Defining and driving Outcomes
What Are Outcomes?
An outcome represents the measurable impact or change that a product creates for its consumers. It goes beyond delivering features (outputs) and focuses on whether those features achieve the desired result for your customers and your business.
For example: Outcome: Increasing conversion rates and basket size. Output: A newly designed checkout page.
Outcomes are about the value delivered, not the work done. They reflect whether the product solves the intended problem & meets user needs
Why Outcomes Matter
They help in driving impact
The ultimate goal of a product manager is to solve real problems and deliver customer and business value via a Product.
Focusing on outcomes ensures that a feature being built drives impact across all your consumers rather than a few, and it allows you to say “No” to features that seem exciting to build, but don’t push any metrics
Team Alignment
Outcomes act as a north star for your team. When everyone understands the desired impact, it becomes easier to:
- Align priorities
- Avoid feature bloat and unnecessary complexity.
By defining clear outcomes, your team is unified in pursuing the same vision, fostering better communication and decision-making.
Drives Product Thinking
Outcomes encourage product managers to think strategically and holistically. Instead of asking, “What should we build next?” you adopt a mindset of:
- “What problem are we solving?”
- “What change do we want to see in user behavior?”
- “How will we measure success?”
This mindset helps you avoid the trap of feature factories and keeps the focus on delivering value.
