197. How to Drive Outcomes Over Output, with Josh Seiden

Do you know the difference between focusing on outcomes versus outputs in product development — and why the difference can make or break a product? In this episode, we explore how shifting the focus from churning out features to driving business outcomes can help product teams deliver far greater value to users and organizations.

Our guest, Josh Seiden, is a designer, strategy consultant, and author of the book Outcomes Over Output: Why customer behavior is the key metric for business success. He spent two years working on a stock trading app that never shipped, which taught him the importance of putting products in users’ hands  “unreasonably early.” 

Josh presents three “magic questions” to help product teams focus on outcomes and introduces a new behavioral model that suggests teams should focus on changes in user behavior that create business value. He explains the importance of telling a specific story about the user journey, highlighting key moments that make a difference, and building a shared perspective and understanding to make collaborative prioritization decisions.

Finally, Josh discusses the benefits of outcomes-based roadmaps, providing context for why the team is doing something and outlining traditional roadmap content, questions, and risks.

Resources:

• Learn more at JoshuaSeiden.com
• Connect with Josh on LinkedIn
• Follow Josh on Twitter: @jseiden
• Read: Outcomes Over Output by Joshua Seiden
• Read Josh’s recommended business book: Good Strategy, Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt
• Read Josh’s recommended book on writing, which he cites as an inherently creative process akin to product development: Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg

Learn more and get the full show notes at: 3PillarGlobal.com

Produced by Nova Media