New Product Development: Planning & Execution
Turning a validated concept into a delivered product
Planning and execution covers requirements, prioritization, roadmapping, and delivery mechanics. Candidates must understand requirements definition (user stories, acceptance criteria, and the distinction between functional and non-functional requirements), prioritization frameworks (RICE, MoSCoW, weighted scoring, Kano), and roadmap types (now/next/later, theme-based, and outcome-based).
Concepts to master
- Backlog management and refinement: the backlog is ordered by value and risk, not by who asked loudest.
- Agile vs. waterfall: iterative delivery with feedback loops versus sequential phases; neither is universally correct.
- MVP and iterative release: the smallest thing that delivers validated learning and value, not the smallest thing that compiles.
- Definition of done and acceptance criteria: what "complete" means for a story.
- Release planning and go-to-market readiness: training, documentation, pricing, and support.
- Risk management: technical, market, and dependency risk tracked explicitly.
Traps in exam questions
Watch for answers that treat the MVP as a low-quality version, that prioritize by HiPPO (highest-paid person's opinion), or that confuse velocity with value. Another trap is assuming agile means no planning; it means planning at the right cadence.
Worked example
Two features: A serves 5% of users but blocks a key enterprise deal; B serves 60% of users with modest satisfaction gains. A RICE-style score weighing reach, impact, confidence, and effort may favor B, but strategic weight (the enterprise segment) can justify A. The exam answer should reflect explicit, stated criteria rather than intuition.
Rule of thumb
Prioritize by explicit criteria and evidence; document the trade-off so the decision is defensible and revisable.