Did It Work, or Did It Matter? Lean Lessons with Scott Sehlhorst

Quick Overview

Scott Sehlhorst, President of Tyner Blain, emphasizes that the best way to reduce waste in any system, including product development, is to prevent waste from entering the system in the first place, which requires shifting from assuming what is known to actively testing beliefs with customers.

Key Points: The best way to reduce waste in a system is to avoid putting waste into the system, emphasizing proactive prevention over reactive cleanup. Scott Sehlhorst advocates for shifting from 'we know what we want to build' to 'we believe we know what we want to build,' requiring customer validation. A key lean principle is to focus on creating opportunities to learn rather than rigidly sticking to an initial plan or feature list. Sehlhorst cites the success of companies like Amazon (who acquired a company built by Eric and David) that embraced this iterative, evidence-based approach. He contrasts the traditional engineering mindset ("We built it as designed, therefore it works") with the lean mindset of asking, "Did it work, or did it matter?" The goal is to treat product development as a series of small, testable hypotheses (like user stories) that directly inform the next steps, rather than executing a fixed plan that might be based on incorrect assumptions.

Context: This video features an interview on the 'Lean Stories' podcast hosted by Jonathan Bertfield (CEO of Lean Startup Co.) with Scott Sehlhorst, President of Tyner Blain, who has over 20 years of experience in product management and strategy consulting. The discussion centers on applying Lean Startup methodology, specifically focusing on waste reduction and the importance of validating assumptions through customer interaction rather than relying on initial plans or internal beliefs.

Detailed Analysis

Scott Sehlhorst, President of Tyner Blain, explains that the most effective way to reduce waste in any system, particularly product development, is to prevent waste from entering the system in the first place. He stresses the need to shift from a mindset of certainty ("we know what we want to build") to one of belief validated by evidence ("we believe we know what we want to build"). This involves treating every aspect of the product development process—from customer targeting to pricing and messaging—as a hypothesis to be tested. Sehlhorst contrasts this with the traditional engineering mindset where success is measured by whether the product works as designed, rather than whether it works as needed by the customer. He highlights that the lean approach forces teams to create opportunities for learning early on. He recalls an experience where a million-dollar project was built based on a known requirement but failed because it wasn't what the customer actually needed, illustrating the danger of operating without customer feedback loops. The key, according to Sehlhorst, is to focus on small, testable hypotheses (like user stories) that lead to observable changes, which then inform the next iteration of the plan. This continuous feedback loop, which he contrasts with the longer, less responsive quarterly business reviews, helps organizations avoid investing heavily in solutions that don't solve real customer problems, ultimately leading to better alignment with strategic goals and increased conversion rates.