When it seems like stakeholders have aligned on a decision or direction, it’s time to finalize.

Have you ever left a meeting thinking everyone was on board, only to have the plan unravel when one stakeholder reverses course afterward? Here’s a technique to surface those hidden misalignments:

Some companies seem to think AI will do away with product managers. Andrew Ng says the opposite, that AI might flip the product-to-engineer ratio, with more renaissance product people, and fewer engineers per project. I mean, what is a requirements doc but an engineering prompt? 

When leading a stakeholder meeting, consider starting with an intentionally flawed idea. Invite the group to evaluate it dispassionately and agree on why it doesn’t work.

When you are trying to gain alignment between stakeholders, and you are unsure of how close you are, try using the Fist of Five technique. Ask each participant to hold up a number of fingers between zero (no confidence) and five (complete confidence). Then ask low scorers to articulate their doubts.

Shuttle Diplomacy is when you have one-on-ones with key stakeholders to understand their priorities and perspectives. During these meetings, share a draft of your roadmap and invite their feedback. This helps avoid unpleasant surprises and grumpy stakeholders when the roadmap is unveiled.

The common language of roadmaps is value. But not only value to the customer. To gain buy-in, identify the key value to each department and make it explicit. UX cares about value to users. Account managers care about retention. The language of sales is cold hard cash. This is what you were hired to do: to translate around the organization so you can create alignment.

Smaller teams spend less time on internal communication and coordination. In fact, adding a seventh person to a six-person team can actually reduce overall efficiency; the extra coordination costs outweigh the benefits of another contributor.

I believe America is strongest when — and because — it welcomes diversity, including immigrants, international students, and LGBTQ+ folks. That belief, to me, is deeply patriotic. Happy 4th.

I’ve written before about the value of mining for conflict, especially when stakeholders say they’re aligned, but you want to be sure. One effective technique is to go around the room (or their screens) and ask each stakeholder, “What could go wrong with this plan?”

Do you know the history of Product Management? Lore is, it started at the consumer goods company Procter & Gamble, which advertised a job called “Brand Manager.” This person needed to build a cross-functional team around the company: with scientists who came up with ideas for new bars of soap, designers who created packaging, marketers who worked on pricing, etc.

The CMO of a SaaS company argued for a fairly broad target market definition because it would be easier to make his numbers. Meanwhile, the CPO wanted the target market to be narrower, as it meant the customer needs would be more similar, and product and engineering could focus on making them very successful.

I met the CEO of a small semiconductor company who had 40% annual growth for over a decade. “What was his secret?” I asked, expecting him to say “cutting edge technology” or “really smart employees.” But no.

When a meeting is going south, it is wise to check your own attitude. We tend to judge other people’s mistakes differently than our own. So give people the benefit of doubt. They are usually trying to do the right thing from their own point of view.

Execs tend to think in terms of broad goals, like revenue, growth, and profit. But these goals are often too generic and slow-moving to be useful in day-to-day work of a product team.

I led a Chief Product Officer workshop at ProductCamp Boston last week, where senior execs shared war stories and strategies. A popular question: how long do CPOs have at a new job to make a difference?

Understanding your org structure will help you identify hidden stakeholders and their goals. We’ve talked about Functional, Matrix, and Value Stream orgs here. Divisional organizations combine one or more of these structures into a super organization. General Electric, for example, has lines of business such as Aerospace, Digital, and Power, each forming their own division.

Value Stream organizations are designed to overcome the weaknesses of Functional and Matrix orgs. Cross-functional teams report directly to a general manager in charge of a product line or market segment, shortening communication lines and making it clear who sets priorities.

Learning your org structure teaches you who has power, who you need to influence. Many tech companies form cross-functional teams to manage products in what’s called a Matrix structure.

Learn the org structure of your company and you learn who the crucial stakeholders are.

The most traditional org structure is Functional. Starbucks, for example, is organized into departments like HR, finance and marketing. Departmental objectives and accountability are usually very clear.