It is quite common for there to be disconnected relationships between business, the market, and software development in companies today: Whilst business interests are usually expressed in commercial terms, software or technical interests are expressed as a desire to produce the right solution. Market interests are usually expressed in economic terms, and the need of users to do a job or perform a task.
These different interests may also be brought to bear in unequal strength. This disconnectedness, especially when applied to external parties such as the market and some stakeholders, often leads to mismatched expectations and disappointment.
Balanced relationships
The solution lies in business, the market, and software production working together through the role of product owner. Through the product owner priorities are set based on the business goals and user needs for each incremental delivery of software. These priorities are moderated against the realities of software production and maintenance by considering aspects of feasibility, resource capacity and complexity.
Product ownership is the key to balanced relationships between stakeholders, the market, and software production. A product owner achieves this by directing the software development team to deliver the right solution to market that meets user needs and stakeholder expectations, in a way that is innovative, ethical, and respectful of the rights of others. Product owners carry out their duties with a relationship focus.
The right solution meets user needs, and here is it always important to remember that users use the solution in the context of their business process, in other words to do their jobs or to perform a particular task. The right solution also achieves stakeholder objectives, which are usually, but not always, expressed in currency.
Give only your best people to the role of Product Owner, and trust them to do a good job. You’ll be glad you did.
