PRODUCT MANAGEMENT
The Importance of Saying “No” in Product Management.
Prioritize effectively, stay focused, and build trust with stakeholders for optimal results.
Product & Leadership Playbook
Play 13/196 — You gotta say NO
Spending enough time in the field, Product management is really a job that is all about making tough decisions and prioritizing what matters most for the success of our product and business. Just like when you open your Lego Kit and get overwhelmed with all the pieces, in product management while spending time on duty, all of a sudden you get so many stakeholders and requests, it can be challenging to stay focused and avoid distractions. Going into conflict is at the same time when people start to feel, of course depending on the internal political landscape, somewhat distant and hesitant.
“Half of the troubles of this life can be traced to saying yes too quickly and not saying no soon enough.” — Josh Billings
So why is it still so important to say no, especially when the Roles and Responsibilities are not even?
Focus
Foremost, saying “no” will help you and the team to maintain the focus on the most important initiatives. When Product Managers, especially in the early phase of their Careers, say “yes” to every request or feature, they risk diluting their efforts and losing sight of their product vision. By saying “no” to distractions, allows the team to stay focused on their core initiatives and deliver value to our customers. In order to find out what to work on, and how to find the right balance, I have already written this article: Where to set the focus, in order to achieve outstanding Products which people actually love?
Trust
People often have the perception that saying “no” may seem counterintuitive to building trust with our stakeholders, but it is actually critical for establishing credibility and transparency. “No” is going to get friction and while it is actually a normal process of figuring out what is right when we say “no,” we need to provide a clear explanation for our decision and ensure that our stakeholders understand our reasoning. Therefore, it requires the product managers to get their facts, details, and background information together. This approach demonstrates that we have thoroughly considered the request and its potential impact on our product and business goals. Additionally, providing an explanation allows our stakeholders to align their expectations with our product roadmap.
Prioritization
Product Management is not keeping stakeholders happy, but delivering value to the customers which benefit the business. If you want to deep-dive into that subject, here is your next article: Customer Satisfaction First: Mastering the Art of Prioritizing Customers over Stakeholder Satisfaction. To get back, saying “no” is essential for effective prioritization. As product managers, we need to ensure that our resources are allocated to the most critical initiatives that align with our product vision and business goals. By saying “no” to low-priority requests or features, we can free up resources and focus on what matters most. This approach helps us avoid the trap of spreading ourselves too thin and not delivering on any of the requests.
Decision-Making Process
Finally, saying “no” and describing our learnings from the decision-making process is a critical aspect of continuous improvement. By reflecting on our decisions and learnings, we can identify areas where we can improve our prioritization process, communication strategies, or product roadmap. This approach ensures that we are constantly learning and growing as a team and as a product. In order for you to get better at decision-making, here is your next article: Get better at decision-making, by following this one trend.
About the author:
Hi, I’m Lehel. I became a product manager to fuel my curiosity in technology and business management by creating digital products. My journey allowed me to dive deep into product design, user experience, business administration, and learning multiple programming languages. I have been fortunate to lead programs for successful Startups and Fortune 500 companies whereas a leader, my focus is on establishing a great product culture to help people strive by following servant leadership and radical candor principles. In my free time, I write about product management & leadership topics to document the learnings of my past 15 years in the field.
It starts with:
- How People Analytics helps to empower and manage tech teams?
- How to map business value with human capital?
- The 5 pillars of scaling cross-functional teams
- 12 Best Books to read in 2023 as a Product Leader
- How to set crystal clear goals as a Leader?
- How to Master the Art of Product Planning?
- The most important job of a Product Leader.
- Discovering the Right Course of Action: How to Make Tough Decisions
- 12 reasons, why successful product leaders regularly collaborate with their team members.
- Gather facts, not just opinions, to make informed decisions.
- Your failures will make you beyond successful if you follow this simple process.
- Product Manager Hiring: The Decision-Making Engine.
- Get better at decision-making, by following this one trend.
- Customer Satisfaction First: Mastering the Art of Prioritizing Customers over Stakeholder Satisfaction
You can find me at lehelkakonyi.com as well.
