How to calmly survive any hype in product management
Hardly a month goes by without a new hype. Product managers in technologically dynamic industries often feel pressured to respond quickly to every hype, sometimes at the expense of more critical tasks. Others, overwhelmed by work, may ignore relevant innovations for too long.
The expectation is that we evaluate trends and innovations comprehensively and incorporate them into our product decisions. With a structured approach, we can tackle these challenges more efficiently and handle them with greater ease.
Depending on the company or topic, the order may vary. However, the following checks can help you quickly identify exclusion criteria or proceed more efficiently:
Check 1: Compare with Existing Solutions
New solutions often appear innovative, but comparing them with proven alternatives prevents hasty decisions. Which problem is being solved significantly better in your context compared to existing solutions? What internal value propositions, such as cost-efficiency, might play a role?
If the promise is that a completely new market will emerge: is there any evidence for this beyond beliefs? This question is particularly relevant during the second phase of the Hype Cycle — exaggerated expectations.
If these questions cannot be satisfactorily answered, it’s worth stopping here for the time being.
Check 2: Assess Impact on the Business Model
Does an innovation have the potential for a strong or even disruptive impact on your business model? If not, it’s likely unnecessary to be among the first in the market to adopt it.
For non-critical innovations, it is often more efficient and cost-effective to copy successful innovators. By doing so, you can avoid steep learning curves and failed innovations while minimizing risk as a follower. Entering as an adopter is typically simpler and more economical in this situation.
Check 3: Leverage Knowledge from Networks
Relevant networks are invaluable sources of information and should be tapped into. Often, others within the company or external networks have already built knowledge that is applicable to your context and can answer many questions.
If there is shared interest and the topic is complex, establishing a new Community of Practice or similar models can be beneficial. This allows effort and investment to be shared, and knowledge to be pooled effectively.
Check 4: Test Relevance Fast and Cheap
If a innovation seems promising, it’s worth moving beyond theory and conducting small experiments. An iterative approach should test the most critical success factors first, using simple prototypes to minimize costs. Certain challenges or insights only emerge when tested in a real-world context.
To save internal resources and avoid inefficiencies due to lack of expertise, external providers can be involved. These projects can also be valuable opportunities for junior but talented employees or students.
By this stage, it usually becomes clear whether a trend or hype is applicable to your product environment or if it still needs further maturity. This process enables evaluation without committing to full-scale product deployment.
