Product Ownership

Date

Version

Changes

Date

Version

Changes

2022-05-22

1.0

 

Once a system is delivered to end users it becomes a product, and will remain a product until it is decommissioned.

1.1 All products MUST have a product owner, and product ownership SHOULD be considered a full time role.

Product

2.1 The software product MUST have means for support. Support can be simple, like an e-mail address, or more complex like Jira Service Desk, depending on the needs of your users.

2.2 The software product MUST have means for change. Requirements will change over time, and the product must change with it or become obsolete. Funding is required to sustain a team making changes to the product.

2.3 The software product MUST be operable by IT Operations. It must be possible to monitor, configure, backup, recover, scale and safely turn off and on again.

2.4 The software product MUST be integrated in the system landscape. It must be possible to integrate with other systems, both for getting data out of the product and data in to the product.

2.5 The software product MUST have documentation and processes to sustain the ability to develop and operate while changing hands many times during its lifetime.

Owner

3.1 The product owner MUST have a product vision on how the product should achieve organisational excellence and maximise its value to the stakeholders.

3.2 The product owner MUST make short term prioritisations that enable its users and stakeholders, while moving the product towards along product vision.

3.3 The product owner SHOULD be the number one ambassador for the product, selling its promise to both users and stakeholders.

3.4 The product owner SHOULD gather requirements from users and stakeholders, but not forget that digital innovation might also come from elsewhere.

3.5 The product owner SHOULD create and maintain a roadmap, for predictability with clear steps and goals for the team working on the product.

Communication

The most important tool for the product owner is communication.

4.1 The product owner MUST communicate priorities for the product to its stakeholders. Stakeholders should always know what’s next for the product.

4.2 The product owner MUST communicate updates to the product to its users. Users should know that the product is actively being worked on.

4.3 The product owner MUST communicate the product roadmap to the development team. The team should know what they’re doing, why and what value it will bring to the organisation.

4.4 The product owner MUST market the product to the business to ensure continued funding. Lost funding means that the product is about to die.

4.5 The product owner MUST take lead on incident response management when the product fails. Communication with the team, users and stakeholders are top priority during an incident.

4.6 The product owner SHOULD take lead on culture for everyone working with the product. Views and values of the product owner usually affects the whole team.