SaaS Roadmap Planning in an Agile Environment

December 20, 2012 2 Comments

I’m often asked if there’s anything different about managing a roadmap in an agile environment. I don’t think so; since agile is (just) a methodology for delivering software, I don’t think having a roadmap and being agile are mutually exclusive. Let me know if you disagree.

Over the past few quarters, we’ve refined how we manage our marketing automation platform’s product roadmap (which we develop using agile methodologies).  As of today the platform has 525 Users, so the volume of feedback and demands is rapidly increasing.

Here are a few things we’ve found about managing a roadmap in this type of environment:

1. Creating a detailed roadmap for more than 1 quarter at a time seems to be a waste of effort. Read more of this post

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Gaining Alignment Through Team Training

December 19, 2012 1 Comment

A topic I’ve discussed a few times is how to get your company aligned behind a common set of objectives.  I’ve described the V2MOM method (used by SalesForce.com to become a multi-billion dollar SaaS company), and our practice of daily stand-ups.  Both these tactic have been very helpful.

Today, we did a team training session to orient various teams to our marketing automation platform.  Here are a few things learned from this process: Read more of this post

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Colin Powell’s 4 Rules For Getting To The Point

December 18, 2012 1 Comment

Colin Powell's 4 Rules For Getting To The Point

Colin Powell: Lots of leadership lessons and tactics

In line with yesterday’s post about handling problems as a leader, I thought it appropriate to share how Colin Powell instructed his staff to bring him problems.  Being a retired four-star general in the United States Army, and having served as the 65th U.S. Secretary of State (under President George W. Bush) from 2001 to 2005, Mr. Powell definitely knows a thing or two about running organizations at scale and getting the best from those around you.

In his new book “It Worked For Me: In Life and Leadership“, Colin shares some simple rules for getting to the point when raising a problem:

  • First, tell me what you know.  He advises asking your team to give you the facts of the situation, as objectively as possible.  He doesn’t want personal interpretation.  He’ll often probe to see how the facts were obtained to ensure that the data are as accurate as possible.
  • Second, tell me what you don’t know.  As important as communicating the known facts, Colin advises asking for clarity around what is unknown.  If you have the right people in the right positions, they’ll most likely realize what they don’t know.  Colin feels that getting people to articulate these things is as important as getting the facts.  The unknowns give way to follow-up actions to obtain that information (if possible).
  • Then, tell me what you think.  This is where the person is asked to add their interpretation of the data, provide insight based on experience, and/or anything else they think is relevant given the situation.  This is where he allows people to use the facts to build an argument, or offer an opinion.
  • And remember: Always distinguish one from the other.  Colin suggests that it is imperative to ensure that you are clear in asking that people provide you information and clearly distinguish which type of information they’re giving.  If they’re telling you what they think, don’t allow them to misconstrue that as a representation of the facts.

I think #4, while subtle, is brilliant and essential.  Especially when situations are stressful, I notice that people tend to add color to a situation by incorporating their personal perspectives, which in some cases is wrong or biased.  I know I do the same and wrestle with trying to keep these things separate in my own head; perhaps it is human nature to immediately draw conclusions (did I just jump to a conclusion there?).

What do you think of Colin Powell’s 4 Rules?  Do you think they are helpful in communicating information and getting to the point?

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How To Tell If You’re a Natural Leader

December 17, 2012 3 Comments

While problems come with being human, I have a theory that the number of problems you face is directly correlated with how you’re viewed as a leader.

Even if your title or rank don’t “officially” make you a leader, but you find that people come to you with problems, there’s a good chance you’re viewed as a natural leader.

I think solving problems is what leaders do.  It’s why they get paid the big bucks.  (I bet some of you are thinking, “I’ve got a buttload of problems, but no money!”)

So what?  If this theory is even remotely true, then the day you’re not solving problems (or up to your a** in fires) is probably the day you are no longer leading.

That’s the day you should be worried.  It means your people don’t think you can solve the problems they’re bringing your way, or you’re putting off signals that you don’t want to hear about them.

Or worse, they may think you don’t care.  Either way it means they’ve lost confidence in you and your status as a leader is in jeopardy.

It’s not easy hearing problem after problem, but it may come with the leadership territory.

What do you think of this theory?  Are the number of problems people bring you an indication of how you’re viewed as a leader?

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What If You Gave Yourself Permission To Rest?

December 16, 2012 2 Comments

Like many of you, I’ve worked hard all my life. I expect those I work with to do the same.

As I’ve gotten older and the demands on my time have continued to increase, I actively ask myself whether (or not) I’m working on the right stuff.  Is what I’m doing right now going to make any difference?

Similarly, when asking others to do something, I try to ensure they are like-wise focused on things that matter.  I’d hate to contribute to someone else wasting portions of their life.

Another way to look at this is that I don’t like to generate make-work. Make-work is the crap we do that consumes our time, but doesn’t really move us forward. It may make us feel good, since we’re working and moving around, but it’s really unnecessary and doesn’t make a darn difference.

As the past 48 hours have once again reminded me, a complete life includes much (much) more than just work.  And certainly a lot more than make-work.

We need our families. We need time to rest. We need to cultivate outside interests and hobbies. We need time to learn something new. And we need the time and space to pursue these things. 

That’s why I believe it is important to cultivate a spirit and discipline of sabbath, both literally and figuratively.

Colin Powell puts it like this:

Don’t run if you can walk; don’t stand up if you can sit down; don’t sit down if you can lie down, and don’t stay awake if you can go to sleep.

Amen.

Where can you cultivate this spirit in your life?  What would happen if you gave yourself permission to rest?

Filed under Culture, Fatherhood, Leadership, Productivity, Work/Life Balance Tagged with

Tips For Running A Sprint Planning Meeting

December 15, 2012 2 Comments

Tips for running a Sprint Planning Meeting

Build better software, more quickly, with less risk

For the past 2 years or so, we’ve been using an Agile-ish methodology for the development of our marketing automation platform.

I’ve described how we use daily stand-ups (here’s a real-life video example) during development of our MVP (minimally viable product), and today I’ll share how we run our Sprint Planning Meetings.

Here are a few things about Sprint Planning that we’ve found to be uber-helpful: Read more of this post

Filed under Communication, Entrepreneurship, Leadership, Product Mgmt, SAAS Tagged with , , ,

Lessons Learned Developing a SAAS App

December 14, 2012 Leave a comment

In 2003 and 2004, as we were developing our cross-media LookWho’sClicking SaaS application, I had the privilege of developing our software in a way that has now become a part of my work-process: getting embedded at a Client’s location.

Early on during development, we succeeded at licensing our software for $4,500 to a local marketing services company (once we found our product/market fit, we eventually raised the price to $9,500).  The company was located about 20 miles from our office, and I started making frequent trips in order to do training and on-boarding. Since they were one of the first on our platform, there was a lot to learn (on both sides).

At noon each day, I’d drive to their office and help users with learning how to use our software.  In addition, I became very interested in how their business worked, and how our software made an impact on their clients, revenue, and margins.

Over the course of a few weeks, the practice of visiting their office became a daily occurrence, and eventually, I was able to grab an unused desk and set up shop.

Here’s what I found extremely helpful about getting embedded with a Client: Read more of this post

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Eloqua CEO: “We Had $200k in Bank Day Before IPO”

December 12, 2012 Leave a comment

Joe Payne, Eloqua, Says Company Had $200k in Bank Day Before IPO

Joe Payne, Eloqua

Talk to most entrepreneurs, and you’ll likely hear incredible stories of near-death experiences.  I can’t think of one entrepreneur I know who hasn’t stared failure in the face (in some cases, multiple times).  It’s scary, sometimes nearly incapacitating — but you somehow find your way through and life goes on.

Here’s an anecdote to remember next time you’re feeling down: Eloqua (who happens to a quasi-MindFire marketing automation competitor), had a successful IPO in August of this year (they raised $92 million).

But according to Bill Flook of the Washington Business Journal, Joe Payne (CEO) reports that they only had $200k in the bank the day before going public.  Holy cow!

From looking at Eloqua’s SEC filings, I don’t think they were in any near-death situation, but it just goes to show that to be an entrepreneur, you need guts (and tons of help — it’s very difficult to do on your own).

Kudos to Joe Payne and the entire Eloqua team for their continued success. Here’s the full article on the Washington Business Journal.

What about you?  What near-death experiences have you had?  Do you agree that nearly everyone goes through them?

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Would You Sell Your Last Name For $34,500?

December 11, 2012 2 Comments

Jason Sadler -- for now [CNN]

Jason Sadler — for now [CNN]

Here’s something you don’t see every day: Jason Sadler, a 30-year-old entrepreneur who sells the shirt off his back for advertising space, has found a new way to raise money for his small company.

He’s selling his last name to the highest bidder — and if nothing changes between now and when the auction ends on December 12, 2012, his new name will be Jason JLabAudio.  Talk about thinking outside the box!

For a cool $34,500, JLab Audio, an audio company from Tucson, Arizona, will gain the right to have their company name plastered all over Jason’s identify — including his driver’s license, passport, and other ID.  I imagine his Facebook, Twitter, and other social media handles will also change.

That’s an interesting way to raise cash.  Jason currently has 5 employees, so I can’t see the $34k going very far, but you have to give it to him for his creativity — and the buzz he’s generating is sure to get him added visibility.  Read more about Jason on CNN Money.

What about you?  Would you sell your last name to a corporation?  How much would it take?  Be honest!

(Oh, and if you want to place a bid on Jason’s last name, do it here: buymylastname.com)

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V2MOM: How SalesForce.com Went From Idea to Billion-Dollar SAAS Company

December 10, 2012 4 Comments

Marc's book on Salesforce.com and V2MOM

Marc’s book on Salesforce.com and V2MOM [Amazon]

One area that we spend a lot of time thinking about (and working to improve) is our ability to communicate our company’s direction in a way that aligns everyone.

We use the word “alignment” a lot around the office, and we’ve made a number of changes that have helped us improve in this area, like daily stand-ups (video example here).  Alignment is critical for start-ups and companies going through rapid growth.

In “Behind The Cloud“, Marc Benioff (co-founder of Salesforce.com), shared the V2MOM planning process he and his team used to grow Salesforce.com into the largest SaaS company in the world.

The acronym stands for vision, values, methods, obstacles, and metrics.  The purpose of V2MOM is to create alignment, from the leadership team out to every team member.

Here’s how the V2MOM process works:  Read more of this post

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