What is the Product Owner's Role?

The Scrum Guide, while straightforward, defines the Product Owner in the following manner:

> “The Product Owner is accountable for maximizing the value of the product resulting from the work of the Scrum Team. How this is done may vary widely across organizations, Scrum Teams, and individuals. The Product Owner is also accountable for effective Product Backlog management, which includes: > > - Developing and explicitly communicating the Product Goal; > - Creating and clearly communicating Product Backlog items; > - Ordering Product Backlog items; and, > - Ensuring that the Product Backlog is transparent, visible, and understood. > > The Product Owner may perform these tasks or delegate them to others, but remains accountable. For Product Owners to succeed, the entire organization must respect their decisions, which are evident in the content and prioritization of the Product Backlog, as well as through the inspectable Increment at the Sprint Review. The Product Owner is an individual, not a committee, and may represent the needs of multiple stakeholders in the Product Backlog. Those wishing to modify the Product Backlog can do so by persuading the Product Owner.”

While the Scrum Guide provides a decent framework, it lacks specificity regarding the nature of product management and the skill set required to navigate a product's lifecycle effectively. This vagueness often leads to misconceptions about what Product Owners should do and the competencies they need to succeed.

This ambiguity is highlighted by the statement: “How this is done may vary widely across organizations, Scrum Teams, and individuals.” Although it mentions the necessity for Product Owners to create Backlog Items, it doesn’t outline what constitutes a Backlog Item or the process of creating one. While the focus on stakeholder needs is commendable, many overlook the importance of a Product Owner modeling both user and stakeholder requirements, often reducing the role to mere documentation and backlog management.

My Perspective:

The Product Owner is a vital role that carries out product management responsibilities. They define and model user needs, formulate hypotheses, and validate these through prototypes. The entire Scrum Team collaborates to identify the requirements of these prototypes, developing them through product increments and conducting experiments to validate their findings.

Now, let’s explore existing Maturity Models for Product Owners, identify their shortcomings, and consider how they can be enhanced. First, however, let’s clarify why we need these models.

Why Are Product Owner Maturity Models Important?

Not everyone responsible for a backlog or product qualifies as a Product Owner, and individuals may interpret the role differently. The Scrum Guide does not adequately assist in evaluating a Product Owner's proficiency, skills, or experience.

As members of product teams, we need Product Owners who embody their role effectively. We aim to define the expectations, necessary skills, tasks, and responsibilities associated with the role to foster understanding, trust, and support. Ultimately, we desire successful products, which necessitates a clear leader guiding us in the right direction.

However, not all Product Owners possess the same skills, strengths, or experiences. We are all human, with distinct capabilities and limitations. Thus, we must provide opportunities for growth and improvement.

This need gives rise to Product Owner Maturity Models, which serve as valuable tools for assessing the state of product management within an organization and the competencies of Product Owners, guiding their development.

To assist them on their growth journey, we need a framework to evaluate their maturity levels. This will, in the long term, contribute to successful product development and organizational effectiveness.

Additional Benefits of Maturity Models Include: - Enhanced product management practices - Improved alignment with business objectives - Increased adoption and effectiveness of agile methodologies - Better decision-making processes - Enhanced teamwork and alignment - Optimization of resources

Three Prominent Product Owner Maturity Models in Use

Several maturity models can assist in evaluating and enhancing the capabilities of Product Owners. These models differ in focus, encompassing agile practices, business acumen, and technical skills, each with its unique strengths and weaknesses. Here are a few notable models:

1. The Five Levels of Product Owner Maturity
2. Product Ownership Evolution Model (POEM)
3. The Product Excellence Maturity Model

1. The Scrum.org Five Levels of Product Owner Maturity:

This model outlines five maturity levels for Product Owners. Each ascending level carries greater responsibilities and decision-making authority, emphasizing that both Product Owners and organizations must evolve in their understanding of the role, which necessitates a specific mindset and set of competencies.

• The Scribe: Primarily manages the Product Backlog, translating stakeholder requests into user stories. This role typically has limited authority, common in organizations new to Scrum.
• The Proxy: Possesses more authority than the Scribe and can make limited decisions regarding backlog prioritization but requires approval for significant changes.
• The Business Representative: Well-versed in the business landscape, market dynamics, and user needs, this role has greater authority than the Proxy but still needs budgetary approvals.
• The Sponsor: Has their own budget and shares authority with the Business Representative, influencing ROI and total cost of ownership.
• The Entrepreneur: The pinnacle level, akin to a 'mini-CEO,' with full responsibility and authority over the product, overseeing development, operations, marketing, and sales.

2. Product Ownership Evolution Model (POEM):

The POEM framework visualizes and discusses the evolution of product ownership in an organization. It contrasts the current state with desired outcomes, assessing responsibilities across strategic, tactical, and operational dimensions. The model includes various agile roles and examines their decision-making autonomy and coaching needs.

3. The Product Excellence Maturity Model:

This model comprises five levels, each indicating a more advanced state of product management.

• Level One — Intuition-Driven: Product managers rely solely on gut feelings, without utilizing data or user feedback, focusing primarily on feature delivery without assessing customer value.
• Level Two — Introducing Process: Managers take user requests at face value, interpreting feedback with bias. Basic strategies are in place, but prioritization remains rudimentary.
• Level Three — Listening to Customers: Managers actively seek customer input and establish clear KPIs to measure progress, though the roadmap focuses more on output than outcomes.
• Level Four — Aligned on User Needs: Managers systematically uncover user needs, aligning product strategy with broader business goals and maintaining a transparent, outcome-oriented roadmap.
• Level Five — A Thriving Product Culture: The organization collectively understands customer needs, fostering cross-functional collaboration and unified support for product strategy and roadmap.

What Insights Do We Seek from Maturity Models, and What Are Their Limitations?

Maturity Models aim to outline the developmental stages a Product Owner undergoes to enhance their capabilities. Ultimately, product management is a profession that individuals study extensively. When we seek an appropriate maturity model, we look for ways to support and cultivate our Product Owners toward achieving excellence.

However, existing maturity models often focus narrowly on certain aspects of product management, failing to fully address the skills and experiences essential for effectively managing such a complex role as product ownership.

We aspire to evaluate our competencies and behaviors and identify avenues for improvement.

What Lies Ahead?

Currently, I am developing an enhanced Maturity Model for Product Owners. My goal is to integrate the three models discussed and align them with essential product management skills. I aim to create a skills matrix, outlining various career paths and progressive steps that lead to product management excellence.

UPDATE: Stay tuned for a follow-up article.

Sources

• https://blog.logrocket.com/product-management/improve-operations-product-management-maturity-model/#:~:text=,model%20Company%20goals%20and%20objectives
• https://www.productboard.com/blog/five-levels-product-excellence-maturity/#:~:text=,centric%20products
• https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1S_LP8vFAOVtDSjiYBkj39iu2Z8sMXihGLt8_9BTD0yM/edit#gid=0
• https://productownership.de/poem/
• https://www.productfocus.com/product-management-maturity-model-blog/
• https://www.pragmaticinstitute.com/product/framework/