There are lots of various kinds of roadmaps and totally different codecs that roadmaps can take.

After writing about ‘8 alternative ways to prepare your Product Backlog’, which has since been reworked into Miro templates, I believed I might write one thing related for Product Roadmaps.

Listed below are just a few totally different shapes a Product Roadmap can take. I hope this offers you some inspiration and maybe even makes you rethink your present roadmap format.

First up, is the commonest and most controversial…the ‘timeline roadmap’.

I consider this format is the commonest for just a few causes:

a) We’re used to measuring and plotting issues by way of time

b) Folks all the time need to know WHEN issues will likely be accomplished or after they’re going to get one thing by

c) We like certainty — timeline roadmaps clearly define what’s going to occur on a sure date (or so we predict)

d) A timeline roadmap resembles a Undertaking Plan which for some individuals it’s extra acquainted

Though, there are some downsides:

• Timeline Roadmaps usually find yourself being a want checklist of options plotted towards a timeline
• Every merchandise wants a completion date. This implies estimating and assuming that the estimate is correct
• Dates give a false sense of certainty and management over the longer term
• It additionally assumes that nothing will change or nothing occurs that can change your plan
• Lastly, dates usually turn out to be ‘guarantees’ that we inevitably find yourself breaking and having to elucidate why we’re “behind some arbitrary schedule”

The Now-Subsequent-Later roadmap (often known as a Lean Roadmap) is maybe probably the most talked-about roadmap format within the Product-sphere, however not essentially probably the most applied.

It’s broadly well-liked and easy roadmap format.

By eradicating particular dates out of your roadmap you’ll be able to keep away from lots of the pitfalls within the timeline roadmap while nonetheless offering readability on product route.

There are lots of methods you’ll be able to symbolize the Now-Subsequent-Later roadmap. However usually work is represented into time horizons — on this case ‘now’ ‘subsequent’ and ‘later’.

Typically, we’d have better readability and certainty over the actions that we’re engaged on ‘now’ and as we transfer into additional time horizons that readability would lower and issues turn out to be vaguer.

This helps symbolize the inherent uncertainty in product and likewise offers extra flexibility in what truly finally ends up being finished to attain our targets.

Need to study extra about how one can construct your personal Now-Subsequent-Later Roadmap?

ProdPad has a nice article breaking down the Now-Subsequent-Later Roadmap and how one can implement your personal.

Because the title suggests a Launch Roadmap organizing your roadmap by way of releases.

That is just like the above roadmap codecs, the one distinction is that slightly than utilizing time or horizons on your x-axis, you utilize product releases.

You might select to have a date towards every launch. Nonetheless, bear in mind the downsides of dates and on this case, you don’t need to make empty guarantees for when a launch will come out or not.

Avoiding dates is my desire because it offers flexibility and permits for uncertainty — once we are able to launch we’ll.

The theme roadmap because the title suggests is organizing your roadmap into themes.

That is finest suited to complicated merchandise and product portfolios as it may well assist convey quite a lot of data shortly and simply.

Organizing your roadmap into themes may be finished along with the Now-Subsequent-Later roadmap, Timeline and Launch Roadmap too.

The Tree Roadmap is one in all my favorite codecs. It’s additionally the least recognized, in my expertise however the energy it offers you is unparalleled.

Tree Roadmaps are incredible at visualising each product complexity but additionally the inherent uncertainty within the work we do.

Think about an end result or characteristic on part of the roadmap with a number of branches coming off it.

This reveals that there’s a couple of path we could select to take to attain a aim.

An outcome-based roadmap is just like a Theme Roadmap however slightly than organizing round a theme it’s organized round an end result.

Equally, this may be finished utilizing a Tree Roadmap format, Now-Subsequent-Later, Launch and Timeline codecs.

Even should you don’t determine to particularly manage your roadmap round outcomes, all Product Roadmaps ought to be resulting in a number of outcomes.

The Buyer Journey Roadmap because the title suggests is if you manage your roadmap alongside your buyer journey. This could possibly be your present or desired buyer journey.

Person story mapping is a good software to make use of right here to facilitate the creation of a Buyer Journey Roadmap — nevertheless, notice that Person story maps are usually decrease degree and as talked about in my 8 alternative ways to prepare your Product Backlog article, they’re higher suited to backlog administration.

Nonetheless, you should utilize the identical method and philosophy to create an preliminary view of how you propose to attain an end result after which chunk it up a layer or two till it’s acceptable for a roadmap.

No matter roadmap format you determine to make use of, keep in mind that a superb roadmap is grounded in your imaginative and prescient and product technique.

Additional, bear in mind the target of your product roadmap and its viewers.

For instance, is that this roadmap a public-facing roadmap?

In that case, it could rule out sure codecs, or maybe level to at least one format particularly that does the most effective job of articulating your roadmap to the general public.

The most effective (and worst) elements of Product Administration is that there isn’t any single option to do issues.

There are lots of alternative ways to format a Product Roadmap and that you must decide what’s finest based mostly in your context, your targets and your viewers.

Blissful roadmapping! 🙌

📣 FYI: I’ve elevated my availability for digital 1:1 PM teaching. In the event you’re — maybe you’ve began a brand new position, in search of steering or need to degree up your PM expertise — get in contact at antmurphy.me

I’m additionally launching an internet studying platform with deep dives into particular PM matters, like Stakeholder Administration, Prioritization, Product Technique, and many others.

Get updates at productpathways.com.