- There may be challenges to overcome
- Consider a different way of thinking about software product development
- Consider some proven techniques as well
- It takes a whole team to succeed
- Understand your stakeholders
- Understand organizational context
- Make your products consumable
- Align with your stakeholders goals
- Define success in your stakeholders terms
- Become an outside-in developer
- The leaders role in outside-in development
- Essential point: You can get started now
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Consider a different way of thinking about software product development
This book describes a way to think about software development that will increase your chances of having a successful project.
Outside-in software development is first and foremost a way of thinking about building software. It keeps the focus and energy level of the team on the people who will ultimately engage with and benefit from the product. We call these folks stakeholders.
Outside-in thinking asks you to be explicit about whom the stakeholders are for any of your development projects, and knowing that, to gain a clear understanding of their goals. This clarity reduces the chance of building code that won’t be used or misses the point. It adds visibility to prioritization decisions and which stakeholders are affected by them. It also improves the effectiveness of conversations with the stakeholders, to maximize learning for you and the potential clients, partners, and end-users of your products.
You are probably familiar with multiple development processes, methods, and tools. This is not a book about another development process model. It is about ways to build software that matters to clients. It is about the thinking the team does together; how it solves problems together; how it decides what is important.