverage secure systems to manage employee data (HiBob) and ensure compliance with privacy laws. ## Cultivating Company Culture Maintaining a unified and vibrant organizational culture in a distributed workforce is a challenge that demands intentionality. In a nearshore working model, there’s the need for strong organizational communication strategies so that employees can have a unified vision of the company values and be a part of the culture that we want to see. At 25Friday, we believe that a strong organizational culture that resonates with local values is essential for employee retention. Our HR is focused on developing initiatives to promote the company culture by providing regular updates from senior management - with our quarterly Keynote & Beers sessions; conducting on-site meetings and implementing action plans based on feedback; investing in flexible work policies and wellness programs to ensure that employees feel supported; leveraging collaboration tools like Slack to bridge gaps, while encouraging regular travel to the Netherlands to foster proximity and teamwork. ## Technology and Remote Work Tools Nearshoring often involves remote or hybrid work, and implementing technologies and tools that facilitate communication and collaboration is crucial. To ensure that employees can perform their roles effectively, HR must provide the necessary tools, from suitable hardware to relevant software tools to make long-distance collaboration possible. This not only enhances people's productivity but also helps in creating a positive and impacting work experience. At 25Friday we have established clear protocols for accessing IT support and ensure that our employees know how to seek help when needed. Our HR Ops is responsible for timely assistance and ensuring all the necessary support by maintaining an efficient and effective support system that helps minimize downtime and maintain operational efficiency. There’s also full access to our internal handbook that offers all the necessary information related to this matter, guiding our employees regarding technology and internal tools access. ## Conclusion The role of HR in supporting a nearshore context is multifaceted and crucial to the success of overall business. Nearshoring offers a world of opportunities for companies but it requires careful planning and innovative HR strategies from recruitment and onboarding to performance management and career growth. At 25Friday we understand the challenges facing the software development industry in the context of nearshoring. Our talent search and leadership expertise allow us to build a thriving nearshore model that benefits parties - our people and partners. With a commitment to continuous improvement and a balanced approach, HR’s role becomes increasingly strategic making nearshoring not just a strategy but a pathway to innovation and success. --- ### Bridging the gap between Product and Sales in SaaS Companies - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/bridging-the-gap-between-product-and-sales-in-saas-companies - Published: 2025-01-02T00:00:00.000Z ## Key Takeaways # ![Product and Sales Relationship](/media/cms/article-product-and-sales-relationship.png) ### The alignment imperative A recurring theme throughout the event was the importance of alignment between product development, sales strategies, and overarching business goals. Many participants noted that a lack of coordination in these areas often leads to inefficiencies, including short-term thinking, siloed operations, and cultural disconnects between teams. Without a unified approach, businesses risk losing sight of long-term success in pursuit of immediate gains. Establishing shared objectives and measurable outcomes was highlighted as a crucial step toward fostering alignment and ensuring that product efforts are in tune with market demands and revenue goals. ### A shared customer vision One key strategy for achieving alignment lies in defining and leveraging the Ideal Customer Profile (ICP). Both product and sales teams benefit from a shared understanding of their target audience, built on insights from data and examples of successful customer interactions. These profiles serve as a foundation for prioritizing product features and tailoring sales approaches, ensuring that both teams are working toward attracting and retaining customers who fit the business’s goals. ![Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) Example](/media/cms/article-ideal-customer-profile-example.png) ### Collaborative go-to-market strategies Collaboration also plays a vital role in go-to-market planning. The event's panelists shared examples of how joint planning sessions, cross-functional training, and shared success stories can deepen the partnership between product and sales. These practices not only align strategies for product launches but also foster mutual understanding and respect between teams, strengthening their collective ability to deliver value to customers. ### Balancing roadmap influence and innovation A particularly engaging discussion centered on the influence of sales on product roadmaps. This relationship can be a double-edged sword in SaaS businesses. While sales input can guide feature development to address real customer needs, excessive customization risks derailing the product's vision and adding unnecessary complexity. Panelists recommended a balanced approach where roadmap decisions are guided by their potential to align with long-term business strategy and broader market adoption. Balancing innovation with customer satisfaction was another prominent topic. Rapid feature delivery can delight customers, but without adequate support and training, it risks compromising their experience. Maintaining a dialogue between product and sales teams can help mitigate these risks and ensure a focus on impactful, sustainable innovation. ### Building a unified future Collaboration between product and sales is vital for SaaS success. Shared goals, clear communication, and joint planning provide a foundation for stronger partnerships and aligned strategies. By bridging the gap between these functions, businesses can foster a culture of mutual respect and shared purpose, driving long-term growth and customer satisfaction. ## In conclusion By addressing misalignment, leveraging shared customer insights, and fostering open communication, organizations can create a seamless partnership that drives innovation and revenue growth. As SaaS businesses continue to navigate a rapidly evolving market, the lessons from our event offer valuable strong points for building durable, more unified teams ready to tackle the challenges and opportunities ahead. ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Scaling Efficiency in Nearshoring: Our Journey to Fully Automated Processes - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/scaling-efficiency-our-journey-to-fully-automated-processes - Published: 2024-10-30T00:00:00.000Z ## Introduction In the rapidly evolving world of nearshoring, where competitiveness hinges on agility and efficiency, 25Friday embarked on a transformative journey to achieve a fully autonomous, integrated system. Initially, operations were largely decentralised, and critical processes within the HR department, such as accounting, recruitment, talent management, and time tracking relied heavily on manual interventions and disconnected external tools, often leading to errors, bottlenecks, inconsistencies, and in general reduced productivity. Realising the potential impacts of a systematic and integrated approach, we set out to automate and streamline processes, starting with HR as the foundational pillar. From there, we expanded, building automation frameworks that connected and optimized accounting workflows, recruitment cycles, talent management, and time-tracking applications. Each step not only improved operational efficiency but also allowed our team to focus on higher-value tasks, creating a self-sustaining system where processes now drive themselves. This article chronicles our journey towards a self-sustaining automated framework, detailing the tools, methodologies, and best practices that made this transformation possible. By sharing our experiences and insights, we aim to provide a roadmap for other nearshoring companies seeking to enhance their operational autonomy and efficiency. ## Where Did We Start? Our journey began like that of many startups: with a small team, minimal processes, and individuals wearing multiple hats to get things done. With just a handful of people, we enjoyed a fast-paced, flexible work environment where everyone contributed to various roles, which fostered a sense of unity, adaptability, and constant learning. Those early days were marked by innovation and creativity, allowing us to experiment, pivot, and refine our approach. However, as we grew from a close-knit team of 3 to a bustling company of 80+, we began to feel the strain of this informal structure. The lack of streamlined processes that once fueled our agility now led to errors, inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and inconsistencies. Once seamless in a small team, communication started to suffer as our workforce expanded. With new talent coming on board and responsibilities increasing across the HR department, it became clear that we needed to evolve. The growing pains weren’t just logistical; they highlighted the need for a foundational shift toward more structured, reliable, and scalable systems that could support our team and goals as we moved forward. ## The Growing Pains As our team grew, so did the complexity of managing day-to-day operations. With employees spanning different countries, roles, and time zones, questions emerged that demanded immediate solutions to ensure our processes were as agile and efficient as our goals. The rapid scaling surfaced many challenges, some of which we hadn’t anticipated: **Financial and Administrative Processes** - - Billing: Ensuring error-free, timely billing with minimal manual validation checks was crucial for maintaining smooth partner relations. We needed a system that would streamline invoicing and minimize the risk of discrepancies and the need for corrections. - - Accounting: Reporting critical information such as sick leave, holiday allowances, salary changes, and operational specifics to the accounting team accurately became a priority. We needed a process that minimized manual intervention to prevent errors and reduce administrative load. - - Inventory Management: Laptops, software, and other equipment require better organization and tracking. With each new hire, our inventory became more complex, and we needed a reliable system to manage it all. **Human Resources and Talent Management** - - Selecting an ATS: As we onboarded more talent, finding an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) that balanced the features we wanted with affordability and integration with our ecosystem became crucial to supporting our expanding recruitment needs. - - Vacation Management Across Countries: How could we effectively manage and synchronize vacation policies for employees in Portugal and the Netherlands, each with different labour laws and entitlements? - - Storing and Managing Employee Data: We needed a centralized and secure solution for storing and managing our employees’ information, making it accessible yet compliant with data protection regulations. - - Transitioning to Automated Onboarding: Our manual onboarding process was unsustainable at scale. We needed an efficient, seamless experience for new hires that also minimized administrative time for our HR team. - - Employee Engagement and Retention: With rapid growth, maintaining our unique culture became a priority. We needed strategies to encourage long-term engagement and ensure our people felt valued and invested in our journey. **Operations and Workflow Management** - - Time Tracking for Distributed Teams: Tracking, managing and validating work hours for employees across different projects became increasingly important, especially as our client base and project load grew and we had to enforce internal policies and checks on the time sheets - - Internal Documentation: As processes evolved, keeping internal documentation accessible and up-to-date became essential. We needed a centralized system to ensure that team members could easily access the latest information and that updates were reflected daily. - - Analytics and Company Health: As we grew, tracking key metrics became critical to understanding and improving our performance. We needed a way to measure employee retention rates, gather NPS scores to assess employee happiness, categorize hours per employee, and evaluate the overall health of the company. These insights would drive strategic decisions and help us cultivate a healthy, sustainable environment. **Remote and Resource Management** - - Remote-Friendly Environment: In a flexible remote work setup, we wanted to ensure every employee had access to the right tools, software, and support, regardless of location, to work productively and feel connected. Addressing these growing pains wasn’t a quick fix but a gradual process filled with trial, error and significant effort. Some solutions that seemed promising initially didn’t work out as expected, while others proved invaluable and still support our operations today. At 25Friday, we’ve developed a culture of learning from our missteps, continuously iterating, and pushing for excellence. This journey of refining our processes has strengthened our operational backbone and reinforced our commitment to growth and improvement as we move forward. ## The Journey to Fully Automated Processes In the early days at 25Friday, we relied on a handful of tools to mitigate our operational challenges. These tools, while effective initially, each came with their own limitations, and over time, the need for a unified, scalable solution became clear. Here’s a breakdown of the tools we used, along with their advantages and drawbacks: **Freshteam**: - - Pros: Freshteams offered a versatile Applicant Tracking System (ATS) with a range of features, all at a reasonable price point. It served multiple functions: applicant tracking, people management, holiday management, onboarding, offboarding, and analytics. - - Drawbacks: Despite its breadth, Freshteams fell short in some areas. It lacked the specific functionality and third-party integrations we required. The API integration was limited, making it difficult to connect with other essential tools. Additionally, the outdated UX/UI didn’t provide an optimal user experience. **TimeChimp**: - - Pros: TimeChimp was our time-tracking tool of choice for several years. Every employee tracked their working hours through it, and we also leveraged it for expense claims. - - Drawbacks: However, the tool had limitations in creating rules for workflows and validation. Controlling billable hours was challenging, requiring manual verification of every employee’s logged hours a time-consuming process. Additionally, the lack of a robust API limited third-party integrations, and the cost was high relative to our usage. **FreshService**: - - Pros: FreshService helped us manage our inventory effectively, providing structure and oversight to our asset management. - - Drawbacks: However, it wasn’t designed to align with our specific business model, leading to underutilized features. Given its high price point, it wasn’t a sustainable choice for us in the long run. **Nuclino**: - - Pros: Nuclino provided a centralized platform for internal documentation, and even the free plan supported many of our needs. - - Drawbacks: While it was useful, the paid version’s subscription cost was high for the limited set of features we utilized, making it challenging to justify as our sole documentation tool. **Daywise**: - - Pros: This application enabled both Portuguese and Dutch employees to book their holidays efficiently, providing a convenient solution for managing time-off requests. - - Drawbacks: While the app was functional, it lacked transparency in holiday policies. With no administrative panel, we couldn’t adjust holiday policies internally, making it inflexible to our evolving needs. Additionally, for the limited features we utilized, the subscription cost was high, reducing its long-term feasibility. While each of these tools served its purpose and allowed us to meet the majority of our requirements, none offered the holistic, automated solution we sought. What we truly needed was a unified platform to automate manual processes, streamline workflows, and make internal operations more efficient across departments. Building Our In-House BackOffice Recognizing the need for a tailored solution, we embarked on creating our own BackOffice—a platform designed specifically for our business model and operational needs. By gradually phasing out the paid tools and replacing them with our BackOffice, we moved towards a unified system that could meet all our requirements without the constraints of third-party limitations. The development process took nearly two years, with careful planning and phased implementation. In the end, we built a flexible, adaptive solution that not only fit our business needs perfectly but could also evolve with us as we grew and our requirements changed. ## Our Fully Autonomous Ecosystem Today, our BackOffice platform integrates multiple functions to provide a seamless, autonomous experience from Day One—for both clients and employees. This unified system allows us to automate processes across the employee lifecycle, reducing manual intervention and ensuring consistency at every touchpoint. Here’s an overview of the key features we’ve implemented: **Fully Autonomous Onboarding and Offboarding Process** - - Our BackOffice equips the HR team with tools to interact professionally and consistently with candidates and employees throughout the onboarding and offboarding journey. - - From this platform, the HR team can schedule interviews, send employment contracts, initiate the onboarding sequence, and administer post-interview surveys all in one place, ensuring a cohesive experience. **ATS + Custom Career Page** - - Our custom-built ATS (Applicant Tracking System) allows us to manage all candidate information, including application history and relevant documentation. - - The system supports end-to-end hiring pipeline management, from initial application to final hiring decision. - - Our public-facing career page is integrated directly with the ATS, automatically displaying open vacancies for candidates and minimizing manual updates. **Talent Module** - - With our talent management system, we monitor employee well-being through structured one-on-one meeting tracking between employees and their managers. - - An export feature enables the HR team to generate detailed reports on team goals, aiding in performance reviews and goal tracking. **Inventory Management** - - Our asset management tool tracks the history of all company assets and applies custom rules specific to our requirements, ensuring accountability and compliance with inventory standards. **Partner Management** - - We maintain comprehensive records for all partners within the BackOffice, centralizing information for easy access and streamlined communication. **TimeLoom** - - TimeLoom, our dedicated time-tracking module, enables employees to log both billable and non-billable hours. - - The module incorporates numerous validation rules to prevent errors, reducing the need for manual corrections and ensuring billing accuracy. **Accounting** - - Our BackOffice offers a range of reports and validation processes to support the accounting team. - - Billable processes undergo systematic validation to prevent errors, safeguard our financial accuracy and minimizing discrepancies. **Car Parking Management** - - We’ve implemented a car parking reservation system that enables employees to book parking spaces at the office, simplifying a previously manual process. **Internal Handbook** - - An internal handbook, accessible to all employees, is housed within the BackOffice and contains all essential internal policies, guidelines, and processes. This ensures that employees have a single, reliable resource for company rules. **Analytics** - - Our analytics module tracks and reports on key performance indicators, providing data-driven insights that help guide strategic decision-making across the organization. In addition to our internal BackOffice system, we also rely on two external platforms that fit perfectly with our business needs due to their quality and high level of customization: **WeFact** WeFact is a Dutch-based invoicing software known for its simplicity, reliability, and flexibility. It allows businesses to create, send, and manage invoices efficiently, with features tailored to meet various financial and accounting needs. Due to its high level of quality and security, WeFact has been our preferred platform since day one to create and send monthly invoices to all our partners. **HiBob** HiBob is our go-to platform for managing employee data, personal development plans, and holiday management. It also provides powerful HR analytics and reporting tools, giving us valuable insights into our workforce. HiBob’s extensive customization options and comprehensive features make it an integral part of our HR operations, particularly in the areas of employee and talent development and data management. ## Tech Stack In this chapter, we delve into the technology stack that powers our BackOffice and the various modules that drive our fully automated processes. By leveraging modern tools and frameworks, we’ve built a robust, scalable infrastructure that ensures both high performance and reliability. #### Tech Stack Details: - - **Backend**: Our BackOffice backend is developed using the latest version of C#, leveraging a scalable modular architecture. This approach allows us to build and maintain independent, self-contained modules, making the system flexible and easy to expand as new requirements emerge. - - **Infrastructure**: The infrastructure is hosted on Azure, which provides us with a secure, scalable cloud environment. We use Cloudflare for our front-end hosting and content delivery, ensuring fast and reliable access to our web applications. - - **Frontend**: Our frontend stack consists of React, TypeScript, and Next.js. This combination allows us to create dynamic, highly interactive user interfaces with strong type safety and efficient server-side rendering capabilities, enhancing both the performance and user experience of our applications. - - **CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment):** We employ GitHub Actions to automate our CI/CD pipelines, enabling seamless integration, testing, and deployment of new code. Our front end is deployed using Cloudflare Pages, ensuring a streamlined and efficient deployment process. Here is a high-level overview of our current Architecture: ![25Friday Cloud Architecture](/media/cms/25friday-cloud-architecture.png) _25Friday Cloud Architecture_ We run several background processes daily to ensure our operations are efficient and reliable. Our onboarding process includes multiple steps designed to create a positive experience for new employees. Once a candidate accepts our offer, the HR team initiates the onboarding process in the BackOffice. Then we have the following processes that starts to kick in: - - Create user accounts - - Automatically generate contracts and send them to the new joiner - - Send onboarding details to the employee and relevant partners - - Send follow-up emails and gentle reminders throughout the onboarding process Other key features of our background process is the payroll and billing services. We ensure that all billing and accounting processes run smoothly with comprehensive checks and custom reports. The following diagram outlines our background processes and their respective responsibilities. ![25Friday Background Services](/media/cms/25Friday-background-services.png) _25Friday Background Services_ The image below provides a glimpse of our current BackOffice UI (using mock data), showcasing the various features included in our in-house suite. ![25Friday BackOffice](/media/cms/25friday-backoffice.png) _25Friday BackOffice (mock data)_ ## Best Practices **Start with Foundational Automation in High-Impact Areas** - - Identify Core Processes: Begin by automating core functions like HR, accounting, and recruitment, which form the backbone of company operations. Target processes with high manual input or repetitive tasks to generate significant initial impact. **Select Scalable Tools and Integrate with Long-Term Needs** - - Prioritize Flexibility and Integration: Choose tools that not only meet current needs but also offer integration capabilities to scale with future requirements. Consider an API-first approach to enable seamless connections across platforms. - - Limit Dependency on External Tools: Over-reliance on third-party tools can lead to limitations. Gradually migrate from costly, less customizable tools to in-house solutions where feasible. **Adopt a Modular Approach to System Architecture** - - Build Independent, Self-Contained Modules: A modular design allows the system to grow with the business, simplifying updates and enabling easy incorporation of new features without disrupting existing workflows. - - Use a Scalable Tech Stack: Adopt a robust tech stack (e.g., C#, Azure, React) to support efficient, secure operations. Cloud-hosted infrastructure further aids scalability and reliability. **Develop a Unified Platform for Streamlined Operations** - - Centralize Key Functions: A single platform for all operational needs reduces data fragmentation and fosters smoother workflows. For example, integrating an ATS, talent management, time tracking, and inventory within one system improves oversight. **Continuously Refine Processes through Iteration** - - Gather Data and Metrics: Collect analytics to monitor system health, employee engagement, and performance. Use data to identify areas for process refinement and strategic improvements. **Implement Validation Rules to Reduce Errors** - - Automate Checks and Balances: Automate billing, timesheets, and other routine checks to catch errors early. For example, our time-tracking module incorporates validation rules, ensuring accuracy in logged hours and minimizing manual intervention. - - Enable Auditing and Reporting: Regularly review reports for high-stakes processes (e.g., payroll, billing) to ensure accuracy and reliability across automated workflows. **Ensure Robust Documentation and Training** - - Centralize Documentation: A consolidated internal handbook for all processes allows team members to access updated information, ensuring uniform adherence to standards. - - Invest in Training: Employees with training to maximize system utilization, ensuring smooth adoption and reducing operational disruptions during transitions. ## Conclusion Our journey from fragmented, manual processes to a fully automated, scalable system has been transformative, not only for our internal operations but also for the efficiency and agility of our business. By automating key areas such as onboarding, recruitment, time tracking, and accounting, we’ve empowered our teams to focus on high-value tasks, reduced human error, and streamlined workflows across the board. While leveraging third-party tools was crucial in our early growth stages, the limitations of these systems underscored the need for a more cohesive, integrated platform. Building our own BackOffice allowed us to develop a tailored solution that meets our unique business requirements. This platform now serves as the foundation for our operations, integrating seamlessly with other critical systems and supporting both our employees and clients from day one. The strategic deployment of modern technologies—C#, Azure, React, TypeScript, and automated CI/CD pipelines—further reinforces the scalability and robustness of our BackOffice. By leveraging a flexible, modular architecture, we’ve ensured that our platform can adapt to new challenges, future-proofing our operations and enabling continuous innovation. For other companies, particularly those in the nearshoring space, our experience serves as a roadmap for achieving operational autonomy. Automation, when thoughtfully implemented, not only drives efficiency but also enhances the employee and client experience, allowing businesses to scale while maintaining quality and consistency. As we continue to grow, the flexibility of our custom-built system will remain a competitive advantage, enabling us to evolve and stay agile in an ever-changing business landscape. --- ### Local Sourcing vs. Outsourcing vs. Nearshoring for Dutch Tech Companies - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/local-sourcing-vs-outsourcing-vs-nearshoring-dutch-it-portugal - Published: 2024-09-30T23:00:00.000Z ## Introduction The global IT landscape is rapidly evolving, with an ever-increasing need - and incentives - for digitalisation, as recently recognised in the [Draghi Plan](https://www.cer.eu/publications/archive/policy-brief/2024/draghis-plan-rescue-european-economy), which is expected to influence an additional €750-800 billion in annual IT/digitalisation investment in the EU between 2025 and 2030. The Netherlands, as Europe's de facto technology hub, is at the epicentre of this boom, making it difficult for Dutch enterprises to attract IT talent at all levels, from human resources specialists to product managers and technical experts. These obstacles in scaling IT development force a critical decision: whether to use local sourcing, outsourcing (offshoring), or nearshoring to handle the skyrocketing prices of skilled local personnel, assuming such expertise can be recruited at all. This study delves into the details of these three sourcing models, weighing their pros and cons. It also provides a case as to why nearshoring to Portugal rather than offshoring or nearshoring to Eastern European countries is becoming the best choice for Dutch companies that want to find a balance between low costs, easy collaboration, and the availability of skills. ## Local Sourcing for Tech Talent: A Challenge for Dutch Tech Companies Dutch enterprises, like other companies throughout the world, have always preferred local sourcing for all of their needs due to its inherent benefits of familiarity, proximity, and control. Geographical proximity facilitates face-to-face interactions, immediate feedback, and quick decision-making processes and is regarded as a requirement for ensuring that development work is aligned with the company's goals and allowing effective collaboration, which is critical in agile development environments. Physical proximity is also seen as a good proxy for cultural and language alignment, which means that team members are expected to have a mutual understanding of work ethics, business practices, and market nuances specific to the Netherlands, resulting in fewer misunderstandings and increased team cohesion, critical in agile projects with high communication needs and fast iteration over product features and other requirements. Local sourcing also simplifies all fiscal, legal, and compliance processes due to a strong understanding of tax codes, labour laws, and other fiscal regulations that may be uncertain—and potentially risky—in other countries with different cross-border operations, especially important in industries that are heavily regulated (e.g., fintech) or handle sensitive data (e.g., personally identifiable information). The combination of these factors explains why local sourcing is often chosen; nevertheless, concerns such as talent shortages and rising costs are forcing Dutch businesses to consider other tactics and have even prompted the national government to enact specific legislation (30% tax ruling) to make the Netherlands more attractive to highly skilled (tech) migrants. ![Key outsourcing locations for the Dutch tech market](/media/cms/case-local-sourcing-offshoring-nearshoring-map.png) _Key outsourcing locations for the Dutch tech market_ ## Outsourcing (Offshoring): Inexpensive but Risky Offshoring IT services to India, Southeast Asia, and Latin America is financially appealing for Dutch enterprises. Cost is the most compelling reason for firms to pick this model as countries like India and the Philippines offer substantially cheaper labour, often by 50-70% when compared to local talent. For organisations with limited resources, offshore is an appealing choice for preserving profitability while satisfying development goals, especially considering the sheer magnitude of the talent pool in these areas. However, despite these huge benefits, outsourcing has important risks that may eventually offset its advantages. One of the most persistent concerns is the difficulty caused by time zone differences. With a 5 to 10-hour time difference between the Netherlands and many outsourcing centres, it is challenging to maintain the level of real-time communication required for agile project management. Delays in feedback and troubleshooting can dramatically slow down project deadlines, causing bottlenecks in time-sensitive processes. While this is frequently marketed as a "plus" and an enabler of 24-hour operations, it is a hollow promise for most software firms that require good team cohesion, alignment, and communication, all of which are adversely impacted by timezone offsets greater than two hours. Beyond logistics, differences in work culture, communication norms, and management styles can impede productivity and collaboration. For example, nations such as India and Vietnam frequently have more hierarchical work cultures, which may collide with the more egalitarian, flexible structures found in the Netherlands. These cultural misalignments can cause misunderstandings, lower productivity, and more time spent managing team integration. In summary, while offshore provides significant cost savings and access to a big, trained workforce, the inherent hazards can outweigh the benefits. For Dutch organisations that value agile development and real-time cooperation, the risks may easily outweigh the benefits particularly for companies with limited tech resources and where a few low-performers can significantly impact the company's ability to deliver quickly and reliably. As a result, many businesses are turning to nearshoring as a more balanced option, which provides some of the financial benefits of outsourcing without the severe negatives of offshoring. ## Nearshoring to Portugal: The Best of Both Worlds Nearshoring to Portugal provides a strategic balance of cost-effectiveness and operational performance. This strategy has grown in popularity among Dutch companies and is a key driver for 25Friday's impact on the Dutch tech landscape. One of Portugal's main advantages is its proximity to the Netherlands. Operating in the GMT timezone, Portugal has a tiny time difference of only one hour behind the Netherlands, enabling real-time cooperation and seamless communication between teams. Portugal has a growing number of highly trained IT experts. The country's universities and technological institutes provide graduates with expertise in web development, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and cloud services. Portugal's focus on digital transformation has helped it become one of Europe's leading tech ecosystems. Dutch companies can thus access a consistent stream of skilled developers without the language or cultural obstacles that frequently exist in more remote places. Moreover, it has a huge edge in terms of cultural compatibility with the Netherlands. Portuguese professionals are noted for their versatility and commitment to Western European work principles, making them great collaborators for Dutch teams. Portuguese IT experts' exceptional fluency in English guarantees simple and unambiguous communication, reducing the chance of costly misunderstandings. Portugal also enjoys a high level of political and economic stability and is a member of the European Union since 1986, with legal frameworks and tax rules that are consistent with those in the Netherlands. This regulatory comparability streamlines operations for Dutch businesses by lowering legal and administrative barriers. It is worth noting that while there are other valid nearshoring alternatives in Europe, particularly in Eastern countries such as Poland, Romania, and Ukraine, Portugal offers increased political stability and a closer alignment with Dutch ideals like transparency, flexibility, and open communication. Additionally, the widespread proficiency in English among Portuguese professionals enhances the ability to work effectively and efficiently together. In comparison, some Eastern European countries may have more hierarchical and formal corporate structures, which can lead to conflicts in agile and fast-paced initiatives typical of the IT landscape. ## 25Friday’s Approach to Collaboration in Nearshoring At 25Friday, we believe that personal connections are essential for building strong, successful teams. That's why we prioritize bringing our teams together in person four times a year, providing opportunities to strengthen bonds that enhance team chemistry and productivity. To reduce communication hurdles, we offer in-house English lessons, ensuring that all team members and partners communicate clearly and effectively. We also organize quarterly feedback sessions with our partners to resolve challenges, acknowledge successes, and drive ongoing growth. Employee development is a critical component of our commitment to excellence. We actively develop personalised career plans to help our team members advance in their roles and ensure their long-term success and satisfaction. These initiatives foster deep partnerships between 25Friday and its partners, resulting in strong alignment around mutual goals. By focusing on continuous learning, improvement, and outstanding results, we create a collaborative environment where both our people and our partners thrive. ## Conclusions By choosing 25Friday with its Portuguese nearshoring arm, Dutch enterprises can reap the benefits of nearshoring while avoiding the dangers associated with offshore or other remote markets. Portuguese talent stands out as a very appealing and cost efficient option for Dutch tech companies. Portugal's time zone alignment, political stability, skilled labour, and cultural fit make it a dependable and advantageous choice for long-term relationships. ## *As you ponder about Technology and explore the potential within your software development practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of technical strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Who should your Product Manager report to? - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/who-should-product-managers-report-to - Published: 2024-09-14T23:00:00.000Z *Tim is a passionate product manager at a steadily growing tech startup. His innovative ideas and strategies are often met with skepticism from his boss, the CTO, Mark, who was more focused on the technical specifications and feasibility of the product than its market potential. Feeling unheard, Tim approached the startup’s CEO, Emma, with his concerns. Emma, co-founder and primarily commercial-focused leader, was sympathetic but unable to provide the day-to-day guidance and support Tim needed. While she understood the importance of product management, her capabilities and experience were more aligned with sales and business development.* *Tim found himself frustrated between these two perspectives, struggling to balance the technical and commercial aspects of his role, leaving him with the question of where a Product Manager ideally should report.* ## Understanding the Product Manager's role Before diving into organizational structures, it's crucial to define the product manager's role. While often conflated with the product owner, these are distinct positions, albeit within the broader scope of product management. The product owner typically has more direct authority over a product's development, often within an Agile framework. Their reporting structure often aligns with the development team. The product manager's role, in contrast, is more strategic, involving market analysis, product lifecycle, product vision, strategy, and cross-functional collaboration. Their reporting structure can vary significantly based on company size, organizational culture, and product complexity. - - **Product Owner:** Typically focused on product vision, prioritization, and backlog management. Often reports directly to a product manager or project manager. - - **Product Manager:** Has a broader scope, overseeing the entire product lifecycle, from ideation to launch and beyond. May report to a CEO, CTO, VP of Product / Head of Product, or other executive. ## The CEO as the ideal reporting line While there are exceptions, the CEO is often the ideal reporting line for a product manager. This direct connection ensures that the product aligns with the company's overall vision and strategy. It also empowers the product manager to make decisions without being influenced by departmental biases. However, this structure requires a CEO who understands the product management role and who is capable and committed to investing time and effort in its success. **+ Strategic alignment:** Ensures the product aligns with the company's overall vision and strategy. **+ Autonomy:** Provides product managers with a high degree of autonomy and decision-making power. **+ Visibility:** Increases the product manager's visibility within the organization. **- Time constraints:** CEOs and are often busy with high-level strategic decisions and may not have time to provide day-to-day guidance to product managers. **- Potential for misalignment:** If the CEO does not have a strong understanding of product management, there may be a risk of misalignment between the product strategy and the company's goals. ## The VP of Product / Head of Product as the second-best reporting line A VP of Product or Head of Product can be a valuable alternative reporting line for a product manager, especially in larger organizations. They provide dedicated leadership and support, ensuring that the product manager has the resources and guidance needed to succeed. However, in startups and scaleups, this role may not always be available due to limited resources. In such cases, the product manager might report directly to the CEO or CTO. While reporting to the CTO can provide technical expertise, it may also lead to a focus on technical features over market needs. Therefore, even in the absence of a VP of Product or Head of Product, reporting directly to the CEO is often a better option than reporting to the CTO. **+ Dedicated leadership:** Provides mentorship, guidance, and support to product managers. **+ Specialized knowledge:** Can offer deep expertise in product management. **+ Alignment with product strategy:** Ensures the product manager is aligned with the overall product strategy. **- May not be available:** This role may not be available in smaller organizations. **- Limited exposure to senior leadership:** Reporting to a VP of Product or Head of Product may limit the product manager's exposure to senior leadership and broader company strategy. ## The CTO as a potential alternative Reporting to a CTO can be advantageous, especially in technology-driven companies. The CTO often has a deep understanding of the product's technical aspects and can provide valuable guidance. However, there's a risk of becoming overly focused on technical details and losing sight of broader market needs. This can be mitigated by ensuring the CTO is supportive of product management and understands its strategic role. **+ Technical expertise:** Provides access to valuable technical insights and guidance. **+ Strong alignment with engineering:** Ensures a close relationship between product and engineering teams. **+ Shared vision:** Can foster a shared vision for the product's technical direction. **- Focus on technical aspects:** May lead to a focus on technical features over market needs. **- Limited market exposure:** The CTO may not be as exposed to market trends and customer needs as the CEO or COO. **- Potential for conflicts:** If the CTO and product manager have differing priorities, it can lead to conflicts and hinder product development. ## Other reporting options While the CEO and CTO are common reporting lines, other options exist, provided these positions are filled by competent individuals, each with its own advantages and disadvantages: - - **Marketing:** Reporting to marketing can provide valuable insights into customer needs and market trends. However, there's a risk of becoming too sales-focused and losing sight of the product's long-term strategy. - - **Development:** Reporting to development can ensure a strong alignment between product and engineering. However, it can also lead to a focus on technical features over market needs. ## Factors influencing the best reporting structure The optimal reporting structure depends on several factors: - - **Company size and stage:** Startups may have a more fluid structure, while larger companies may benefit from a more formalized hierarchy. - - **Product complexity:** Highly technical products may benefit from a closer relationship with the CTO, while products with a strong marketing component might be better suited to a marketing-led structure. - - **Organizational culture:** The company's culture and values can influence the preferred reporting structure. - - **Individual product manager's strengths and preferences:** Some product managers may thrive in a more autonomous role, while others may prefer a more structured environment. - - **Talent and resources:** The availability of talent and resources can constrain or enable certain organizational structures. ## Final recommendation The ideal reporting structure for a product manager is not one-size-fits-all, however when possible, product managers should report to someone with oversight of both product and technology e.g. a well-informed VP of Product. This avoids situations where product and development clash over priorities and lack a clear path for resolving disagreements. While the CEO is the preferred choice, other options can work well depending on the circumstances. The key is to ensure that the product manager has the autonomy, support, and resources needed to drive the product's success. It's essential to consider the specific context of the company, the product, and the individual product manager. ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### 25Friday Product Guru Insights #3 - Janet Bumpas - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/25friday-product-guru-insights-3-janet-bumpas - Published: 2024-07-30T23:00:00.000Z ## Vision is The Heart of any Great Product Company In the latest instalment of Product Guru Insights, I had the privilege of interviewing [Janet Bumpas](https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetbumpas/), a Silicon Valley veteran with extensive experience in product management. Janet's career spans three startups, one of which went public, another was acquired by eBay, and the third, in her words, "crashed and burned." Her journey provides a rich tapestry of lessons in product vision, customer insights, and the evolving landscape of product management. ## The Heartbeat of Product Vision Janet's passion for product vision is palpable. She describes it as the "beating heart" of any great product company. A compelling product vision, she explains, is about envisioning where you want your product to be in five to ten years and crafting an extraordinary customer experience. Janet highlights the importance of the vision storyboard, a technique borrowed from Walt Disney and later adapted by companies like Airbnb, to create a visual narrative of the product’s future. "Your strategy is just a plan to achieve your vision," Janet explains. This approach not only aligns the team but also serves as a constant reminder of the ultimate goal. She emphasises that a strong product vision inspires and motivates, driving strategic decisions and ensuring everyone is on the same page. One of the striking examples Janet shared was how Apple used a video in 1987, called the "Knowledge Navigator," to illustrate their vision of the future. This vision included touchscreens and avatars, concepts that were far ahead of their time. Apple's product releases over the years have consistently moved them closer to that vision. Similarly, Airbnb used storyboards to decide their strategic focus on mobile, recognising that their customers' needs could best be met through mobile technology. ## Building Through Customer Insights Understanding customer needs is another cornerstone of Janet's philosophy. She stresses the importance of deep customer discovery and the integration of real user problems into product development. This rigorous approach ensures that products are not only innovative but also grounded in real-world applications. Janet's methodology involves gathering extensive customer insights and market trends before diving into product vision exercises. This data-driven approach prevents the creation of unrealistic visions and ensures that strategies are both ambitious and achievable. She warns against the "garbage in, garbage out" scenario, where inadequate customer understanding leads to poor product visions. Janet recounted her early experiences where decisions were often made by the most persuasive voices in the room, rather than being based on customer insights. This approach, she noted, was flawed and led her to dive deep into customer discovery. Her shift to a more customer-centric approach has been a key factor in her success. ## Embracing Agile and Empowering Teams Janet's career has evolved alongside the rise of agile methodologies. From her early days in Silicon Valley to her current role as an independent coach and advisor, she has witnessed the transformation of product management practices. She advocates for empowered product-led teams that prioritise continuous discovery and delivery, fostering innovation and agility. She recounts her early experiences where engineers were often sidelined in decision-making processes. Today, Janet champions a model where engineers and product teams work collaboratively, leveraging their problem-solving skills to drive innovation. She believes that empowering teams to own their processes and decisions leads to better products and more engaged employees. Janet discussed the cultural shifts necessary for this empowerment, noting that in traditional settings, engineers were often seen as "third-class citizens." The rise of companies like Google and Facebook, where engineering is central to innovation, has shifted this perception. She emphasised the importance of integrating engineering insights into the product development process to ensure that solutions are both innovative and feasible. ## The Dutch Product Scene Now based in the Netherlands, Janet observes a growing maturity in the Dutch product management scene. She notes a significant shift in recent years, with more companies embracing the product operating model. Janet contributes to this evolution by coaching and advising a range of organisations, from startups to large corporations, helping them build better products. "It's easier to build on a foundation of the product operating model early on," she says, highlighting the challenges of transforming established companies to this approach. Janet also discussed the diffusion of product management practices across Europe, noting that London and Stockholm were early adopters of these methodologies. She sees a promising future for the Dutch market as it continues to adopt these practices. ## Advice for Product Managers For product managers struggling to demonstrate the value of their craft, Janet offers pragmatic advice. She emphasises the importance of aligning product visions with business objectives and communicating in a language that resonates with executive teams. This involves not only understanding customer needs but also translating them into business metrics that stakeholders care about. Janet shared her insights on navigating the complex relationship between product and sales teams. She acknowledged that while sales teams focus on immediate revenue, product teams must balance short-term gains with long-term vision. Her approach advocates for clear communication and collaboration between these teams to ensure that both immediate and future goals are met. ## Conclusion Janet Bumpas’s insights provide a rich source of knowledge for anyone involved in product management. Her emphasis on strong product vision, deep customer insights, and agile methodologies offers a roadmap for building successful products. As she continues to influence the Dutch product management landscape, her experiences and strategies will undoubtedly inspire many to navigate the complex world of product development with confidence and clarity. To learn more about Janet and her work, you can visit her [website](https://www.janetbumpas.com/) or connect with her on [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetbumpas/). Stay tuned for the next instalment of Product Guru Insights, where we delve into more fascinating discussions with leading product experts. ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Case Study on Low Code for Frontend Applications - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/case-study-on-low-code-for-frontend-applications - Published: 2024-06-25T23:00:00.000Z ## Introduction Low code / no code platforms have been the digital holy grail for decades as a tool to democratise development of digital systems. Recent years have seen significant advances and developments on major players, including Mendix, Microsoft, OutSystems and Salesforce to name a few. They position themselves as a versatile tool for a wide range of applications that allow organisations to accelerate development cycles, reduce costs, and foster collaboration between technical and non-technical team members. Less tech-savvy members are drawn to the prospect of developing applications using a visual environment and easy to use ready-made building blocks. While there’s a huge appeal to the promise of creating applications without the need for coding, low code platforms are not necessarily the right tool for every job and it’s worthwhile to consider the scenarios where they excel as well as the scenarios where they don’t. In general, low code platforms can be the right choice in the following situations: - - Need for a throwaway rapid prototype / MVP - - Developing customer facing web and mobile applications with basic requirements and simple interfaces - - Simple data visualisation and reporting needs - - Automation of repetitive tasks, internal workflows and business processes - - Educational tool to introduce basic programming concepts - - No internal development expertise The applicability of low code platforms to solve business problems largely depends on the complexity of the problems as well as the expectation around the flexibility of the platforms - which typically have hard constraints on how to use them - and the existence or lack of technical skills in an organisation. ## Low Code Features Assessment ### Rapid development & quick updates Through the use of pre-built components, drag-and-drop interfaces, and templates, low-code platforms have the potential to significantly speed up the frontend development process, fostering rapid prototyping, quick iterations, and faster delivery of functional user interfaces. Changes to the UI can be implemented more rapidly, allowing for faster response to user feedback or market demands. #### Risks and Notes While development may be faster initially, customizations or unique features might take longer to implement than with traditional coding. The time saved upfront could be lost later when dealing with or circumventing platform limitations. Rapid prototyping is useful; however, it might lead to premature commitment to certain design decisions. The ease of creating prototypes might discourage thorough planning and architecture discussions. The ease of making changes could lead to frequent, poorly planned updates. Even without low code platforms, developing for frontend does not necessarily mean writing everything from scratch as templates for design systems such as Material UI and others are readily available (e.g. with create-react-app). ### Reduced technical barrier Non-technical team members can contribute to frontend development, potentially improving collaboration between designers and developers as well as providing additional availability of resources to develop the frontend application. #### Risks and Notes This can lead to a false sense of simplicity and ability to get work done properly. Non-technical team members might create designs or functionalities that are difficult to implement or maintain, skip consideration of corner-cases, security and performance best-practices, leading to technical debt or performance issues. It’s worth noting that even though low-code platforms in theory require less technical knowledge, there is still an opportunity cost regarding the learning curve of the platform itself as well a cost to performing technical integrations with the custom backend which will require technical know-how to some extent (e.g. on HTTP APIs, form and response payloads, etc). ### Consistency Low-code platforms often provide pre-built components and templates, ensuring a consistent look and feel across the application. #### Risks and Notes While pre-built components ensure consistency, this is not necessarily a good thing in isolation, as it can also result in a generic-looking application that lacks uniqueness and requires the programmer to stick to an inflexible UI over which he has no control over, potentially harming the end user experience. Consistency can also be easily achieved by using a design system framework, such as Material UI, Mantine or Radix UI for example. In addition to design system frameworks, implementation consistency can also be ensured through the use of frameworks such as Next.js in the case of react (there are many other alternatives). ### Cost-effectiveness With faster development and less need for specialised frontend developers, costs can be reduced. In addition there may be maintenance savings since low code platforms often include built-in support, regular updates, and security patches. #### Risks and Notes Initial startup costs may be lower, but long-term expenses could increase due to platform licensing fees, potential need for specialised consultants, or costs and complexity associated with migrating away from the platform later if it no longer meets your needs. Vendor lock-in is also an important factor, as low-code platforms have historically implemented significant price increases which are hard to negotiate against given the difficulty in moving away from them, whereas in the traditional application space moving from hosting provider, while a nuisance, is usually not a big problem. In the case of low code platforms, it is essential to consider the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) rather than focusing solely on initial startup costs. A true comparison between low-code and traditional development models requires accounting for several factors: - - Recurring platform costs - as they usually operate on a subscription model with recurring fees - - Specialised consulting services - for optimizations or customizations, especially if ongoing support is required - - Scalability costs - costs might increase depending on usage means that over time the platform costs may be substantial (e.g. based on users or other metrics) ### Focus on business logic Developers can spend more time on complex business logic in the backend rather than frontend implementation details. #### Risks and Notes Full focus on the backend might lead to neglecting frontend optimizations as the backend should be developed with (frontend) usability in mind. This could result in a suboptimal user experience or performance issues (e.g. no proper support for pagination, providing too little or too much information on the API responses, to name a few). As a general approach, the frontend should strive to be as simple as possible, centralising complexity on the backend services, however, having the ability to cooperate with the frontend on the implementation is invaluable in terms of flexibility and capability of implementing a solution that is architecturally sound, performs and scales well. It’s also important to note that, while complexity might be hidden by the backend, the frontend also needs to be implemented according to the relevant business logic, hence the need to know and understand it does not disappear by using a low code platform. In addition, while business logic is indeed a critical aspect of any application, there are also other non-functional requirements that are essential for a successful application such as scalability, performance, usability and observability to name a few over which there is little over control in the case of low code platforms. ### Reduced need for specialised frontend developers Not requiring specialised frontend developers on the team has the potential to either reduce overall the team size or allow it to focus on their current (backend) activities instead of having to worry about an additional piece of software. #### Risks and Notes It can lead to a skill gap in your team. If you need to move away from the low-code platform or handle complex frontend issues, you might lack the necessary expertise in-house and face communication challenges such as. frustration of the technical team members communicating requirements and contract specifications to non-technical parties. In addition, any updates, bug fixes, and new feature releases are controlled by the vendor, which may not align with internal development timeline or priorities. Not having dedicated frontend engineers will pose a challenge to the team as ultimately there needs to be a strong (technical) alignment between frontend and backend implementation, regardless of the platform in use. ## Additional Considerations In addition to the identified risks, it’s also important to consider how the application building process using a low-code platform will align with internal development processes, and how it will affect expectations regarding development cadence and coordination. This might mean that the team may need to redesign its development process to accommodate the low-code platform's workflow. Typically, frontend and backend development efforts need careful synchronisation to ensure proper feature validation and testing before deployment and client release. In practice this means that there is an expectation around testability of the features (which can be hard to automate on low-code platforms) as well as on the processes that need to be followed before a feature can be made available to end users. In practice this might mean that the development process requires features to be available for testing and acceptance environments, which don’t always exist out of the box on low code platforms. Also, since development happens externally to internal CI/CD systems it may be very hard to impose checks and rules regarding security, version control, code style and other internal best practices and information security requirements. From an operational perspective, it should also be noted that adopting a low-code platform introduces another system that requires maintenance, monitoring, and financial investment. ## Conclusions Low-code and no-code platforms offer an enticing opportunity to reduce dependency on software developers and allow less tech-savvy individuals to create fully-fledged applications. Key use cases include rapid prototyping and MVP development, creating basic applications, implementing business workflows, and automating repetitive tasks. However, their effectiveness depends on the complexity of the business problems, required flexibility, and the technical skills available within the organisation. This assessment reveals several potential benefits but also draws attention to associated risks: - - Low-code platforms can speed up frontend development and facilitate quick updates, but customizations may take longer - or be outright impossible -, and frequent changes can lead to poorly planned updates and deployments. - - While they reduce the technical barrier by allowing non-technical team members to contribute, it can result in designs that are hard to maintain, have performance issues and a suboptimal user experience. - - Long-term costs and vendor lock-in are significant risks. - - Adopting a low-code platform may impact internal development processes, requiring careful synchronisation between frontend and backend efforts to ensure proper feature validation and testing. It is important to note that the choice between low-code platforms and traditional programming does not eliminate the complexity and effort involved in proper planning, clear definition and refinement of technical and business requirements, testing processes, quality assurance, information security, and stakeholder alignment. These elements are crucial to the successful deployment of an application and remain constant regardless of the coding approach. Low-code platforms address the coding aspect of application development, which is generally just a subset of the total effort required. All other aspects of the development lifecycle demand the same level of attention to ensure a successful outcome. Weighing the pros and cons of low-code in this context, where a development team already exists, though primarily focused on backend development, the recommendation is to implement a custom frontend using off-the-shelf frameworks and design systems. While there may be a need for specialised frontend work to bootstrap the project, ensure that all technical enablers are properly set up (internationalisation, linting, selection of a design system, etc.) and there’s a proper frontend architecture in place, it is expected that backend developers with minimal knowledge of frontend technologies and a willingness to learn beyond their area of expertise will also be able to contribute and modify the system as needed leading to a collaborative development environment. From an operational perspective, monitoring and deploying a static frontend application - as opposed to a backend application whose code runs on servers - should not present a challenge to the existing IT teams. This approach allows partners to maintain control over their development processes, implement complex use cases without having to circumvent limitations of low-code platforms, avoid vendor lock-in, and ensure that both frontend and backend are optimised for performance and user experience. ## *As you ponder about Technology and explore the potential within your software development practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of technical strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Scalable and efficient organization is not possible with just a large team in the Netherlands - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/how-nearshore-development-transformed-lessonup-insights-from-ceo-daan-giesen-on-partnering-with-25friday-in-portugal - Published: 2024-06-18T16:48:00.000Z ## Introduction [LessonUp](https://www.lessonup.com/) is a platform for teachers, where they can create and share interactive lessons with their students. [Daan](https://www.linkedin.com/in/daangiesen/) started in the education sector four years ago and has gained a lot of experience with digital platforms in various other sectors in the past. ## The move to Nearshore Development About three years ago, LessonUp began exploring the use of nearshore development capacity. The direct trigger for this was the difficult market when it comes to the quality of software engineers. *Daan*: "There are just a lot of challenges. Large tech workplaces like Booking.com and Bol.com can offer salaries and secondary working conditions that we, as a young company, could not. But we have a good mission and are trying to do something good for education in the Netherlands and Europe. That helps a lot, but still, to attract really good people, salaries and secondary conditions are an important aspect. So we tried to search with many different recruitment parties in the Netherlands, but that didn't work." ## The Portuguese and Dutch culture Although LessonUp came into contact with 25Friday through its network and Daan is personally well acquainted with the country, the choice of Portugal was a conscious one. Daan indicates that in nearshoring, even when it works well, cultural differences are clearly noticeable in the way of working and communicating. And about why the Dutch culture works well with the Portuguese. *Daan*: "What we share is that we both work hard. Portuguese people really have it in their culture that they have to work hard, because the situation there is like that, and there are dozens of others in line to take your job there. As a result, they work hard and deliver a lot of quality, that's what they stand for. I think that's a good combination with the Netherlands. I also see one big difference: risk-taking. A Portuguese person is very risk-averse. Where a Dutchman goes for it from an idea, a Portuguese person is more hesitant and first thinks about the how, why and the right way." *Maarten*: "That's recognizable. I notice a lot of commitment and loyalty at certain meetings or presentations - that's very strong in Portuguese culture. They like Dutch directness, because then they know where they stand. On the other hand, I notice that when there is uncertainty, we can be transparent about that with our Dutch and Portuguese colleagues, but that this is experienced differently." *Daan*: "The combination that you have made, which is very nice, is that the 25Friday organization is located in the Netherlands. So we have to do with you as a Dutch company and you see that other companies choose other options, with which they are completely established abroad." ## Taking time for Face-to-Face contact is essential LessonUp is located in The Hague, but not all employees come from that area. Not everyone is in the office every day, and a lot of remote working had already been set up. In that respect, there is little difference since the collaboration with a nearshore team. The only thing (the only thing...), says Daan, but that also applies to his Dutch colleagues who are not in the office. *Daan*: "To really look each other in the eye and be able to say and understand what is meant on both sides; for that you sometimes really need to be in the same room together. Especially when things are not going well. Taking the time for that remains essential." *Maarten*: "That's also why we contractually stipulate that team members come to the Netherlands twice a year. We see it as crucial that you are together in the same room three, preferably four times a year." ## Availability and quality, not costs, determine Nearshoring Asked about the start of the collaboration, Daan explains that it took some time to find the right communication: "It's a different culture, you have to get to know each other. And finding your way in a complex tech landscape is difficult for everyone. It doesn't matter whether you are in the Netherlands or somewhere else. You are just five, six months further before someone really understands the technical background. The nice thing for us was that we started with two people at the time and slowly scaled up. They can take on new team members and now we have six" (nearshore engineers). At 25Friday, we find a number of things important in nearshore development; availability, retention, flexibility to scale, and cost. Daan says that cost should not be the deciding factor for nearshoring, because: "Overall, you end up with the same cost", but: "Portugal has good universities where developers are well trained. In terms of quality, they are often better trained than here in the Netherlands or other countries. Secondly, we would have liked to have had some extra colleagues here in the Netherlands, but it is simply very difficult to recruit and retain them. And thirdly - if you can find colleagues here in the Netherlands, they are often already expats. For LessonUp, it is preferable for non-Dutch engineers to be together in two large hubs (The Hague and Porto), rather than individually spread over more places in the Netherlands. ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### 25Friday Product Guru Insights #2 - Saeed Khan - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/25friday-product-guru-insights-2-saeed-khan - Published: 2024-05-06T23:00:00.000Z ## Introduction Generally speaking, Software Product Development professionals are in the middle of a perfect storm of ideas, features, and deadlines. But in this frenzy, it's easy to lose sight of the bigger picture: **solving real problems for real people.** For the 2nd **Product Guru Insights** session, we have invited [Saeed Khan](https://www.linkedin.com/in/saeedwkhan/) to the virtual stage. Saeed is a Toronto-based thought leader in product management practice with 25 years of experience in B2B Product Management in Canada and the US. Saeed is an influential writer on [Medium](https://swkhan.medium.com/) and [Linkedin](https://www.linkedin.com/in/saeedwkhan/) and we often adopt his perspective in our way of working at 25Friday. Here is a summary of the key points and examples he argues, sharing deep insights for CEOs and product teams to highlight his philosophy on product development and the importance of focusing on problem-solving over mere solution implementation. - - **Beyond Solutions: Seek The Power of the Right Problem.** "We can always hack something in," Saeed acknowledges, "but that might be the easiest way, and it might constrain you in the future." Effective product managers understand the problem they're trying to solve before diving headfirst into solutions. This means conducting user research and employing design thinking methodologies to gather a deep understanding of user needs. Saeed emphasises the critical nature of understanding the problems a product aims to solve before jumping into solution creation. He cited a startup example where the founders were pre-customer and already had developed multiple features without a clear understanding of the problems they were addressing. This illustrates a common pitfall where companies become overly focused on features ("solution space") instead of delving deep into the "problem space"—a practice that could lead to products misaligned with actual customer needs. To further build on this point, Saeed emphasises; "Product management is the art of problems, not solutions." The most innovative features fall flat if they don't address a real need. By mastering the art of problem identification, B2B product leaders become the architects of successful, enduring solutions. A clear definition of problems is foundational to successful product development. Proportionally wielding discovery practices in the product management process is critical, rationalised by the idea that more time spent understanding the problem reduces time and debate over the solution. - - **The Strategic Importance of Language and Communication**. Throughout the conversation, Saeed returned to the importance of precise language and communication in product management. He argued that the way problems and solutions are described can profoundly influence the development process. By refining the language used in defining roadmaps and product strategies, teams can avoid confusion and misalignment that stem from ambiguous or imprecise communication. There is a lack of robust language and frameworks within many organisations for adequately defining problems. By using detailed inquiries about who has the problem, the nature of the pain points, and the problem's priority and urgency, teams can shift their focus from merely crafting features to truly addressing fundamental customer challenges. - - **Ditch the prioritization gimmicks**. Forget RICE (Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort) and other prioritization frameworks. These methods, Saeed argues, "are guesstimates... They don't tie back to strategy and objectives." Instead, prioritise based on what will achieve your clearly defined objectives. If you don’t have those cleary defined, it should be the priority of the product leader to do just that. When faced with multiple solutions, Saeed advises to choose "the path that is easiest, that also doesn't confine you in the future." This is the pragmatic approach; while efficiency is important, remember to consider the long-term implications of your choices. Don't paint yourself into a corner! - - **Roadmaps: Direction, not destination**. Many product managers get bogged down in creating detailed roadmaps. Saeed clarifies, "A roadmap is the output of a strategy process. It's about direction and strategy, not a commitment to specific features by specific dates." Think of it as a compass guiding your product's journey, not a rigid itinerary. Saeed also touched on managing the influence of large, strategic customers, especially in B2B environments. He stressed the need for a framework that helps product managers evaluate customer demands against the company’s product direction and broader market needs. This balance is crucial to avoid becoming overly driven by the needs of a few at the expense of many, or diverging from strategic product paths. - - **Embrace discipline, it's not the enemy of innovation**. "There's been far too much focus on delivery," says Saeed. Product development is a long game, and successful product leaders understand the impact of their work on the entire organisation. Discipline ensures that your team is strategically aligned and focused on achieving the company's goals. Product leadership isn't about blind feature delivery. It's about championing the problem-solution fit within your organization. This means: - - **Building and mentoring the right team**: Assembling a team with the skills and expertise to tackle complex B2B challenges. - - **Developing a product vision**: Guiding the product roadmap with a clear vision grounded in solving validated customer problems. - - **Cultivating a product-centric culture**: Ensuring that everyone from engineers to marketing understands the importance of focusing on client and user needs. **In Conclusion:** B2B product development thrives on a deep understanding of customer problems, not a relentless pursuit of features. By embracing the discovery phase, using language strategically, navigating client relationships effectively, prioritising with discipline, and focusing on the right problems, B2B product leaders can unlock success in complex and demanding B2B environments. Remember that true innovation stems from solving the problems that truly matter. ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Transforming Into a True Product Company: A Guide for the C-Suite - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/transforming-into-a-true-product-company-a-guide-for-the-c-suite - Published: 2024-05-06T23:00:00.000Z ## Introduction As an avid product enthusiast, I've had the privilege of listening to and engaging with thought leaders and practitioners who are co-steering this new paradigm in its current direction. Most recently, I attended a meetup featuring the esteemed Marty Cagan. He shared insights on how to pave the way for companies aspiring to become true product organisations. ## Start with Why: Communicating the Imperative for Change The first step in advising CEOs and senior management on embracing a product-centric model is to articulate the 'why'. Change for the sake of change is a recipe for resistance. Instead, leaders need to understand the tangible benefits: faster innovation, closer alignment with customer needs, and, ultimately, a robust bottom line. In playful terms, it's not about joining the bandwagon because it's shiny and new; it's about ensuring you're not left driving the horse and buggy in a Tesla world. ## Redefining Leadership: From Gatekeepers to Gardeners Transforming into a product company requires a shift in leadership style. Traditional command-and-control models, where decisions are made at the top and trickle down, are outmoded in a dynamic product environment. Instead, think of leadership as gardeners: their role is to nurture, provide resources, remove obstacles, and let the team cultivate the garden. This means empowering teams to make decisions close to the ground - where the action happens and where they can react swiftly to customer feedback and market changes. ## Cultivating an Empowered Product Culture One of the standout themes from Cagan's discussion was the importance of an empowered product culture. In such an environment, product teams are given problems to solve - not solutions to implement. This shift requires a deep trust in the team's capabilities and a robust framework for continuous learning and adaptation. To borrow a line from jazz, it's less about conducting a symphony and more about fostering a jazz ensemble, where improvisation and innovation lead to beautiful music. ## Continuous Discovery as a Habit If a company is the sum of its routines, then continuous discovery needs to be woven into the daily fabric of the organisation. This isn't just about occasional market research or annual surveys; it's about integrating customer feedback loops into every stage of product development. It means that every product team should be in constant dialogue with their users, testing assumptions, and validating ideas. It's akin to shifting from a diet mentality - where changes are temporary - to making a lifestyle change that's sustainable and impactful. ## Implementing a Product Operating Model The leap from traditional project management to a product operating model is perhaps one of the most tangible transformations. A product operating model focuses on outcomes rather than outputs. It’s about what we achieve, not just what we produce. Here, Marty Cagan's insights are particularly illuminating: adopting a product model means rethinking how we measure success. Are we tracking the right metrics? Are these metrics guiding us towards meaningful impacts for our customers and our business? ## Educating and Equipping the Top Brass Lastly, the transformation journey must include educating and equipping the company's leaders. They must be literate in the principles of modern product management - not to micromanage, but to provide the right support and make informed strategic decisions. This might involve tailored workshops, bringing in external experts, or immersive learning experiences. Think of it as equipping explorers with the best maps and tools for a journey into new territories. ## Conclusion Transforming into a product-centric company isn't about discarding everything that's come before. It's about evolving and adapting in ways that leverage your strengths in a digital, customer-oriented age. So, dear CEOs and management teams, consider this a playful nudge - nay, a rallying cry - to reimagine what your organisation can achieve as a true product company and seriously understand what it takes to get there! ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Product Discovery: Building Products that solve Real User Problems - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/product-discovery-building-products-that-solve-real-user-problems - Published: 2024-03-28T11:49:45.255Z ## The user-centric nature of Product Discovery At its core, Product Discovery is a strategic and iterative process aimed at uncovering user needs and translating them into successful SaaS solutions. It's not a one-time event, but rather a continuous cycle of exploration, learning, and refinement. Despite its age, the Double Diamond framework still provides a helpful model to understand this iterative nature: ![Double Diamond Framework](/media/cms/double_diamond_framework.png) _Source: www.designcouncil.org.uk_ **Discover**: This initial phase involves gathering insights through various methods like user research, competitor analysis, and market trend analysis. The goal is to understand the target audience's pain points, behaviors, and expectations. **Define**: Based on the insights gathered, the Product Team works to define the core problem(s) your product will address and the target user personas. **Develop**: This stage focuses on creating potential solutions through brainstorming, prototyping, and user testing. Here, Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) can be particularly valuable in validating ideas and gathering early user feedback. **Deliver**: Once a solution is deemed viable, it's time to deliver it to the market and monitor its performance. Data analysis and user feedback during this stage inform further iterations within the discovery process. This cyclical nature highlights the importance of ongoing user research and testing throughout the product development lifecycle. By continuously gathering feedback and iterating based on user needs, you ensure your SaaS product remains relevant and valuable to its users. ## Recognizing true Product Discovery Product Discovery has become a buzzy term in product development. However, simply going through the checklist doesn't guarantee success. Many companies fall prey to mistaking individual activities like user research for true product discovery, leading to wasted time and resources. Here are some key indicators that your Product Discovery efforts are on the right track: - - User-centric focus: The process revolves around understanding and addressing user needs, not internal agendas or top-down crafted feature roadmaps. - - Data-driven decision-making: User research, competitor analysis, and techniques like A/B testing constantly provide data to inform product decisions. - - Iterative approach: The discovery process is ongoing, with continuous learning and refinement based on user feedback. Simply put, a continuous repetition of the stages of the Double Diamond model. Make sure you’re aware of the following, indicating that your Product Discovery practice risks failing: - - Internal bias: Relying solely on internal assumptions - often advocated by people in powerful positions, like founders and CEOs - about user needs is a recipe for disaster. These assumptions may not reflect the actual reality of your target audience. True Product Discovery requires validating these assumptions through qualitative and quantitative user research techniques like interviews and surveys. - - Neglecting feedback: Gathering user feedback is crucial, but it is only valuable if it is acted upon. Failing to integrate user insights into the development process makes product discovery utterly ineffective. - - Feature factory: Getting caught up in building features without a clear understanding of the underlying user problems is a common misstep. True Product Discovery prioritizes solving user problems over simply adding feature after feature. ## Product Discovery is a Team Sport For product managers, it can be tempting to go it alone in the discovery phase. This might explain why product management traditionally led the process: a Product Manager explored, defined, and drafted a set of requirements, based on which a designer created a mockup. The engineer coded the solution, realizing only halfway that there was a feasibility issue resulting in the rewriting of requirements and reworking of design and code. Handing off work from one to another with only limited sharing of knowledge about the actual need, more than often leads to projects being delivered over budget, under scope, and late. The most effective approach leverages a cross-functional team called the Product Trio. While the name suggests three people, the focus is on the three critical disciplines, which can be filled by more individuals depending on the project. This trio should ideally consist of a business-minded Product Manager, a UX specialist, and a technically skilled person like an engineer, just like before. However, this team goes beyond simply dividing responsibilities. As Teresa Torres - author of the book “Continuous Discovery” - highlights, true collaboration is key: each member holds themself accountable for assessing all risks, not just those within their traditional domain. ![Product Discovery Venn Diagram](/media/cms/product-discovery-venn.png) - - The business person brings their understanding of market forces and customer needs to the table. - - The UX specialist covers the user's perspective, ensuring that discovered solutions are not just feasible but also intuitive and address core user problems. - - Finally, the engineer provides the vital element of technical feasibility, identifying potential constraints and ensuring the solutions can be built within reason. Together, this trio assesses viability, usability, and feasibility. By closely collaborating from start to end, they may be able to uncover hidden opportunities, identify and mitigate risks early on, and ultimately develop products that are successful and truly user-centric. This collaborative approach fosters a shared understanding of and responsibility for the product's direction, leading to more informed decisions and a higher chance of success. ## Effective Discovery techniques Unveiling user needs and translating them into a successful SaaS product requires a serious toolkit. Let’s explore some essential techniques that for a powerful foundation for effective Product Discovery. ### User research methodologies Going beyond assumptions and truly understanding your target audience is crucial. There are a ton of user research methodologies to leverage. A few examples: - - User interviews: In-depth conversations with potential users allow you to delve into their challenges, goals, and thought processes. This qualitative data provides rich insights that can inform product direction. - - Surveys: Reaching a broader audience with surveys allows you to gather quantitative data on user preferences and behaviors. This can help identify trends and prioritize features. - - Usability testing: Observing users interact with prototypes or early versions of your product reveals usability issues and areas for improvement. - - Competitor analysis: The SaaS landscape is dynamic. By analyzing your competitors' strengths and weaknesses, you can identify opportunities for differentiation and ensure your product addresses unmet user needs. - - Minimum Viable Products: Don't wait to get user feedback until your product is feature-rich. Deploying an MVP allows you to test functionalities with real users early state. This iterative approach minimizes development time and resources wasted on features that might not resonate with your target audience. Make sure the feedback you gather during MVP testing informs future iterations, ensuring you're building a product that truly addresses the user's needs. - - Prioritization: Not all needs are equally important to your users, nor are they equally impactful to your business. Effective Product Discovery emphasizes prioritization based on a combination of user needs and business goals. By adopting these techniques, you can transform Product Discovery from a buzzword into a truly strategic advantage, as they will empower you to make data-driven decisions and build products that drive user adoption and business success. ### Aligning Discovery with Business Value and Objectives Effective Product Discovery is not just about understanding user needs. It is about addressing those needs with solutions that drive business value for your product. Imagine pouring time and effort into delivering a feature that your users love, only to discover it does not significantly contribute to the bigger picture: your company's objectives. Closely aligning Product Discovery with business objectives ensures you're building solutions that not only address user pain points but also contribute to your overall business strategy. Ultimately, this alignment fosters: - - Improved resource allocation: Focusing on addressing needs that drive business value prevents the waste of resources on others, and allows your Product Team to focus their efforts on where they can make the largest impact - for both your customers and your business. - - Increased user adoption and customer lifetime value: People might buy products that delight them, but are only loyal to the products that properly solve their problems. Therefore, products that solve real user problems are more likely to be adopted and retained by users. By constantly addressing the most important user needs, you build customer loyalty and encourage long-term subscriptions. So, how do you turn these user needs into actionable business value? Some strategies: - - Frame user needs as opportunities: View user pain points not as obstacles or problems but as opportunities to create solutions that users are willing to pay for. The Opportunity-Solution tree by Teresa Torres can be of great help. - - User journey mapping: This technique visually maps out the steps users take to achieve a specific goal with your product. By identifying pain points and opportunities for improvement within the user journey, you can connect user needs to specific areas where your product can deliver business value. ## Product Discovery done right Product Discovery is an ongoing journey, but there is a crucial concept to consider: the law of diminishing returns. While continuous discovery is essential, over-investing in the process without delivering value to users can lead to wasted resources and delayed market entry. The key lies in finding the sweet spot between ongoing exploration and delivering features that provide tangible benefits. ![Law of diminishing returns](/media/cms/product-discovery-maximum.png) _Source: www.wikipedia.org_ So, how do you ensure your Product Discovery efforts are sufficiently effective and efficient? Here is what we suggest: - - Prioritise value delivery: While discovery is crucial, try to not get stuck in an endless loop of research and iteration. Instead, focus on delivering features that address validated user needs and provide concrete value. This allows you to start the feedback loop early stage. However, it won’t work out, unless you actively incorporate user feedback in your process. - - Embrace a data-driven approach: Set clear goals for your Product Discovery efforts and use accurate KPIs to measure progress. This is tricky, as many KPIs that are directly impacted by a feature are lagging indicators, meaning that impact only becomes visible after a longer span of time than is actually desired in an iterative process. Doing this right allows you to immediately identify areas for improvement and determine when additional discovery is needed, or just a waste of time and effort. Finding the sweet spot between discovery and delivery requires a strategic approach. By prioritizing value creation, embracing data-driven decision-making, and avoiding the pitfall of over-discovery, you can ensure your Product Discovery efforts keep contributing to the success of your product and thus, your business. ## Concluding remarks and key takeaways Product Discovery is a crucial step in creating successful solutions. It's an iterative process that prioritizes user needs and ensures your product solves their core problems. This user-centric approach, fueled by data and continuous learning, ultimately leads to products with strong market fit and sustainable growth. Key takeaways: - - Product Discovery is an ongoing process: Do not treat it as a one-time or e.g. quarterly event. Constantly review your thinking by embracing continuous learning and iteration based on user feedback. - - Collaboration is key: A cross-functional Product Trio, with expertise in business, user experience (UX), and technology, is essential. This team works together throughout the entire discovery process, not just dividing tasks. Each member takes responsibility for assessing all risks, not just those within their traditional domain. This fosters a shared understanding of the product's direction and leads to better decision-making. - - Focus on delivery of value: While discovery is crucial, don’t overdo it by gathering data until you are 100% sure you’re right. Always prioritize delivering features that address validated user needs over having all the data, as these early deliveries provide concrete value as well as data as a basis for decision-making and future iterations. Do you want to delve deeper into specific Product Discovery techniques? Or perhaps you'd like to know how 25Friday can help you navigate your Product Discovery practice? [Reach out!](/contact) --- ### 25Friday Product Guru Insights #1 - Randy Silver - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/25Friday-Product-Guru-Insights-1---Randy-Silver - Published: 2024-02-08T00:00:00.000Z ## Introduction If you are working in a startup or scaleup environment, you likely know the ropes of dealing with a chaotic and rapidly changing environment. You have probably also learned the hard way that effective product management is critical to having successful product iterations. Read on to discover valuable insights from [Randy Silver](https://www.linkedin.com/in/randysilver/), a real Product Guru with an impressive resume. Randy has been working as an interactive producer & product manager across the US & UK for nearly 20 years. Randy has held Head of Product roles at HSBC and Sainsbury’s, where he also directed their 100+-person product community. He's most recently been on the main stage at Mind the Product Conference 2023 in London where we had the pleasure of meeting Randy over drinks. Furthermore, Randy might have a familiar voice, as he has cofounded and produced over 200 episodes of The Product Experience podcast. Besides speaking at conferences and in podcasts, Randy also runs a product consulting business “[Out of Owls](https://outofowls.com/)”. In the interview, we focus on the importance of Prioritisation, People, Processes, and Perception. These concepts are more than theoretical; they are practical tools essential for guiding companies toward growth and innovation. Randy Silver touches upon these four P’s in depth. He explains the power of balancing priorities and making decisions, fostering a collaborative and effective product team, managing processes to enable efficient delivery, and understanding and influencing stakeholder perception. Randy also highlights the value of curiosity and empathy in product management and the need for cultural sensitivity in a global environment. He shares real-world examples of how the four Ps have been applied successfully and offers advice on managing change and seeking external perspectives. Something both 25Friday and Out of Owls are actively helping partners with. ## Priorities: The Cornerstone of Strategy Startups are often a whirlwind of ideas and opportunities and external consultants play a key role in helping teams to focus on what truly drives growth and aligns with their long-term vision. Silver's approach to prioritization involves not just identifying urgent tasks but understanding their impact on the company's broader objectives. ### Actionable Strategies: - - Balancing priorities is crucial in product management, and making decisions and focusing on a few key things at a time is essential. - - Implement a method like the Eisenhower Matrix to categorize tasks based on urgency and importance. - - Regularly review and adjust priorities to align with evolving market conditions and business goals. ## People: Building Strong, Autonomous Teams In fast-paced company environments, the composition of teams and cross-team collaboration are crucial. Silver notes that clarity in roles and autonomy are not mere ideals but necessities for success. Consultants should foster an environment where each team member knows their role and feels empowered to make decisions, thereby enhancing agility and responsiveness. ### Actionable Strategies: - - Fostering a collaborative and effective product team requires giving teams autonomy, understanding their responsibilities, and promoting proactive communication. - - Conduct team-building activities to map out individual strengths and align them with specific roles and responsibilities. - - Encourage teams to develop their own protocols for effective collaboration and decision-making. ## Processes: Agile and Lean Methodologies Finding the right balance in processes is a common challenge for startups and scaleups. Randy advocates for streamlined, efficient processes that facilitate rapid delivery without excessive bureaucracy. This approach involves adopting lean methodologies that focus on adding value and eliminating waste. ### Actionable Strategies: - - Managing processes is about finding the minimum viable process that enables effective collaboration and coordination without excessive bureaucracy. - - Introduce and tailor agile methodologies like Kanban or Scrum to fit the team’s unique dynamics. - - Regularly assess and refine processes to ensure they remain effective and relevant. ## Perception: Navigating Stakeholder Dynamics In the startup ecosystem, managing stakeholder perceptions is as important as managing the product itself. Randy underscores the necessity of effective communication, especially in multicultural environments where perceptions can vary significantly. Understanding and influencing these perceptions can have a profound impact on a product's success. ### Actionable Strategies: - - Understanding and influencing stakeholder perception is important, and ensuring an effective two-way communication and cultural sensitivity play a key role. - - Develop a comprehensive stakeholder communication plan that addresses varying cultural and individual perspectives. - - Engage in active listening and open dialogue to understand stakeholder concerns and expectations. ## Conclusion Applying Randy Silver’s 4P framework in the context of startups and scaleups offers a structured approach to navigating the complexities of product management. By focusing on these core areas, product people can provide invaluable guidance and support, helping these businesses to thrive in competitive and ever-changing markets. External perspectives can be valuable catalysts for change, but patience is necessary as organizational change takes time. ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Architecture Deep Dive: Co-Engineering HelloPrint’s Autonomous Frontend Widget Interactions - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/architecture-deep-dive-helloprints-autonomous-ai-support-agent - Published: 2024-02-08T00:00:00.000Z ## Introduction At **25Friday**, we partnered with **HelloPrint's** development team to engineer the critical interface layer of their new support ecosystem. The goal was to move beyond simple ticket routing to full resolution. The results speak for themselves: an **87% reduction** in total tickets reaching the Customer Experience (CX) team. This article explores the architecture behind the solution: a **sophisticated frontend integration** that unifies best-in-breed vendors. **Engaige, TalkJS, ****and**** HubSpot** into a seamless, single-pane experience for the user. ## The Challenge: Unified Experience at Scale HelloPrint required a solution that could handle massive customer support volume across multiple digital channels without degrading the user experience. While powerful tools exist for specific functions, such as AI processing, real-time sockets, and CRM, the challenge lies in the integration. HelloPrint needed a custom implementation that made these separate components feel like a single, native, and empathetic entity capable of autonomous resolution. ## The Solution: A Composable Architecture To meet these demands, the engineering team adopted a **Composable Architecture**. Rather than building a monolithic backend from scratch, the HelloPrint development team orchestrated a best-in-class stack, focusing our engineering efforts on the "glue" that creates a cohesive user journey. The architecture comprises four key pillars: - - **The Brain (Engaige)**: Handling the AI logic, intent recognition, and autonomous resolution capabilities. - - **The Nervous System (TalkJS)**: Managing the persistent WebSocket connections and message delivery infrastructure. - - **The Memory (HubSpot)**: Storing conversation logs and managing the state for human support agents. - - **The Frontend (25Friday)**: An engineered custom frontend widget that orchestrates these services in real-time. ## The Tech Stack: Advanced Frontend Engineering Since the heavy lifting of message transport and AI processing was handled/implemented by HelloPrint development team and third-party vendors, 25Friday focused on the critical "last mile": the Client-Side Architecture. The frontend is a custom **React application** utilising **Zustand** for complex state management. It is compiled as a single embeddable widget, designed to be dropped into any of HelloPrint’s web properties. Key architectural highlights include: - - **Strict Style Isolation**: To ensure the chat experience can be deployed anywhere without CSS collisions or JavaScript interference from the host page. - - **Real-Time State Synchronisation**: The widget acts as the conductor. When **Engaige** processes an intent or **TalkJS** pushes a message, the React state updates instantly, rendering dynamic UI elements (like order status cards) rather than just plain text. - - **Seamless Handovers**: One of the hardest technical challenges is the "blink" moment between AI and humans. Our integration creates a seamless transition where the user interface adapts instantly when **HubSpot** signals a human agent has entered the chat, preserving the full conversation history. ## Orchestration & UX The differentiator in this platform is how the frontend handles the orchestration. When a user asks, "Where is my business card order?", the widget doesn't just display a text reply. It captures the intent processed by the AI, fetches the relevant metadata, and renders a rich interactive component. This requires a tight coupling between the TalkJS event loop and the custom React components. This "Zero-Touch" support layer ensures that routine status checks and FAQs are handled autonomously, while the UI remains responsive and fluid. If the AI determines a query is outside its scope, the frontend logic triggers the handover pipeline, ensuring the support team in HubSpot receives the full context immediately. ## Measurable Results The impact of this composable approach was immediate. By adopting this architecture and applying custom engineering to the user experience, the platform achieved **84% ticket deflection**. This translates to an **87% reduction in CX tickets**, allowing the human team to focus exclusively on high-empathy issues that require genuine human connection. ## Conclusion The success of HelloPrint’s support agent proves that modern software development isn't always about building everything from scratch; it's about how effectively you integrate powerful tools. By leveraging **TalkJS, Engaige, ****and**** HubSpot**, and binding them together with a robust, type-safe **React architecture**, it was delivered a platform that is greater than the sum of its parts. At **25Friday**, we are proud to have co-engineered the experience that brings this future to life for HelloPrint. --- ### Orchestrating Intelligence: How 25Friday Integrated "Grub AI" to Cut Onboarding Time by 50% - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/orchestrating-intelligence-how-25friday-integrated-grub-ai-to-cut-onboarding-time-by-50 - Published: 2024-02-08T00:00:00.000Z ## Introduction **ComplianceWise** faced this exact challenge with their **Grub** platform. Their data showed that the compliance questionnaire alone was responsible for **46% of the total time** **spent** in the application and caused **76% of "dropped baskets"** (abandoned sessions). They needed a way to maintain rigorous regulatory standards while drastically speeding up the process for accountants. At 25Friday, we partnered with ComplianceWise to design and implement **Grub AI.** This intelligent agent automates the collection of facts from dossiers and documents, providing evidence-backed suggestions. This automation cuts **80% of repetitive work**, ultimately reducing the customer onboarding timeline by **50%**. ## The Challenge: The Contextual Data Trap The core challenge in automating AML checks isn't just processing data; it's understanding context. Junior accountants often lack the experience to answer subjective questions like "Why did this client engage our firm?" To determine if a client is compliant, the system must synthesise information from three distinct sources: - - **The Structured Context**: The explicit answers, legal entity structure, UBOs (Ultimate Beneficial Owners), and SBI codes confirmed in the client dossier. - - **Unstructured Documents**: Deeds, statutes, and extracts uploaded during the process. - - **Institutional Knowledge** (Similar Cases): Knowing how similar situations were resolved in other dossiers to ensure consistency A standard rules-based engine fails here. ComplianceWise needed a system capable of holistic reasoning, a system like a "Document Wizard", that could read files and fill out the questionnaire automatically. ## The Solution: A Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) Engine To solve this, 25Friday architected **Grub AI**, a solution based on the **Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)** pattern. The system does not replace the accountant’s assessment; instead, it acts as an intelligent assistant that pre-processes every check, synthesising vast amounts of data into proposed answers with review citations. The architecture relies on intelligent cross-referencing implemented by leveraging **Semantic Search and Proximity**. **What is Semantic Search & Proximity?** > Unlike traditional keyword search (which looks for exact word matches), our solution converts data into mathematical vector lists of numbers representing the meaning of the text. By calculating the "distance" between these vectors (Proximity), the system can identify concepts that are semantically related even if they don't share the same keywords. This allows the AI to "connect the dots" between a current risk flag and a historically similar case, ensuring the advice is consistent with the firm's past decisions. ## Architectural Deep Dive: The AI Workflow The core of the solution is a Python-based orchestrator that manages the flow of information between the data sources, the knowledge base, and the Large Language Model (LLM). Here is how the system processes a compliance profile: ##### **1. Profile Construction & Context Vectorisation** The process begins when the user fills out the Grub Client Dossier. As they input details such as the legal entity structure, operating countries, and key stakeholders, the system packages and tokenises this context. A "Company Context Object" is created and stored in the VectorDB, creating a searchable profile. ##### **2. The Document Wizard (Ingestion & Chunking)** Simultaneously, the Document Wizard processes unstructured data. When an accountant uploads files, the system splits them into semantic "chunks". These chunks are embedded and indexed in the knowledge base, linking specific paragraphs of legal text to the company's profile. This feature alone cuts out 80% of the manual effort of reviewing documents. ##### **3. Intelligent Retrieval (The Semantic Query)** When a specific compliance question arrives, the Python Orchestrator gathers the three key pillars of evidence: - - **Current Context**: The specific profile data of the client (Entity, UBOs, etc.). - - **Document Evidence**: The specific document chunks with the lowest semantic distance to the question. - - **Similar Case Hints**: The system queries the VectorDB for previously completed dossiers that match the current company's attributes. - - Privacy Note: To ensure security, **Open Questions** only fetches similar cases from the specific tenant (firm). **Closed Questions** can fetch anonymous patterns from the global dataset. ##### **4. The Reasoning Engine (OpenAI)** Once the evidence is gathered, the Orchestrator constructs a comprehensive prompt sent to OpenAI (acting as a subprocessor). The LLM analyses the holistic context, cross-references the document data against the application claims, and generates a proposed answer. Crucially, it provides reasoning and citations, allowing the accountant to verify why the suggestion was made. ##### **5. Human-in-the-Loop Delivery** The AI-generated suggestion is pushed back to the frontend. The accountant can review the pre-filled questionnaire, edit the suggestions if necessary, and complete the dossier. ## The Tech Stack Compliance Wise used a modern, decoupled architecture to ensure scalability and separation of concerns: - - **Visualisation & Context**: Angular + Java handling the user interface and building the initial company context structures. - - **Knowledge Base: Python + LangChain + VectorDB** to handle document chunking, embeddings, and semantic storage. - - **Inference Engine: Python + LangChain + OpenAI** to handle the reasoning logic and answer generation. ## The Results By implementing this custom AI architecture, ComplianceWise transformed a manual bottleneck into a competitive differentiator. The system provides consistent answers derived from intelligent cross-referencing, directly addressing the 46% of time accountants previously wasted on the questionnaire. The resulting **50% reduction in onboarding timelines** and **80% reduction in repetitive document** **work** have allowed firms to handle more clients without increasing staff. --- ### Product Vision: Aligning Organizational Goals for Strategic Success - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/Product-Vision-Aligning-Organizational-Goals-for-Strategic-Success - Published: 2024-01-10T00:00:00.000Z ## Prerequisites ### Company Vision and Mission A solid Product Vision should align seamlessly with the overarching Company Vision. The company's long-term goals, its values, and its aspirations serve as the foundation upon which the Product Vision is (or should be) built. This alignment ensures that your product contributes meaningfully to the organization’s overall objectives, fostering a coherent and unified approach. The company mission serves as a guiding star, directing the organization toward its intended purpose and impact. An effective Product Vision, in turn, should be an extension of this mission, telling your teams how the product will fulfill the company's broader objectives. Establishing a clear connection between the product's mission and the company's mission is essential for cultivating a sense of purpose and direction. The Company Vision outlines where you want to be. It communicates both the purpose and values of your business. Sometimes referred to as “why do you exist”. To you as a product professional, this implies that having a Company Vision and/or Mission are prerequisites for crafting the Product Vision. If either of these is unclear or not set at all, please don’t waste your time and head to your leadership team: the starting point is in their hands. ### Recommended tools and models Utilizing frameworks can be instrumental in aligning the Product Vision with broader business considerations. These tools provide you with a holistic view of the business, prompting thoughtful considerations about value propositions, customer segments, and revenue streams. Additionally, other tools that complement this framework can enhance the strategic planning process. #### Business Model Canvas At 25Friday, the Business Model Canvas introduced by Alexander Osterwalder is our personal favorite. It proves invaluable in visualizing key elements of a business. It facilitates a comprehensive exploration of a company's value proposition, customer segments, channels, and revenue streams. Involving this canvas in the Company Vision context allows for a structured examination of how the product contributes to the overall business model. ![Business Model Canvas](/media/cms/image1.png) _Source: strategyzer.org_ #### Other tools Beyond the Business Model Canvas, other strategic tools and models can fulfill a similar role in refining the company's vision and ensuring its alignment with the product. Depending on the industry and context, well-known tools such as SWOT analysis, PESTLE analysis, or the Value Proposition Canvas provide the insights and perspectives you need. ## Product Vision Now that the prerequisites for a Product Vision are clear, let’s dive deeper into the Product Vision theory. Part of the product vision is a forward-looking statement that articulates the desired future state of a product. It encapsulates the product's purpose, the value it delivers to users, and its role within the market. It serves as a source of inspiration for the development team, aligning their efforts towards a shared goal, and provides clarity to stakeholders about the product's long-term trajectory. As displayed in the diagram below, the Product Vision lives between Business Strategy and Product Strategy, being a product of Company Vision (and mission). And down the line, the Product Roadmap is a product of the Product Vision. ![Product Vision Canvas](/media/cms/image3.png) _Source: scrum.org_ > **The product vision is an ultimate future state serving as a North Star. It is the product’s final destination.** ### Great Product Vision and how it is different from the Company Vision The Product Vision is characterized by its ability to inspire and motivate, serving as a beacon for both the team working on it and the customers it aims to serve. It should not only be aspirational but also flexible, allowing for interpretation and adaptation as the product evolves over time. A great Product Vision places a strong emphasis on addressing a specific problem, clearly outlining the value it brings to the target audience. By combining inspiration, adaptability, and a focus on solving real-world challenges, the Product Vision will resonate with the needs of its intended users. The Product Vision goes beyond features and functionality. In fact, we urge you to not include specifics like these in your Product Vision for the simple reason that doing so will extend the shelf life of your Product Vision. Distinguishing a good Product Vision from a Company Vision involves recognizing their unique scopes. A Product Vision focuses on specific solutions to targeted problems while aligning seamlessly with the broader Company Vision. Unlike a Company Vision, which spans diverse business areas, a Product Vision is more precise. Also, Company Visions are often communicated openly and externally, while Product Visions have a slightly stronger internal focus. Try finding Product Visions using Google. What you’ll find is often Company Visions. ### Why is a product vision important to have A well-defined Product Vision serves as a compass for the product development journey. It not only guides decision-making throughout the development lifecycle but also fosters a shared understanding and commitment among team members. By offering a clear direction, the Product Vision helps in prioritizing features, making strategic decisions, and responding effectively to evolving market conditions. ### Who is responsible for the product vision Obviously the lead is with the product manager involved with the product, or part of the product. The department plays a central role in crafting and communicating everything around the Product Vision and making sure it is aligned with all stakeholders. Ultimately, the vision is not the story of the PM but is a collaborative effort that considers input from various stakeholders. Cross-functional teams, including designers, developers, and marketing experts, contribute diverse perspectives to ensure a holistic and feasible Vision. In the end, the responsibility for crafting a compelling vision and championing this Product Vision rests with the entire team. ## Crafting the Product Vision ### Artifacts in the Product Vision Landscape Crafting a great Product Vision involves creating artifacts that communicate the Vision effectively. These artifacts may include Vision Statements, User Personas, User Journeys, and Prototypes. Each of these elements contributes to a comprehensive narrative that conveys not only what the product aims to achieve but also how it will enhance the user experience. By now, you are probably starting to realize that crafting a Product Vision is not something to do on a Friday afternoon. As a matter of fact, this iterative process may take multiple days and often spreads out over weeks. ### The Product Vision Board Our 25Friday go-to method - The Product Vision Board developed by Roman Pichler - is a structured framework that guides teams through key aspects such as target customers, needs, and benefits. It prompts the exploration of crucial elements like the product's purpose, target users, and unique selling propositions. By using this canvas, teams can collaboratively define and refine their product vision, ensuring that it remains aligned with both user needs and business objectives. ![Product Vision Board](/media/cms/image2.png) _Source: romanpichler.com_ Additionally, other models, such as the Lean Canvas or Empathy Map, can provide valuable insights into user motivations and pain points, enriching the overall Product Visioning process. Further down the line, we suggest supplementing the Product Vision Canvas with other tools like the Impact-Effort Matrix or the Feature Prioritization Matrix to assist your teams in evaluating and prioritizing features based on their potential impact and development effort, contributing to your newly crafted, actionable Product Vision. #### Product Vision Statement Formula Up until now, we have argued some of the essentials required for effectively crafting a Product Vision or identifying the gaps in your company's initial attempts. To facilitate a seamless commencement, we supply you with a straightforward formula that will methodically organize your thought process when initiating the development of your Product Vision: The logic here is as follows: **[objective] = [means] + [effect] = [outcome]** More concretely: to **[accomplish something]**, by **[creating something]**, that **[does something to its users]**, **[resulting in something]** An example: to revolutionize how business people travel, by creating a globally accessible platform, that promotes sustainable choices, making the world a better place. ## Conclusion and recommendation In summary, a well-defined Product Vision propels your organization strategically, guiding decisions and prioritizing features effectively. Crafting a compelling Product Vision for a product-led SaaS organization involves aligning it closely with the overarching Company Vision and Mission. Utilize recommended tools such as the Business Model Canvas and complementary models like SWOT analysis for strategic alignment. A successful Product Vision is aspirational, flexible, and focused on addressing specific problems with tangible value for the target audience. It serves as a guiding compass throughout the products’ lifecycle, aiding decision-making and fostering team understanding. Responsibility for the Product Vision is ultimately with the leading Product Manager however the process of uncovering the details is collaborative and involves cross-functional teams. Use dedicated tools like the Product Vision Canvas and other models such as Lean Canvas for streamlined and aligned vision crafting. Extend these with Product Vision Statements and accompanying Statements and User Personas to form a compelling and effective narrative. --- ### Is It Time to Rethink Product Roles in Your Organization? - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/Is-It-Time-to-Rethink-Product-Roles-in-Your-Organization - Published: 2023-12-15T00:00:00.000Z ## From Feature Factories to Value Creation Traditional product management has often focused on the delivery of features, prioritising the completion of tasks and adherence to timelines or milestones. While this approach may be successful in some situations, it generally falls short in today's dynamic market, where customer needs and preferences evolve rapidly. This "feature factory" mentality, where product teams are solely focused on churning out features over a timeline, often leads to a disconnect between product development and business objectives. As a result of this behaviour, over time, organisations may find themselves investing time and resources into building products or features that customers ultimately no longer want or need. Thereby failing to achieve product and business goals. Some nuance should be given here to the fact that customers & users and their wants & needs can change as much as products and services do. It may be very well so that a certain product in a certain maturity stage will benefit from a feature factory. We argue here that even so, there should be a connection with the end user, focussing on delivering value, rather than the feature itself. To address this challenge, organizations must shift their focus from feature delivery to value creation. This requires a fundamental change in mindset, moving away from a product-centric approach to a customer-centric one. Product managers must become customer advocates, deeply understanding their needs, frustrations, and aspirations. Only then can they design and develop products that truly address user and customer problems and deliver tangible value. ## The Product Manager's Evolving Role To fulfil their expanded responsibilities, product managers must adopt a broader skill set and embrace a more holistic approach to product development. This includes: - - Strategic thinking: Aligning product decisions with the overall business strategy and ensuring that products contribute to achieving organisational goals. - - Data-driven decision-making: Leveraging data & analytics to understand customer behaviour, measure product performance, and inform product decisions. - - Cross-functional collaboration: Fostering a collaborative environment where product managers work closely with engineering, marketing, sales, and other teams to ensure alignment and shared ownership of product success. - - Customer-centricity: Embracing a customer-centric approach, prioritising customer needs and incorporating user feedback throughout the product development lifecycle. - - Continuous learning: Staying abreast of emerging trends and technologies to adapt product strategies and remain competitive in the market. ## The Importance of Product Validation Product validation is the process of ensuring that a product is solving a real customer problem and delivering value before investing significant resources in its development. This involves a continuous feedback loop, where product managers gather user feedback, analyse product usage data, and refine the product based on these insights. By incorporating product validation into the product development process, organisations can significantly reduce the risk of investing in products that fail to meet customer needs. This approach not only saves time and money but also leads to more successful products that resonate with the target audience. ## Rethinking Product Roles for Success To empower product managers to fulfil their evolving responsibilities and embrace product validation, organisations should rethink their product management structures and processes. This may involve: - - Establishing a product validation team: A dedicated team responsible for gathering user feedback, analyzing product usage data, and conducting product validation experiments. The UX research team can and should also play a role in this particular area. - - Investing in data analytics tools: Providing product managers with the tools and resources they need to collect, analyse, and interpret data effectively. - - Creating a culture of experimentation: Encouraging product teams to experiment with different product features and approaches, based on customer insights and data-driven decision-making. - - Integrating product validation into the product development lifecycle: Making product validation an integral part of the product development process, from ideation to launch and beyond. By embracing these changes, organisations can empower their product managers to drive innovation, deliver products that customers love, and achieve sustainable business success. ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the intricate maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Bridging Perspectives: Unpacking Product Management Across Borders - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/Bridging-Perspectives-Unpacking-Product-Management-Across-Borders - Published: 2023-11-29T00:00:00.000Z ## Value Over Complexity [Tim Harford’s](https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-harford-2b4876263/) keynote was a reminder that value often comes in simple packages. Think about this in terms of your own work: are you making things more complicated than they need to be? Are you focusing on delivering real value to your customers, or getting caught up in the sophistication of your products? ## Growth Over Structure Wise’s [Nilan Peiris](https://www.linkedin.com/in/nilanpeiris/) talked about making products that are not just better, but 10 times better than the alternative. In the Dutch market, with our pragmatic approach, are we creating that level of difference? Or are we getting lost in organizational structures and roles that don't necessarily serve our mission? ## Individual Paths Over Titles [Susana Lopes](https://www.linkedin.com/in/susanavideiralopes/) introduced us to the idea of dual-track career ladders, a concept that could resonate deeply within the Dutch market. Are we providing clear paths for growth that don’t force everyone into managerial roles, or are we sticking to a one-size-fits-all career trajectory? ## Learning Over Fearing Failure [Marc Abraham](https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrahammarc/) emphasized learning from failure. In the Netherlands, we pride ourselves on being direct and upfront. But does that extend to how we deal with product setbacks? Are we creating environments where learning is valued over playing it safe? ## Humanity Over Technology As AI becomes more prevalent, [Claire Woodcock](https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairewoodcock/)'s insights remind us to stay grounded in the human element. Let's ask ourselves: In our quest for the cutting edge, are we still building product with the customer at the heart? ## Perception Over Pretense [Randy Silver](https://www.linkedin.com/in/randysilver/) talked about the perception of collaboration. It's a good time to reflect on how we perceive our roles and collaborate with others. Are we working in silos, or are we truly leveraging diverse perspectives to achieve our mission? ## Final Thoughts The insights from the conference are a call to action: let’s take a hard look at our roles and ask the tough questions. Are we aligning with international best practices, or are we carving out a uniquely Dutch approach to product management? And most importantly, is it working? As we bring these thoughts back into our daily work, let's not just slip back into our defined roles. Instead, let's question, challenge, and redefine them to truly serve our products, our teams, and our customers. ## *As you ponder about Product and explore the potential within your product management practices, remember that you're not navigating these waters alone. We, the 25Friday team, are dedicated to guiding tech companies through the maze of product strategy. With our expertise in consultancy and nearshore development, we partner with organisations to fine-tune their product vision, align their teams, and craft strategies that resonate in today’s dynamic market. *[*Reach out*](/contact)* to us, and let's work together to turn your product challenges into successful ventures that stand out in the tech landscape.* --- ### Insights from #mtpcon London 2023 - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/Insights-from-mtpcon-London-2023 - Published: 2023-10-31T00:00:00.000Z ## Embrace Change in the Age of Tech [Tim Harford](https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-harford-2b4876263/), an economist and Financial Times journalist, kicked off the event by highlighting the importance of adopting cutting-edge technology and fostering organizational change. He stressed that the affordability, not sophistication, of products drives global transformation. Harford's emphasis on the necessity of organizational change in tandem with technological advancement is a key reflection of a growing trend in product management. In an era where technology evolves rapidly, it's crucial for organizations to adapt their structures and processes to stay competitive. This means embracing change as a constant and being agile in response to technological shifts. Also, this emphasizes the importance of explicitly including the intended systemic change in your product strategy, rather than focusing solely on the solution or even the technology. You can watch Harford's entire keynote on [Mindtheproduct.com](https://www.mindtheproduct.com/what-we-get-wrong-about-technology-by-tim-harford/). ## The impact of Advocacy in scaling products [Nilan Peiris](https://www.linkedin.com/in/nilanpeiris/), Chief Product Officer at Wise, emphasized the critical role of customer advocacy in product scaling. In a competitive market, word-of-mouth recommendations are invaluable. This trend underscores the need to create products that not only meet but exceed customer expectations, focusing on customer experience and loyalty. Wise's “10 times better product” approach to scaling through advocacy is in line with the contemporary product management focus on customer-centricity. As products become increasingly commoditized, creating a user experience that not only meets but rather exceeds expectations is essential for long-term success. Advocacy-driven growth, powered by satisfied customers, has become a leading strategy in the field. Wise's growth is a very striking example of this. Peiris keynote is available on [Mindtheproduct.com](https://www.mindtheproduct.com/10-years-wiser-lessons-learned-from-scaling-wise-by-nilan-peiris/). ## Mastering the Art of Failing [Marc Abraham](https://www.linkedin.com/in/abrahammarc/), Product Director at Backbase, discussed the importance of failing effectively. The already widely adopted continuous improvement and agile methodologies see failures as opportunities to learn and refine the product. The point however is to fail effectively, instead of just failing at some point and trying to draw learnings from it. This requires extra attention to making concrete what determines success, and therefore also the moment and the indicators of failure. Watch Abraham's entire talk [on the Keynote Kit](https://www.mindtheproduct.com/resources/mtpcon-london-2023-keynote-kit-resources/). ## Shaping perceptions for effective Product Management [Randy Silver](https://www.linkedin.com/in/randysilver/), Managing Director at Out of Owls. Silver - who has a ton of experience in the field that Jasper and I work in every day - highlighted the role of product managers as strategic influencers. Product managers are becoming key drivers of business growth, aligning product strategies with overall business objectives. Silver's insights reflect the evolving role of product managers and underscores the growing importance of aligning product strategies with overarching business goals, making product management a central part of a company's success strategy. The video of Silver’s keynote will most likely be released in the next few weeks. Until then, we recommend reading his [speaker's announcement](https://www.mindtheproduct.com/navigating-systematic-change-with-randy-silver/). Also, Silver is co-host of the [Product Experience Podcast](https://www.mindtheproduct.com/the-product-experience/), which is worth listening to. ## Embracing Villainy for Change [Randeep Sidhu](https://www.linkedin.com/in/randeep-sidhu/), Former CPO at Reliance Health and former Head of Product for the NHS Covid-19 app, discussed the need for Product professionals to challenge the status quo and become change agents. Product managers should be encouraged to disrupt traditional thinking and drive meaningful change. This fosters a culture of innovation and bold decision-making. Until the full video registration of Sidhu’s talk is released, you may want to listen to Sidhu’s interview in the [Product Experience Podcast](https://www.mindtheproduct.com/rerun-lessons-from-building-the-uks-test-and-trace-app-randeep-sidhu-on-the-product-experience/). --- ### Roadmapping - URL: https://www.25friday.com/articles/roadmapping - Published: 2023-10-16T23:00:00.000Z ## Introduction ### The importance of roadmapping for successful product development One of the things we share as product owners, is the countless and countless times we are asked: “Can you please put this or that on our roadmap?”, or even better: “In which quarter (or even sprint) is this feature on our roadmap?”. While these are valid questions in a product context, they overlook what a roadmap actually is. There are so many misconceptions about the purpose of a roadmap, its form and its position among all other product management artifacts in the organization that it can be very difficult for you as a product owner to choose the right approach. The 3rd edition of our Product Owner Circle focused on unraveling all these misconceptions and offering concrete tools with which you can be more successful through the right creation and use of roadmaps. ### Guiding product development and measuring success A roadmap is more than a prioritized list of features. When the roadmap has been created correctly, it becomes a strategic document that aligns with the mission, vision, short-term goals and long-term goals, providing direction to the product development organization. However, let's start from the beginning... ### Company vision, mission and product vision In software scale-ups, having a clear company mission and vision is the cornerstone of success. The mission outlines your company’s purpose and values, serving as a guiding star for all stakeholders. It tells everyone in the company why we’re doing what we’re doing. Vision, on the other hand, paints a picture of the future state, providing direction and motivation. Mission and vision are sometimes combined into one guiding statement. The company vision informs the product vision, ensuring alignment with broader goals. And the product vision in its turn, translates the company's aspirations into tangible products. A well-managed interplay between these visions enables you as a product owner to create a roadmap that resonates. Although not set in stone, note that visions must be fixed for as long as possible. Strategies, however, are adaptable and reactive, driven by factors like new knowledge and market behaviour. Many frameworks will serve you well when translating vision into strategy and plans. At 25Friday, we like the simplicity of the OKR framework. ### Turning mission and vision into strategy by defining OKRs Setting objectives and key results (OKR) has proven itself as a great way to steer software startups toward success. By defining ambitious and inspiring, objectives and quantifiable, timebound key results, you create a strategic framework that effectively provides alignment and motivation while closely measuring progress. OKRs thus not only guide development but also foster a culture of keeping focus, propelling your company toward sustainable growth. Note that OKRs are time-bound and can be applied to different time spans; e.g. the company might define a structure of yearly company OKRs as a guidance framework for the quarterly OKRs that are set by teams individually. In the first quarter using the OKR framework, objectives may not be fully met as teams are adapting. Don’t be surprised. We have seen many of our customers fail at their first attempt to successfully use OKRs. It is essential though, to make sure that the teams as well as the leadership hold on to the framework after this somewhat expected setback. Introducing or strictly enforcing a framework like this means organizational change. And it’s the people in the organization that are changing, not the organization itself, so don’t rush into conclusions too soon. Over time, as the framework becomes ingrained in the company culture, teams will surely improve their focus and goal achievement. Now that you have a clear picture of what you want to achieve and when, it’s time to start setting up your product roadmap. This article summarizes our Product Owner Circle on roadmapping in a product-led organization, which took place in May 2023. ## Roadmap Realisation and Prioritisation ### Why you need a roadmap A roadmap serves as a strategic document. It outlines priorities and milestones essential for achieving the objectives and, consequently, realizing your product. An important - if not the most important - goal of your roadmap is to provide your team, your stakeholders and the rest of the organization with a clear sense of direction and vision fostering alignment. ### Prioritization of work By creating a roadmap, development teams can effectively prioritize their tasks. They can separate features, improvements, and fixes that need to be addressed now from the ones that may be handled later, enabling resources to be allocated efficiently and minimizing bottlenecks. ### Communication Roadmapping also facilitates effective communication, both within the development team and with your stakeholders. It helps manage expectations and enables teams to transparently communicate progress, challenges, and plan adjustments. This transparency builds trust and promotes a sense of ownership among team members, leading to more motivated and engaged employees. Depending on the role and context of your stakeholder, you might even want to tailor the roadmap to specific needs, by adjusting the level of detail or focusing on e.g. dependencies rather than the items themselves. ## The process of product roadmapping ### How to get from objectives to roadmap items Before we continue, you must understand that there is no point in even thinking about roadmap, if there’s no company-wide consensus about objectives. So, if you've made it this far and there's even the slightest suspicion of misalignment, don’t waste your time and go manage your stakeholders. It’s really a matter of garbage in = garbage out here. But let’s assume that all this is set and done. The first thing you want to do is get together with your stakeholders to try and figure out how the objectives you all agreed upon could be achieved, within the given timeframe (e.g. quarter). This will result in lists of jobs to be done and features or enablers to be implemented. Depending on the size of your company, you as a Product Owner can take the lead in this process or leave this up to someone up the chain. Also, there’s the question of who to involve. Some companies are open to a cross-team exercise, while for others a per-team approach may work bettter. Look into different brainstorming techniques and choose what you think fits best. For larger scale-ups, borrowing the “Quarterly planning” principle from the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) could be really helpful. ### Prioritizing roadmap items Once you know what needs to be done to achieve your objectives, it’s time to prioritize. After all, you want to invest your time and resources first into delivering things that offer the most value to your customer in the shortest amount of time. One way to prioritize items is by categorizing them into Must-haves, Should-haves, Could-haves, and - if you like - Won't-haves, following something called the MoSCoW method. Another method is to also look at what will make users really happy (delighters) and what's essential (basics), using a model called the Kano Model. Unlike MoSCoW, this model also takes the investment that implementation requires into account. A third option is the RICE model, which stands for Reach, Impact, Confidence, and Effort, along with Weighted Scoring. These tools help measure how many people a roadmap item will affect, how important it is, and how difficult it will be to build. ### Value vs. Effort At 25Friday we like to use a combination of value and an estimation of effort. Your starting point is the list of items that resembles everything that needs to be done to achieve your objectives. - - **Assign Value Scores**: for each item on the list, assign a value score. This score should reflect the perceived value that the item will bring to your product. Factors to consider when assigning value scores can be: customer impact, revenue potential, strategic alignment with goals, and user feedback. Be sure to involve stakeholders to gather their input on the value of each item.You can make this as complicated as you want by e.g. weighing the scores against the hierarchy of objectives that an item aligns with. However, for first use, we recommend keeping it simple and just using a numerical scale (e.g. 1 to 10). - - **Assign Effort Scores**: evaluate and estimate the effort required to execute each item. The effort can include various aspects: development time, design work, testing, and any other resources or dependencies needed. Again, use a numerical scale to rate effort and for first use, you might want to start with just development time. It is essential to involve your team members or ask subject matter experts to provide accurate effort estimates, as without this, your roadmap loses support among those who were supposed to carry it out. The more senior a team is, the easier the process of assigning effort scores will become. If your team is reluctant to provide concrete estimates, using T-shirt sizes (to be converted into quantitive scores later) might be a way to overcome this hurdle. - - **Calculate the Value-Effort ratio**: now, calculate the value-effort ratio for each item by dividing its assigned value score by the effort score. This ratio tells you which items provide the most value relative to the required effort. Visualizing the result in a value-effort quadrant has proven itself to be a great way to make your stakeholders understand the outcomes. The formula: Value-Effort Ratio = Value Score / Effort Score - - **Prioritize and create the roadmap**: as a last step, prioritize the items based on their value-effort ratio. Items with the highest ratios should be placed at the top of your roadmap, meaning that they should be executed first. ![Value/effort quadrant](/media/cms/value_effort_score.png) While this method seems to provide you with a click-and-go roadmap, be aware of other factors, such as market conditions and resource availability, that may also influence your prioritization decisions. Review the output with your stakeholders, be flexible, and adjust your roadmap as necessary. It’s never set in stone. ### Roadmap timespan In our opinion, a roadmap covers a timespan of two quarters maximum. Generally speaking, roadmaps that look more than two quarters ahead, tend to be subject to radical change and thus lose their value. Moreover, scale-up companies often set their objectives on a quarterly basis, and looking ahead two quarters is difficult enough already. That does not mean however that you should not or cannot make a long-term roadmap: going beyond that 6 month line is still possible and can be crucial for some stakeholder groups. Keep in mind though, that the the part after the first two quarters will be less fine-grained. In other words, the further you look into the future, the more high-over the roadmap items will become. ## Conclusion - - Roadmaps need to be goal-oriented and tightly connected to the product strategy - - Roadmaps can have many practical forms and lengths, tailored to a specific audience or purpose - - Roadmaps are shared and commonly understood by their audience - - Roadmaps are agile and need to be kept up to date constantly - - Roadmaps resemble a plan, not a planning - - Underpromise & overdeliver ### Adapt and improve By integrating the methods above into your everyday practice, you will not only improve your individual performance as a PO but also drive the success of your product to the next level. As with the development of your product, your approach must be based on effort and impact, and trying to improve all at once may be a long shot. So analyse your own daily practice and take a close look at what is already going well and what leaves room for improvement. Try to pinpoint where you can achieve a big effect with only little effort. If you need advice or help with implementing your new way of product roadmapping, don’t hesitate to reach out! We’re happy to help. --- ## Cases ### HelloPrint Enhances Product Upload Speed by 10X with New PIM System - URL: https://www.25friday.com/cases/helloprint-enhances-product-upload-speed-by-10x-with-new-pim-system - Published: 2024-09-23T16:10:51.459Z - Summary: [object Object] --- ### Strategic Roadmapping and Development: HIX's Partnership for Enhanced Product Alignment - URL: https://www.25friday.com/cases/hix-securelogin-strategic-roadmapping-and-development-partnership-for-enhanced-product-alignment - Published: 2024-09-23T14:22:19.593Z - Summary: [object Object] --- ### Overcoming Talent Gaps: LessonUp's Nearshore Solution - URL: https://www.25friday.com/cases/lessonup-overcoming-talent-gaps-nearshore-solution - Published: 2024-09-23T14:22:19.593Z - Summary: [object Object] --- ### Empowering Online Gaming: Nederlandse Loterij's Casino Platform Development with Nearshore Team - URL: https://www.25friday.com/cases/nederlandse-loterijs-casino-empowering-online-gaming-platform-development-with-nearshore-team - Published: 2024-09-23T14:22:19.593Z - Summary: [object Object] --- ### Hybrid Team Transformation: The Storytelling Company's Shift to Local and Nearshore Development - URL: https://www.25friday.com/cases/purple-hybrid-team-transformation-shift-to-local-and-nearshore-development - Published: 2024-09-23T14:22:19.593Z - Summary: [object Object] --- ### Scaling Up for Success: WeFact's Enhanced Software Capabilities and Client Retention - URL: https://www.25friday.com/cases/wefact-scaling-up-for-success-enhanced-software-capabilities-and-client-retention - Published: 2024-09-23T14:04:41.842Z - Summary: [object Object] --- ### Accelerating KYC Solutions: ComplianceWise and Grub's Rapid Product Launch - URL: https://www.25friday.com/cases/compliancewise-accelerating-kyc-solutions-and-grub-rapid-product-launch - Published: 2024-09-23T14:00:41.910Z - Summary: [object Object] ---