Looking to consistently build great products that make a mark? You’re in the right place. This article deciphers the product management frameworks that top companies like Amazon and Spotify employ for sustained success.
The best companies in the market—Amazon, Spotify, Shopify, and others—leverage specific product management frameworks to ensure repeatable success in product development. These frameworks guide teams through the entire product lifecycle, covering discovery, prioritization, and execution. Adopting such a framework will provide you with a structured, proven approach to consistently delivering great products.
We have delved deep into the product management frameworks of five top-tier companies. Stick around to uncover their strategies, step-by-step processes, and unique innovations.
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Inside the Frameworks: Building Blocks of Success
Frameworks are not one-size-fits-all; they are deeply rooted in the culture and business objectives of each company. Whether it’s Spotify’s experimentation or Amazon’s customer-centric approach, they all offer valuable insights. We cover each framework in detail, offering data-backed reasoning, insightful quotes, and revealing nuances that can help you tailor these frameworks to your own organizational needs.
The Experimental Culture at Spotify
Spotify uses an “Experimental Framework” that thrives on the autonomy of its squads—small teams of 6-12 people, each aligned to a specific mission within the larger Spotify ecosystem. Their model is designed in four stages: “Think It, Build It, Ship It, Tweak It.” This model encourages a culture of ongoing iteration and validation before a feature is rolled out to the broader user base.
Amazon’s Backward Approach to Product Management
Amazon employs a “Working Backward” approach, where the product’s end-goal is envisioned first. The internal press release is written before any development begins, focusing solely on the customer’s problem and how the new product will solve it. This process ensures that the final product will indeed cater to the customer’s actual needs.
Typeform: A Two-Part Framework Focused on Discovery and Delivery
Typeform employs a unique two-step framework. The first phase focuses on product discovery, and the second on product delivery. What sets them apart is the breaking down of MVP into three sub-components: earliest testable, usable, and lovable products. This division helps in gathering valuable feedback at each developmental stage.
GoGoVan: Customer-Obsessed Product Management
GoGoVan structures its product teams around nine business objectives. Their focus on customer problems is relentless, informed by user interviews, sales interviews, and usage data. Before even beginning the development phase, they set clearly defined success metrics tied to the objectives.
Shopify: Driving Product Growth through a Multidisciplinary Framework
Shopify’s product growth framework is an eight-step process starting from defining the stage of the company to developing a multidisciplinary team. It lays emphasis on understanding the funnel, setting up a prioritization grid, and setting targets to align with their North Star metric.
Consistency is Key
One-hit wonders fade away, but companies that consistently produce great products make history. Frameworks equip you with the methodology to be consistently successful. By adopting these practices, you too can join the ranks of companies that not only create great products but also have a long-lasting impact in their respective markets.