Product Roadmap and OKRs

Once the Product Vision is established, the next level of agile planning involves defining the Roadmap and, often, the associated Objectives and Key Results (OKRs).

While the Vision sets the long-term direction, the Roadmap lays out the overall path to get there, outlining the major initiatives or features envisioned over the medium term (quarters or years).

OKRs, popularized by Google, provide a framework for setting ambitious goals (Objectives) and measuring progress toward them through specific metrics (Key Results).

Together, Roadmap and OKRs connect the strategic Vision to the team's tactical execution.

Medium/Long Term Planning of Functionalities and Goals

The Product Roadmap is a strategic planning tool that communicates the direction and priorities of the product over the medium to long term.

It is not a detailed project plan with fixed dates, but a high-level visualization of the major initiatives, themes or major functionality that you plan to address in the coming quarters or even years.

It may include expansion into new markets, introduction of new user levels, or the development of key capabilities.

Although it will change over time, the process of creating and maintaining the roadmap forces you to think strategically and helps you make day-to-day decisions aligned with the long-term vision.

It should be kept at a high level of granularity, avoiding excessive detail that would make it rigid.

Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) as Strategic Guidance

Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) are a framework for defining and tracking objectives and their results. They are composed of:

• Objectives: Qualitative, ambitious and aspirational goals that define what you want to achieve (e.g., "To be the number one guinea pig breeder in the world").
• Key Results: Quantitative, measurable metrics (typically 2-5 per goal) that indicate whether the Goal is being achieved (e.g., "Reach 100,000 daily active users", "Receive >50 photo submissions per day").

KRs should be challenging; achieving 70-80% is considered a good result.

OKRs provide clear strategic guidance, align the team with business objectives and allow progress to be measured objectively, connecting daily work (user stories) to desired outcomes.

They are often integrated into the product roadmap.

Breakdown from Annual to Quarterly/Monthly OKRs

To make OKRs more manageable and actionable, they are often broken down hierarchically.

High-level OKRs (e.g., annual, aligned with company or product vision) are broken down into more specific OKRs for shorter periods, such as quarters or even months.

Each lower level contributes to the higher level. For example, an annual goal of "Make messaging app profitable" could be broken down int