Creating an Ecosystem Vision
Creating an ecosystem vision involves defining a long-term goal that sets the overall business strategy and addresses the needs and expectations of the target market. It serves as a guiding star for all product development efforts, providing a clear direction and purpose.
Purpose
The purpose of an ecosystem vision is to inspire and align the Product, Internal Product and Enabling teams around a common goal, ensuring that every effort contributes to a coherent end result that delivers value to both the business and its customers.
- Alignment: Ensures that every member of the team understands the ultimate goal of the ecosystem and how their work contributes to achieving it.
- Motivation: Inspires the team and stakeholders by providing a clear and compelling picture of the future.
- Guidance: Offers a reference point for making strategic decisions and prioritising features or initiatives.
- Recruitment: Attracts top talent by showcasing an exciting and ambitious vision for the ecosystem.
Context
Industry Context
The needs of users often cannot be met by a single product. Instead, they require a range of products and services that work together to provide a complete solution. This is why companies are increasingly moving towards an ecosystem approach, where multiple products and services are integrated to deliver a seamless experience to the customer.
ZeroBlockers Context
An Ecosystem Team is responsible for the overall success of the ecosystem. But they do not actually build the products or services that make up the ecosystem. Instead, they empower Product, Internal Product and Enabling teams to do the necessary work. This means that the Ecosystem Team needs to provide a clear vision and strategy that aligns all these teams around a common goal.
Methods
| Method | Description | Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| Customer Journey Mapping | Map the customer journey to identify customer needs and pain points. This is critical because your ecosystem vision needs to be customer-centric rather than business-centric. | Informs the vision by ensuring it focuses on delivering value to the customer. |
| Crafting the Ecosystem Vision | Collaboratively define the ecosystem vision with input from key stakeholders, ensuring alignment with business goals and customer needs. | Ensures buy-in and alignment across the organisation. |
Anti-patterns
- Vision by Committee: Diluting the ecosystem vision by trying to accommodate too many perspectives, resulting in a lack of clarity and focus.
- Internally Focused Vision: A vision that solely focuses on internal features or technical aspects overlooks the customer value proposition.
Case Studies
Optimizing Public Service Design with a Clear Vision
How the UK Government Digital Service (GDS) improved public service delivery by aligning teams through a compelling vision.
U.K. Government Digital Services
Transitioning from Visual Design to Vision Design
Shifting from visual design to vision design to enhance product strategy and user experience.
Intercom
Revolutionizing Air Force Software Delivery with Kessel Run
How Kessel Run, the USAF's digital transformation initiative, leveraged a compelling vision to revolutionize software delivery.
U.S. Air Force
Creating Visions, Building Teams & Releasing Games
How Zynga utilized a clear product vision to build effective teams and successfully release games
Zynga
