Stop Gathering Requirements - Start Defining Success

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto S TO P G AT H E R I N G R E Q U I R E M E N T S S TA R T D E F I N I N G S U C C E S S

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto R E Q U I R E M E N T S A R E N E V E R “ G AT H E R E D ” https://twitter.com/jeckman/status/719852834947248129

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nV7u1VBhWCE

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto R E Q U I R E M E N T S A R E N ’ T G AT H E R E D • They don’t exist yet • People don’t know what they want until they see it • Some don’t know what they want until they see enough of “not it” • Your job is to help them understand what could be, not take orders http://bizarro.com/comics/february-7-2015/

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto “ B U Y E R S A R E L I A R S ”

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto “ B U Y E R S A R E L I A R S ”

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto “Scope deﬁnition is a full-contact sport” - J O H N E C K M A N https://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs/2013/05/13/toronto_maple_leafs_defenceman_jake_gardiner_goes_from_healthy_scratch_to_difference_maker_vs_boston_bruins_cox.html

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto http://www.productmanagerclub.com/2016/04/27/show-dont-ask/#prettyPhoto

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto https://hbr.org/2011/08/henry-ford-never-said-the-fast

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto https://hbr.org/2011/08/henry-ford-never-said-the-fast We have no evidence that Ford ever said those words.

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto https://hbr.org/2011/08/henry-ford-never-said-the-fast We have no evidence that Ford ever said those words. “his tone-deafness to customers’ needs . . . had a very costly and negative impact”

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto I N S T E A D, D E F I N E S U C C E S S

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto D E F I N I N G S U C C E S S What? For Whom? Why?

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto D E F I N I N G S U C C E S S

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto D E F I N I N G S U C C E S S

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto D E F I N I N G S U C C E S S

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto S H OW D O N ’ T T E L L • Sketch, Prototype, Iterate • Test - with real users • Measure and deﬁne baselines against which to track improvement

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto http://www.tamingdata.com/2010/07/08/the-project-management-tree-swing-cartoon-past-and-present/

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto K E E P O P T I O N S O P E N • Don’t get locked in to “over-speciﬁed” requirements • Differentiate between goals and tactics, make sure requests are aligned • Requirements will change (they should!) • Plan far enough in advance, (but no farther)

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John Eckman • @jeckman • #wcto C O N T R AC T S • How can you do contracts in the absence of detailed requirements? • Discovery as a paid effort, based on high level deﬁnition • Scope to budget • BRD as a fetish object - gives us the impression of control (not the reality)

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john@10up.com @jeckman johneckman.com openparenthesis.org goatless.org