1 tip & 3 resources per week to improve your Strategy, OKRs, and Discovery practices in less than 5 minutes.
🛠️ How to predict the future of your OKRs (and why it matters)
How to predict the future of your OKRs (and why it matters)​Dear Reader,​ Ever sat in an OKR review meeting feeling like you're just going through the motions or reporting without meaning? You're not alone. As a Head of Product, I've been there too. But what if I told you there's a way to make your OKRs truly useful for decision-making? Let's dive in. The power of predicting the futureOne of my favorite ways of helping teams pressure-test their OKRs is by trying to predict the future. I want them to think about the answer to “Imagine a check-in 4 weeks down the road. With whom will you look at these OKRs and discussion emerges from looking at the changed values and confidence?” This is similar to a premortem exercise. By predicting the future, teams can anticipate how useful their OKRs are for making decisions. Why typical OKRs fail the "check-in-ability" testLet’s use one of the first (documented) KRs I wrote as a Head of Product 6+ years (don’t judge me): KR1: Understand 'feature' map of product status quo and compare with user expectations. KR2: Develop design guiding principles for product simplification. Imagine a check-in four weeks down the road: A: “How are we doing on KR1?” B: “I think we better understood the feature map.” A: “Ok, by how much?” B: “I think would put the confidence at 80%".” A: “But…why?” B: “Because it still feels on track.” A: “And KR2?” B. “We have scheduled a first meeting to discuss the design guiding principles. So, I estimate the progress to be about 20%.” A: “Will you do anything differently based on the progress of these KRs?“ B: “No, I think everything works according to plan.” A:
How would you rate the check-in-ability of these KRs? Spoiler: NOT GREAT. They can neither demonstrate real progress nor guide a conversation about priorities. But fixing KRs like these by just adding numbers would be too short-sighted. After all, how check-in-able is a KR with a number, if you can’t influence it, if it’s too lagging, or if it’s a generic KPI? Predicting the future of your OKRs isn't about being psychic. It's about understanding what they will help you do differently later, so they can be more useful now. Did you enjoy this one or have feedback? Do reply. It's motivating. I'm not a robot; I read and respond to every subscriber email I get (just ask around). If this newsletter isn't for you anymore, you can unsubscribe here. Thank you for Practicing Product, ​Tim​ What did you think of this week's newsletter?
As a Product Management Coach, I guide Product Teams to measure the real progress of their evidence-informed decisions. I focus on better practices to connect the dots of Product Strategy, Product OKRs, and Product Discovery. |
Product Practice Newsletter
1 tip & 3 resources per week to improve your Strategy, OKRs, and Discovery practices in less than 5 minutes.
Product Practice #359 Make OKRs Drive Decisions,not Spreadsheets READ ON HERBIG.CO PUBLISHED Apr 18, 2025 READING TIME 5 min & 32 sec Dear Reader, Last week, we explored how treating Product Strategy like a product helps you avoid "Alibi Progress" — prioritizing correctness over value. Today, let's apply this same thinking to OKRs. If you've ever found yourself more relieved that the quarterly OKR-setting theater is over than excited about the OKRs themselves, you've experienced the symptoms...
Product Practice #358 Why your Users don't careabout your Product Strategy READ ON HERBIG.CO PUBLISHED Apr 11, 2025 READING TIME 3 min & 24 sec Dear Reader, One of the most powerful ways to spot and stop Alibi Progress is to start treating our practices like products. This means clearly defining three elements: Audience: For whom is this practice meant? Problem: What core problem does this practice aim to solve? Success: How would we know this practice has delivered value? The question then...
Product Practice #357 B2B vs. B2C Product Strategy READ ON HERBIG.CO PUBLISHED Apr 4, 2025 READING TIME 3 min & 30 sec Dear Reader, When I switched from B2C to B2B product management, I had to unlearn many tactical approaches - but the strategic fundamentals remained surprisingly consistent. The truth is that B2B and B2C product strategies share core patterns while differing primarily in execution. Key Similarities 1. Blended Audience Considerations Even dedicated B2C companies must consider...