Since shifting out of a pure-play service company to building a product-led company, I am now seeing what it is to be strategic.
In building a product, you are investing in an asset. Investing in an asset forces you to make strategic decisions since the product features define the course and goals for a company. When resources are limited, decision-making needs to be better since the direction these decisions impose on your company's direction are costly to undo.
Bootstrapping the development Knowledge Leaps for the past three years has been eye-opening and a great learning opportunity. The top lessons learnt so far are:
- Don't invest money in features that don't make it easier to use the product, today.
- Use the product, experience the pain points, then write the scope for the next build.
- Get the basics done right before moving on to build more advanced features.
- Work with the right team.
Fundamentally, I have learnt that if I am allocating finite resources that have a compounding effect on my company then I am making the right strategic.
