Unlocking the 5 Stages of Roadmapping Maturity: Insights from my latest Product School Cert??Journey

Defining your North Star and effectively communicating your product vision and strategy are crucial elements of effective roadmapping.

This is why Product School has partnered with Productboard to create a new certification on Product Roadmaps.

I just finished the latest strategy certification from Product School 's New Product Roadmapping Certification (PRC)?? and identified the five stages of Roadmapping Maturity and what that means to Product Teams.

Unlocking the 5 Stages of Roadmapping Maturity: Insights from My Latest Product School Certification??

An organization or an individual goes through 5 stages of maturity when building Roadmaps. The most basic one starts with the product manager holding all the information to themselves to the most advanced stage where everyone in the organization uses the Product Roadmap as their North Star.

Stage 1: 'I Tell You What to Do'

At this stage, there is no formal roadmap. The product manager tosses requirements over to engineering without explaining the rationale behind what's being built.

Stage 2: 'Our Product Team Has a Roadmap'

Here, the product manager crafts an ad hoc release plan that remains confined to a circle of decision-makers. Roadmaps are created sporadically and only list features, lacking any connection to objectives or overarching goals.

Stage 3: 'Our Product Team Shares a Roadmap of Upcoming Features'

The product team maintains a relatively stable roadmap that is shared with other departments. While it's clear which features are in the pipeline, the roadmap falls short of explaining how these features align with larger business objectives. Occasionally, the product team fails to meet announced release dates.

Stage 4: 'Our Product Team Aligns Around a Shared Vision'

The product team keeps a strategic roadmap that outlines the business goals they are focused on and which features support those goals. However, other teams rarely consult this roadmap, and customer-facing teams hesitate to discuss it publicly.

Stage 5: 'The Entire Organization Rallies Around Our Product Strategy and Roadmap'

Everyone in the organization comprehends the product's direction and purpose, empowering them to champion this vision to stakeholders and customers. The roadmap becomes a regular point of reference, establishing a unified sense of direction and objective.

I hope these insights help you understand the evolutionary stages of roadmap maturity and guide you in optimizing your own product strategy.

More about Product School 's Product Management Certifications ??

Product School is the global leader in Product training with a community of over two million product professionals. All of our instructors are Product Leaders working at top Silicon Valley companies including Google, Meta, Netflix, Airbnb, Uber, and Amazon. Designed to fit into your work schedule, all certifications are taught live online in small cohorts. Our methodology features the hands-on experience you need to build digital products, lead cross-functional teams, and career coaching to get your product management job or promotion.