While creating a Sitecore website, do you use a Product Mindset or a Project Mindset? Many organizations focus on a project rather than a product, is that the right approach?
Product Mindset Vs Project Mindset
Fifteen years back, when I started my career as a Project Manager, I delivered lots of projects for my clients using the waterfall approach. That was a time when to build a website, the organization used to follow a project-based approach. It involved taking the client requirements all at once, creating a project plan, and then starting the development based on those requirements. At that time, we did not know that there could be a better approach, i.e the product approach rather than the project approach to delivering successful products using the Agile methodology.
A Project Mindset work in silos, however, a Product Mindset bring in improved customer satisfaction, better business results, greater team connection, and more flexibility.
A Project Mindset focuses on time, budgets, and deliverables, however, a Product Mindset focuses on Business outcomes
A Project Mindset focuses on launching the solution that they think is right for the customers, however, a Product Mindset evaluates the product they are delivering at every step to understand if this is what the customer needs.
A Project Mindset aims to deliver everything in one go without understanding its success or failure, however, a Product Mindset goes in batches and evaluates the success or failure in real-time and accordingly proceeds.
A Project Mindset deals with higher risk if the project is unsuccessful, however, the Product Mindset plays smart and hence reduces the risk.
A Project Mindset aims to deliver the project once it is fully ready, however, a Product Mindset delivers in phases, hence promising better quality.
A Project Mindset focuses on perfection which if not achieved can fail a project, however, a Product Mindset focuses on progress.
Fail Fast If You Want To Succeed
This is the principle behind every successful product, instead of aiming to succeed, aim to fail fast. In the previous, waterfall approach, an organization used to spend a ton of investment and resources towards a product whose success can only be determined after the launch. The agile product mindset helps you quickly convert an idea into an MVP and launch the same for your customers to understand if it will be a success or a failure.
It is always better to fail fast than to fail at a point where there is no comeback.