How to create a visual product road map that follows agile?

Question

My boss loves Gaant charts, because they give you a high level visual overview of the product roadmap.

The problem with Gaant, it is fixed time related and goes completely against the concept of the teams velocity which you only really find out once they start working on sprints.

How can I devise a product roadmap for a particular version of the product?

To take a step back: if your boss supports agile methods, is he aware that this requires a change in mindset for not only developers but also managers, and that increased fuzziness about the schedule is almost always a required trade-off? He might need coaching (not necessarily by you) on what agile implies. Or If your boss does not support agile methods, why are you using them? — Pedro, Apr 27 '16 at 02:34

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Apr 26 '16 at 07:19

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One approach I have seen used is to have a roadmap which has epics/features shown as circle or ovals whose size gives a rough indication of the work involved. There is either no time units indicated or at the most quarter years are shown.

The idea is to make it deliberately vague, but still give an indication of the possible order in which work will be done. The more precise the roadmap looks, the more people will interpret it as having fixed dates.

Even using this kind of visual roadmap is dangerous as it creates some expectation for delivery. I would deliver the roadmap with a clear message that as you are working in an agile fashion it is possible or even likely that the roadmap will change over time.

answered Apr 26 '16 at 07:19

Barnaby Golden

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Stakeholders just want it for high level planning – bobo2000 Apr 27 '16 at 10:39
That's fine. Just keep the roadmap vague and don't get too specific about dates. Remember that we are encouraging change, so there has to be some flexibility in the roadmap. e.g. "the security feature will be delivered in Q3" rather than "the security feature will be delivered 18th July" – Barnaby Golden Apr 27 '16 at 10:55
What type of graph can I use? – bobo2000 Apr 27 '16 at 11:15
This is the style I prefer: http://image.slidesharecdn.com/spbiz-roadmap-150618075619-lva1-app6891/95/spbiz-practical-advice-for-developing-your-sharepoint-roadmap-22-638.jpg?cb=1434614287 – Barnaby Golden Apr 27 '16 at 12:17

score 3 · Answer 2 · answered May 04 '16 at 05:43

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Your backlog combined with your velocity is a rough road map.

Next 1-3 Sprints - well defined and decomposed. We understand this and have some certainty.
Next 6 Months - Bigger rocks that we can long term for sat
6-12 months - Ideas (even bigger rocks)
12 months + - vision, direction

You can easily draw columns that are sprints and place the backlog you have for planning. Just remember that the further out you go the more uncertainty there is.

answered May 04 '16 at 05:43

MrHinsh - Martin Hinshelwood

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Big supporter of this idea -- it's how I convey things to my boss, and how I do Agile portfolio planning as well! – JDRoger Jun 03 '16 at 12:24
Having future Sprints "well defined and decomposed" can reduce agility. – Alan Larimer Feb 05 '18 at 14:19

score 2 · Answer 3 · answered Apr 26 '16 at 18:54

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User story mapping (with planning overlaid on it - sprints marked, velocity/points, etc.)

Great resource for applying it: http://www.amazon.com/User-Story-Mapping-Discover-Product/dp/1491904909.

answered Apr 26 '16 at 18:54

Jeff Lindsey

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score 1 · Answer 4 · answered Apr 26 '16 at 08:37

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On approach that I have created is the Lean Roadmap Model. It combines 2 product strategy theories, the Lean Analytics Stages Model and the Hooked Model.

This approach is useful if you are a startup, or if you are in the early stages of the product development.

Here the time and velocity variables are not taken into consideration. What is taken into consideration is how each improvement impacts the product.

answered Apr 26 '16 at 08:37

nclx

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It's not really visual enough like a gaant chart – bobo2000 Apr 26 '16 at 16:42
What do you want to visualize? – nclx May 01 '16 at 08:00

score 1 · Answer 5 · answered Jan 26 '18 at 14:26

do you use any tools for that? I`m using Craft and it is a really good solution for Agile product management designed by product manager!

With Craft you can create visual roadmaps, which you can view by single roadmap (in a variety of displays) and multi-product roadmap

The best part is that everything in Craft connects to form a whole product management process. So you can assign personas to story maps, connect tasks and items to sprints and versions at roadmap.

How to create a visual product road map that follows agile?

5 Answers5