What's the best way to get your team on board with product road mapping?

Your team needs to be involved early enough in the product roadmapping. A product roadmap maybe accountable by product manager but it is a shared ownership and you cannot just do it alone and dump it on your team. You have to follow a process, similar to below 1. Get the consumer insights updates with existing range and feedback from costumers 2. Hold design thinking workshop to have clarity on new product new platforms and new versions of the product 3. Align with the different functions on the assessment and evaluation of the different aspects of the roadmap and get their feedback 4. Assess the different risks and challenges and opportunities 5. Create accountability with the different departments 6) establish communication guidance

The best way to get your team on board with product road mapping is to Involve your team from the start. Collaborative brainstorming on product goals and priorities fosters buy-in. Clearly explain how each initiative aligns with the bigger vision, and create a roadmap that's flexible to adapt based on team input, fostering a sense of ownership and shared success.

Not only your team -- involve other stakeholders too. I like to start roadmap development workshops with the product vision & OKRs as inputs, and then spend time discussing how we can best achieve those results. The output of our discussions gets written down (in real time) on a roadmap.

Engaging your team in product road mapping involves transparent communication and inclusive collaboration. Utilize Agile frameworks for adaptive planning and involve team members in backlog prioritization. Leverage collaborative tools like Miro or Jira for interactive, real-time road mapping sessions. Implement AI-driven data analytics to inform decision-making and validate roadmap objectives. Conduct workshops and utilize e-learning platforms for upskilling in road mapping techniques. Ensure clarity in vision, objectives, and milestones. Recognize and incorporate team feedback, fostering ownership and alignment. Regular checkins, updates, and celebrating milestones enhance motivation and collective adherence to the roadmaps strategic path.

In my experience, explicitly allocating a certain percentage to big bets, can’t fails and maintenance ensures the team is not just working on immediate priorities, but is thinking about how the problem space might evolve in the future.

Usage of prioritization methods will help to create better roadmaps. Ask your team regularly give votes or ranks on items in the roadmap.

As a PM, I like to host regular (monthly or quarterly) roadmap reviews with the product team and any key stakeholders to discuss & align on priorities.

Involve your team from the start. Co-create the roadmap through workshops, gather input on priorities, and explain how each initiative aligns with the bigger vision. This fosters ownership, transparency, and team buy-in for the product roadmap.