Communicating direction.
WHAT A ROADMAP IS
A statement of intended direction.
WHAT IT IS NOT
A schedule of committed dates.
WHY THAT DISTINCTION MATTERS
Treated as commitments, roadmaps produce broken promises and defensive behaviour.
WHAT TO ORGANISE IT AROUND
Problems and outcomes, rather than features.
WHY
It leaves room for better solutions and avoids commitments to specific implementations.
WHAT TIME HORIZONS WORK
- Now: being worked on
- Next: agreed and coming
- Later: intended, not committed
WHY THAT STRUCTURE
It is honest about decreasing certainty.
WHAT TO AVOID
Dated commitments far in the future Listing every request A roadmap nobody revisits
WHAT TO PUBLISH EXTERNALLY
Less than you hold internally.
WHY
External roadmaps become expectations, and expectations become complaints.
WHAT TO SAY ABOUT ANYTHING UNCERTAIN
That it is under consideration, without a date.
WHAT TO REVIEW
The roadmap, at a regular cadence.
WHAT TO DO WHEN PRIORITIES CHANGE
Change it, and explain why.
WHY EXPLAIN
Silent changes destroy trust in the document.
WHAT TO USE IT FOR
Alignment: everyone understanding where the product is going.
WHAT TO MEASURE
Whether people can describe the direction without reading it.
WHAT THAT INDICATES
Whether the communication worked.
