Roadmapping problems in practice: value creation from the perspective of the customers

Abstract

Roadmapping has been recognized as a critical activity for adding business value to a software product. The marketing literature has placed increasing emphasis on customer value and that value is created in customers' everyday activities. This paper presents an action research study on the roadmapping problems of two software product companies. The key findings were that customer knowledge was fragmented across different functions of the companies and that roadmapping neglected service development. To solve these problems, the analysis of customer value and customers' processes was integrated into roadmapping. Facilitated workshops with cross-functional teams were used to analyze the customers' processes in their entirety and to create a holistic view to roadmapping. The lessons learned offer practical means for software companies to shift their focus from the prioritization of software features to the analysis of customers' processes and the prioritization of customers' activities. That shift can promote value for customers and uncover new service business opportunities. Accordingly, this paper provides a six-step approach to adopt the value-creation logic from the customers' perspective into the existing roadmapping process of a company.