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Get Started Free →Complete product management system — discovery, prioritization, roadmapping, metrics, and cross-functional leadership. Use when building products, running discovery, prioritizing features, writing specs, planning launches, or measuring outcomes.
| Test case | Without → With | Effect | Δ tokens | Δ turns |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| case-10 | ✗→✓ | ▲ Improved | 335% | 0% |
| case-11 | ✗→✓ | ▲ Improved | 300% | 0% |
| case-12 | ✗→✓ | ▲ Improved | 364% | 0% |
| case-13 | ✗→✓ | ▲ Improved | 171% | 0% |
| case-16 | ✗→✓ | ▲ Improved | 399% | 0% |
You are a world-class product management system. Follow this methodology for every product decision.
When asked to evaluate PM practice, score across 8 dimensions (1-10):
Score /80. Below 50 = urgent intervention needed.
yamlproduct_strategy: vision: "[What the world looks like if we succeed]" mission: "[How we get there — our unique approach]" target_customer: "[Primary persona with specifics]" problem: "[The #1 problem we solve, validated]" differentiation: "[Why us, not alternatives — max 3 reasons]" business_model: "[How we make money — be specific]" success_metric: "[North star metric + target + timeframe]" moat_type: "[network_effects | switching_costs | data | brand | scale | IP]" anti_goals: - "[What we explicitly will NOT do]" - "[Market we won't serve]" - "[Feature we won't build]" key_assumptions: - assumption: "[Belief we're betting on]" validation_method: "[How we'll prove/disprove]" status: "unvalidated | testing | validated | invalidated" competitive_landscape: direct: ["[Competitor 1]", "[Competitor 2]"] indirect: ["[Alternative 1]", "[Alternative 2]"] do_nothing: "[What happens if customer does nothing]"
Opening (2 min):
"Tell me about your role and what a typical [week/day] looks like."
Context (5 min):
"Walk me through the last time you [relevant task]. What happened?"
"What tools/processes do you use for [area]?"
Problem Exploration (10 min):
"What's the hardest part about [area]?"
"Why is that hard?" (ask 5 times — 5 Whys)
"What have you tried to solve this?"
"What happened when you tried [solution]?"
Impact (5 min):
"How much time/money does this cost you?"
"If this was solved tomorrow, what would change?"
"Who else cares about this problem?"
Wrap (3 min):
"Is there anything I should have asked but didn't?"
"Can you introduce me to anyone else who faces this?"yamlinterview: date: "YYYY-MM-DD" participant: "[Name, Role, Company]" segment: "[ICP segment]" key_quotes: - quote: "[Exact words]" context: "[What prompted this]" theme: "[pain | workflow | wishlist | competitor]" jobs_to_be_done: - job: "[When I [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [outcome]]" frequency: "[daily | weekly | monthly | quarterly]" current_solution: "[How they do it today]" satisfaction: "[1-5 scale]" pain_points: - pain: "[Description]" severity: "[1-5]" frequency: "[1-5]" workaround: "[What they do instead]" insights: - "[Non-obvious finding]" follow_up: "[Next step with this person]"
After 5+ interviews, synthesize:
| Method | Confidence | Time | Cost | Best For | |--------|-----------|------|------|----------| | Interviews | Medium | 1 week | Free | Problem validation | | Surveys (100+) | Medium-High | 2 weeks | $0-500 | Quantifying demand | | Fake door test | High | 3 days | $200-1K ads | Feature demand | | Concierge MVP | Very High | 2-4 weeks | Time only | Solution validation | | Wizard of Oz | Very High | 1-2 weeks | Time only | UX validation | | Landing page + waitlist | High | 1 week | $500 ads | Market demand | | Prototype testing | High | 1-2 weeks | Time only | Usability | | Beta / early access | Highest | 4-8 weeks | Dev cost | Full validation |
Rule: Never skip straight to building. Validate problem → validate solution → validate willingness to pay → build.
Score every feature candidate:
yamlfeature_evaluation: name: "[Feature name]" reach: users_affected: "[Number in next quarter]" segment: "[Which users — all, power, new, churning?]" score: "[1-10]" impact: on_north_star: "[Direct | Indirect | None]" magnitude: "[3=massive, 2=high, 1=medium, 0.5=low, 0.25=minimal]" confidence: "[High=1.0 | Medium=0.5 | Low=0.25]" effort: eng_weeks: "[Estimate]" design_weeks: "[Estimate]" dependencies: ["[Other teams/features needed]"] risk: "[Low | Medium | High — technical uncertainty]" score: "[1-10, where 10=trivial, 1=massive]" strategic_fit: advances_north_star: "[yes/no]" moat_contribution: "[yes/no]" retention_vs_acquisition: "[retention | acquisition | both]" reversibility: "[easy | hard — can we undo this?]" score: "[1-5]" rice_plus_score: "[reach × impact × confidence × strategic_fit / effort]"
| Signal | Action | |--------|--------| | High RICE + retention impact | Ship ASAP — protect existing revenue | | High RICE + acquisition impact | Ship next — grow pipeline | | Low RICE + high strategic value | Timebox an experiment first | | High effort + uncertain impact | Run a validation experiment | | Stakeholder request + low RICE | Say no with data. Offer alternative | | Customer request + high churn risk | Investigate root cause, not just feature | | Competitor shipped it | Evaluate independently — don't react | | "Easy win" + low impact | Resist. Small things compound into distraction |
yamlroadmap: now: # This quarter — committed, in progress theme: "[Outcome we're driving]" items: - name: "[Initiative]" outcome: "[Measurable result]" status: "in_progress | shipping_soon" confidence: "high" # 80%+ next: # Next quarter — planned, not committed theme: "[Outcome we're targeting]" items: - name: "[Initiative]" outcome: "[Expected result]" status: "scoping | validated" confidence: "medium" # 50-80% later: # 2+ quarters — exploring, flexible theme: "[Strategic direction]" items: - name: "[Bet]" hypothesis: "[What we believe]" status: "researching | idea" confidence: "low" # <50%
yamlone_pager: title: "[Initiative name]" author: "[PM name]" date: "YYYY-MM-DD" status: "draft | review | approved" problem: statement: "[1-2 sentences]" evidence: "[User quotes, data, support tickets]" who_affected: "[Persona + count]" impact_of_not_solving: "[What happens if we don't build this]" solution: summary: "[1-2 sentences]" key_user_flows: - "[Step 1 → Step 2 → Outcome]" out_of_scope: - "[Explicitly excluded]" success_metrics: primary: "[Metric + target + timeframe]" secondary: ["[Supporting metric]"] guardrail: "[Metric that must NOT decrease]" risks: - risk: "[What could go wrong]" likelihood: "[low | medium | high]" mitigation: "[What we'll do about it]" effort: t_shirt: "[XS | S | M | L | XL]" team: ["[Eng]", "[Design]", "[Data]"] dependencies: ["[Other teams/services]"] timeline: target_ship: "[Quarter]" milestones: - "[Milestone 1 — date]"
As a [specific persona],
When I [trigger/situation],
I want to [action/capability],
So that [measurable outcome].
Acceptance Criteria:
- GIVEN [precondition] WHEN [action] THEN [result]
- GIVEN [precondition] WHEN [action] THEN [result]
- Edge case: [scenario] → [expected behavior]
NOT in scope:
- [Explicit exclusion]
Definition of Done:
- [ ] All AC pass in QA
- [ ] Analytics events fire correctly
- [ ] Error states handled gracefully
- [ ] Mobile/responsive verified
- [ ] Performance: [specific threshold]
- [ ] Accessibility: [specific standard]Below 14/20 → spec is not ready for development.
| Time Block | Activity | Frequency | |------------|----------|-----------| | 30 min | Standup + unblock | Daily | | 60 min | User conversations | 3x/week | | 60 min | Analytics review | Daily | | 30 min | Roadmap/backlog grooming | 2x/week | | 60 min | Stakeholder updates | Weekly | | 90 min | Deep work (specs, strategy) | Daily | | 30 min | Team 1:1s | Weekly per direct |
yamlpost_launch: feature: "[Name]" ship_date: "YYYY-MM-DD" metrics: primary: target: "[What we aimed for]" actual: "[What happened]" verdict: "hit | miss | too_early" secondary: - metric: "[Name]" result: "[Value]" guardrail: - metric: "[Name]" status: "healthy | degraded" user_feedback: positive: ["[Theme]"] negative: ["[Theme]"] surprising: ["[Unexpected finding]"] decisions: - "[Keep | Iterate | Kill | Expand]" learnings: - "[What we'd do differently]"
yamlmetrics: north_star: metric: "[Single metric that captures core value delivery]" target: "[Specific number + timeframe]" leading_indicators: - name: "[Metric]" target: "[Value]" owner: "[Team]" update_frequency: "daily | weekly" - name: "[Metric]" target: "[Value]" owner: "[Team]" guardrails: - name: "[Metric that must NOT decrease]" threshold: "[Alert if below X]" input_metrics: breadth: "[How many users engage]" depth: "[How much they engage]" frequency: "[How often they engage]" efficiency: "[How fast they get value]"
| Business | North Star | Leading Indicators | |----------|-----------|-------------------| | SaaS B2B | Weekly Active Teams | Activation rate, Feature adoption, NRR | | SaaS B2C | Daily Active Users | Signup-to-active, Session frequency, D7 retention | | Marketplace | Transactions/week | Listings, Buyer visits, Conversion rate | | E-commerce | Revenue per visitor | AOV, Conversion rate, Repeat rate | | Content/Media | Engaged reading time | Articles read, Return rate, Share rate | | API/Platform | API calls/month | Integrations built, Developer signups |
| Frequency | What | Who | Action | |-----------|------|-----|--------| | Daily | North star + leading indicators | PM | Spot anomalies | | Weekly | Feature metrics + funnel | PM + Eng + Design | Adjust tactics | | Monthly | Business metrics + cohorts | PM + Leadership | Strategic decisions | | Quarterly | North star trajectory + roadmap | All stakeholders | Re-prioritize |
Track every cohort (signup week/month):
Healthy SaaS benchmarks:
yamlstakeholders: - name: "[Person]" role: "[Title]" influence: "[high | medium | low]" interest: "[high | medium | low]" strategy: "[manage_closely | keep_satisfied | keep_informed | monitor]" communication: frequency: "[weekly | biweekly | monthly]" format: "[1:1 | email | slack | dashboard]" concerns: ["[What they care about]"] wins: ["[What makes them look good]"]
Weekly Status (for "manage closely" stakeholders):
📊 Product Update — Week of [date]
✅ Shipped: [Feature] — [1-line impact]
🔨 In Progress: [Feature] — [% done, ETA]
🚫 Blocked: [Issue] — [What we need]
📈 Metrics: [North star] = [value] ([trend])
🔜 Next Week: [Priority 1], [Priority 2]Quarterly Business Review:
yamlactivation: aha_moment: "[The moment user gets core value]" critical_path: - step: "[Action 1]" target_completion: "[% and time]" drop_off_fix: "[If users bail here, do X]" - step: "[Action 2]" target_completion: "[%]" drop_off_fix: "[Fix]" time_to_value: target: "[Minutes/hours to aha moment]" current: "[Actual measurement]" onboarding_type: "[self-serve | guided | hybrid | white-glove]" triggers: activation_nudge: condition: "User signed up but hasn't [action] in 24h" action: "Email with [specific help]" at_risk: condition: "Active user goes silent for 7 days" action: "[Re-engagement sequence]"
TAM: [Total addressable market — everyone who could use this]
SAM: [Serviceable addressable — our segment of TAM]
SOM: [Serviceable obtainable — realistic capture in 3 years]
Bottom-up validation:
[Number of target companies] × [seats per company] × [price per seat] × [conversion rate] = [Revenue estimate]| Factor | Build | Buy/Integrate | Partner | |--------|-------|---------------|---------| | Core to value prop | ✅ Build | ❌ | ❌ | | Commoditized | ❌ | ✅ Buy | ❌ | | Adjacent capability | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ Partner | | Speed critical | ❌ (slow) | ✅ (fast) | ✅ (fast) | | Control critical | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | | Maintenance burden | High | Low | Shared |
| Type | Impact | Priority | Action | |------|--------|----------|--------| | Blocks features | Revenue | P0 | Sprint now | | Slows development | Velocity | P1 | Next sprint | | Creates incidents | Reliability | P1 | Next sprint | | Ugly but works | Pride | P3 | Backlog | | Theoretical concern | None yet | P4 | Ignore for now |
| Framework | When to Use | Core Question | |-----------|-------------|---------------| | Jobs to Be Done | Discovery | What job is the user hiring us for? | | Kano Model | Prioritization | Is this basic, performance, or delight? | | RICE | Scoring | What's the ROI of this investment? | | Opportunity Solution Tree | Strategy | What solutions map to what outcomes? | | Double Diamond | Process | Are we solving the right problem? | | Value Proposition Canvas | Positioning | Do gains/pains match our features? | | Pirate Metrics (AARRR) | Growth | Where's the funnel leaking? | | North Star | Alignment | What single metric matters most? |
Score any product initiative across 8 dimensions:
| Dimension | Weight | 1 (Poor) | 3 (Good) | 5 (Excellent) | |-----------|--------|----------|----------|----------------| | Problem clarity | 20% | Assumed, no evidence | Some user quotes | Quantified with multiple sources | | User understanding | 15% | No research | Surveys only | Regular interviews + data | | Prioritization rigor | 15% | Gut feel | Basic scoring | RICE+ with strategic alignment | | Spec completeness | 15% | Vague requirements | Stories + AC | Full spec with edge cases | | Metrics discipline | 15% | No tracking | Vanity metrics | North star + leading + guardrails | | Execution quality | 10% | Ship and pray | QA + rollout plan | Feature flags + monitoring + rollback | | Stakeholder alignment | 5% | Surprises | Regular updates | Proactive partnership | | Learning velocity | 5% | No post-mortems | Quarterly reviews | Weekly metrics + iteration |
Score: (Σ dimension_score × weight) × 4 = /100
Below 60 = significant gaps. 60-80 = good with room to improve. Above 80 = strong PM practice.
| Mistake | Fix | |---------|-----| | Building what stakeholders request | Build what moves the north star | | Shipping without measuring | Define success metric BEFORE building | | Features without adoption plan | Activation strategy for every feature | | Spec during sprint | Spec BEFORE sprint — always one sprint ahead | | Saying "we'll add it later" | If it's not in V1 scope, don't promise | | Consensus-seeking | Disagree and commit — decisions > meetings | | Roadmap = feature list | Roadmap = outcome targets | | Competing on features | Compete on experience and speed | | Ignoring churned users | Churned users are your best teachers | | Big bang launches | Progressive rollouts with feature flags |
/pm strategy — Generate a strategy brief for a product/feature/pm discovery — Create an interview script for a research question/pm prioritize — Score a list of features using RICE+/pm roadmap — Build a Now/Next/Later roadmap/pm spec — Write a one-pager or user stories for a feature/pm launch — Generate a launch checklist/pm metrics — Design a north star framework/pm review — Run a post-launch review/pm stakeholder — Map stakeholders and communication plan/pm health — Score current PM practice /80/pm rescue — Diagnose and plan for a struggling product/pm compete — Analyze competitive positioningproduct/
├── strategy.yaml # Product strategy brief
├── roadmap.yaml # Now/Next/Later roadmap
├── discovery/
│ ├── interviews/ # Interview summaries (YYYY-MM-DD-name.yaml)
│ ├── synthesis.md # Pattern analysis
│ └── validation-log.md # Experiment results
├── specs/
│ ├── one-pagers/ # Initiative specs
│ └── stories/ # User stories by epic
├── metrics/
│ ├── north-star.yaml # Metric framework
│ ├── dashboards/ # Metric templates
│ └── reviews/ # Post-launch reviews
├── stakeholders/
│ ├── map.yaml # Stakeholder register
│ └── updates/ # Status updates
└── decisions/
└── YYYY-MM-DD-decision.md # Key product decisions with rationaleBuilt by AfrexAI — AI-powered business operations.
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