For those in the tech industry, a company’s vision isn’t merely a checkbox; it’s the propelling force steering your organization forward. But does your product vision align and drive your product and engineering teams? If not, it’s like you’re on a road trip without a plan. You’ll get somewhere, but how do you know you’ll get where you want to go?
In my tenure in product strategy, I’ve observed varying degrees of misalignment, often resulting in negative consequences. Here are five ways not having alignment between your product vision and organizational goals can impact your entire company.
Lack of Direction
Aligning your product vision to your company’s vision helps provide clear direction for the product team and can better ensure product success. For an HRIS company, the focus on expanding market share and why it was so important was made crystal clear to everyone working on third-party relationships in employee benefits. They were able to prioritize focusing on the needs of the larger partners over other feedback because they knew the main direction our company was taking and how it affected our specific product line.
Inconsistent Decision Making
A vision is the compass for decision-making. Without it, decisions lack consistency and may veer away from long-term goals. Consider an InsureTech company led by a 20+ year industry veteran. Despite having a competent product management team, that industry veteran overrode many data-driven decisions. The frequent changes to the roadmap hindered their long-term goals and slowed down revenue growth.
Employee Disengagement
A clear vision provides employees with a sense of purpose, while its absence can lead to disengagement. This is particularly detrimental since an engaged workforce offers many benefits; a Gallup poll found that teams in the top quartile in employee engagement experienced 18% higher productivity and 23% higher profitability. In the fast-evolving tech sector, a unifying vision can serve as a critical guide for decision-making, reducing employee frustration and enabling companies to achieve better results. Oftentimes employees on a product team, feel a sense of ownership over their particular product, so knowing the why and vision behind their product will increase their engagement.
Difficulty in Strategy Planning
Strategic planning relies on a vision to set appropriate and effective goals. Without it, large-scale planning sessions like Program Increment (PI) Planning become futile. In Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) organizations, a lack of a clear portfolio vision leaves teams rudderless during crucial planning periods. This ambiguity can hinder effective decision-making and compromise the overall success during the planning period. More specifically, the absence of a guiding vision may lead to wasted resources, missed opportunities and a fragmented team effort, impacting the organization’s ability to adapt and thrive in the competitive landscape.
Customer Disconnect
A clearly articulated vision plays a pivotal role in shaping and reinforcing brand identity, which in turn can lead to increased customer engagement. While a specific product vision is not always shared with customers, I would argue that doing so can deepen customer connection. By knowing and buying into your product vision, customers can know exactly what that team is focused on and why, and then be more likely to provide specific feedback. When customers feel understood, they can become some of the greatest promoters of your product.
In the tech landscape, a clear product vision is your compass, preventing aimless wandering and fueling efficiency and innovation. Align your product vision with company goals, and you’ll likely see your organization accelerate toward success. It’s not just a vision; it’s the roadmap to your destination.
About the Author
Heather Harris is a Senior Product Strategist at Sparq. She has over a decade of experience in product management and brings a wealth of expertise to drive innovative solutions. Outside of work, Heather resides in Wisconsin with her husband and two children, actively volunteering with Lasagna Love to nourish families in her community while indulging in her passion for cooking and reading in her spare moments.
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