cnsmunich25/content/day1/01_product-thinking.md

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Product Thinking for Cloud Native Engineers 1
platform
org
management

This is a slightly updated version of the KubeCon EU 2025 Talk of the same name. Please check out my notes of the KubeCon talk for additional details and the original recording + slides.

But Why?

  • Focus on user value and outcome
  • Create visibility for things that are usually not that visible (operatrions, planning, ...)

And What

Principles

  • Problem > Solution
  • Outcome > Output
  • Product > Project

For whom?

  • Builders (Platform Dev, Product Dev)
  • Enablers (Platform Dev, Service Providers)
  • Regulators
  • Viewers (Controlling, Finance)

Problems > Solutions

First steps

  1. Find the problem that is the most important (has the most value) to solve
  2. Understand the problem to figure out how to solve it

Product compass illustration

Defining the problem space

Goals:

  • Identify opportunities
  • Prioritise
  • Gather insignts and data

Techniques:

  • Value stream mapping
  • RICE, Value vs Effort or ather cost benefit analysis
  • Analyse your exploration proces

Metrics

  • If you don't provide your own metrics, someone else will guesstimate some for you - this might result in metrics that don't represent the value you provide
  • Product metrics should measure outcome not output (or performance metrics)
  • Baseline: You need to know the desired outcome

And how?

With Frameworks

  • DevEx: Balance Flow State, Feedback Loops and Cognitive Load
  • Internal Platform Scorecard (by Syntasso): Speed (Time to deploy), Safety (Policy compliance), Efficiency (mean time to upgrade), Scalabulity (Mean time to new service)
  • DORA
  • Space
  • DX Core 4

At the engineer level

  • Look at: Which outcomes do you want to reach
  • Side-Benefit: Easy to explain to management
  • You can do it yourself without a PO or PM