You're juggling feature requests and scope creep in a new product. How do you navigate the chaos?

Prioritisation is definitely the name of the game here. In my opinion, when faced with such a situation, it's usually with the end game of creating the maximum impact, and thus the Moscow framework while helpful for bucketizing features doesn't help with making the final choice. The idea of an MLP, i.e most lovable product is one that lost notoriety over the past few years and is slowly making a comeback. Focus on the product or feature that your audience will love at it's barebones minimum, and acts as an artefact to extract the maximum quantity of learnings with least amount of effort. T

Prioriza??o é sempre um tema desafiador para muitos. Gosto muito do conceito da POC. Testar vers?es menores e hipóteses, antes de priorizar e entender todas as necessidades. Existem muitas técnicas, mas todas dependem do tipo do projeto que está sendo executado.

Prioritizing feature requests is indeed crucial during product development. The MoSCoW method is an effective way to categorize and prioritize features based on their importance. Here's a brief overview of the MoSCoW method: 1. **Must have**: These features are critical to the product's success and must be included in the initial launch. 2. **Should have**: These features are important but not essential for the initial launch. 3. **Could have**: These features are nice to have but are not essential for the product's success. 4. **Won't have**: These features are not relevant or feasible for the product and should be excluded from the development plan.

When managing feature requests and scope creep, I focus on what’s most important by prioritizing each request based on how much it helps the user and the business. I use a simple method like MoSCoW to decide what must be done now and what can wait. This helps ensure that key features are ready first and keeps everyone’s expectations clear.

Regular check-ins can reinforce these boundaries, allowing you to address potential scope changes before they become disruptive. By fostering a culture of transparency and collaboration, you ensure that everyone remains aligned on priorities, which ultimately protects the integrity of the project.

For a release, I like to have a theme. For example, the point of this release is to integrate a and b. That integration solves many customers issues so it's been decided that it's most important. Then as a leader you need to keep beating that drum. Of course there will be bug fixes and minor changes, but make sure you have a focal point and keep pushing towards that. People will then know what the next release is and the main focus. It makes it harder (not impossible) to scope creep.

To handle scope creep, I make sure to clearly communicate what the product will and won't include from the start. I keep stakeholders informed about the project’s scope, timelines, and limits. When new requests come in, I compare them to what we already planned and discuss the impact on budget and deadlines. If a new feature is important, I work with the team to decide what can be delayed or dropped to fit it in, helping us stay on track without overpromising.

Agile adaptation is a fundamental principle of Agile methodology that allows teams to adapt and improve continuously. It's a change in process that's consistent with Agile values and principles, and it's designed to adapt to changing requirements and improve customer satisfaction. Agile adaptation is well suited to environments with fast change and many uncertainties.

Adopting an Agile approach can be highly beneficial when managing feature requests and mitigating scope creep. Here's how Agile methodologies can help: 1. **Iterative Development**: Agile emphasizes iterative development, which involves breaking down the product development process into smaller, manageable sprints. 2. **Continuous Feedback**: With Agile, feedback is integrated throughout the development process, ensuring that the final product aligns with user needs and business goals. 3. **Flexibility and Adaptability**: Agile methodologies are designed to accommodate changes in requirements and priorities. 4. **Improved Collaboration**: Agile promotes collaboration between cross-functional teams, which can help you manage.

Using Agile helps manage feature requests and scope creep by staying flexible and making progress in small steps. Working in sprints allows us to adapt to changes without going off course. By delivering small parts of the product regularly, we can gather feedback and decide which features to include, keeping the product aligned with user needs and business goals while keeping the scope in check.

User-centric focus is a strategy that puts the user at the center of the experience. It involves understanding the needs, preferences, and limitations of the end-users, and then working backward towards a solution. This approach is used in many areas of business, including product development, marketing, customer support, and digital product design.

Keep the user in mind when making decisions. For every feature request, ask how it helps the user. Use research and testing to find out which features users really need. This approach ensures you're building something valuable for users, not just adding features based on guesses or stakeholder preferences. By focusing on the user, you make sure that any changes to the scope are backed by real demand.

Creating a strategic product roadmap helps manage feature requests and scope creep. The roadmap shows the planned development of your product and when features will be added. It gives a long-term view, allowing you to fit in new features without disrupting the current work. When new requests come in, use the roadmap to decide when they should be scheduled, avoiding last-minute changes that can lead to scope creep.