Handling Conflicting Stakeholder Opinions
Dealing with conflicting opinions from diverse stakeholders is a common challenge in product management. Making informed decisions based on data and understanding stakeholder positions is crucial for product success.
Exam Question
You are accountable for a product with diverse stakeholders with different opinions that sometimes conflict. Your Director of Marketing strongly believes that you should add a major new feature to reach a new market. Your CEO believes that the new feature is too expensive and thinks you should focus on other features to make existing customers happier.
You think both perspectives have merit, but you cannot do both. How should you proceed?
(choose the best answer)
A. Trust the CEO’s opinion and focus on current customers since you cannot afford unhappy customers.
B. Better understand the positions of other stakeholders to gather more information, then make a decision.
C. Build some small part of the proposed solution to gather data to better understand the new market and its potential.
D. Trust the Director of Marketing’s opinion and add the features; when revenues increase, you will be vindicated.
Correct Answer
C. Build some small part of the proposed solution to gather data to better understand the new market and its potential.
Explanation
Correct Answer
C. Build some small part of the proposed solution to gather data to better understand the new market and its potential:
When faced with conflicting stakeholder opinions, it’s important to make data-driven decisions. By building a small part of the proposed solution and gathering data, you can validate or invalidate the potential of the new market. This approach helps to balance both perspectives and make an informed decision based on empirical evidence.
Why the Other Options Are Less Effective
A. Trust the CEO’s opinion and focus on current customers since you cannot afford unhappy customers:
While the CEO’s concern about current customers is valid, solely focusing on existing customers without exploring new opportunities may limit future growth.
B. Better understand the positions of other stakeholders to gather more information, then make a decision:
While gathering more information is important, it does not provide empirical evidence about the potential of the new market. Actionable insights come from real-world data, not just opinions.
D. Trust the Director of Marketing’s opinion and add the features; when revenues increase, you will be vindicated:
Blindly trusting one stakeholder’s opinion without validating the market potential can lead to wasted resources and missed opportunities.
Benefits of Running Small Experiments
- Data-Driven Decisions: Empirical data provides a solid foundation for decision-making, reducing the risk of relying solely on opinions.
- Risk Mitigation: Small experiments help identify potential pitfalls and validate assumptions before committing significant resources.
- Balanced Approach: Testing parts of both proposed solutions allows for a balanced approach that considers multiple perspectives.
EBM Framework Insights
- Current Value (CV): Focusing on current customers ensures that the product continues to deliver value to its existing user base.
- Unrealized Value (UV): Exploring new markets can uncover potential opportunities for future growth.
- Ability to Innovate (A2I): Running small experiments fosters a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.
- Time to Market (T2M): Quick experiments can provide rapid insights, enabling faster decision-making and iteration.
Relevance to the PAL-EBM Exam
Understanding how to handle conflicting stakeholder opinions and making data-driven decisions is crucial for the PAL-EBM exam. This knowledge demonstrates the ability to apply empirical principles to drive continuous improvement and value delivery.
Key Takeaways
- Building small parts of a proposed solution and gathering data helps make informed, data-driven decisions.
- Balancing the needs of current customers and exploring new markets is essential for sustainable growth.
- Running small experiments mitigates risks and validates assumptions.
- Empirical data should guide decision-making, not just stakeholder opinions.
Conclusion
When faced with conflicting stakeholder opinions, the best approach is to run small experiments to gather data and validate the potential of new markets. This approach balances multiple perspectives and ensures that decisions are based on empirical evidence. For more information on preparing for the PAL-EBM exam, visit our Professional Agile Leadership PAL-EBM™ Exam Prep.
