Part 2 · 2 chapters · ~12 min

Strategy, Vision and Positioning

Writing a product vision, good strategy as diagnosis, guiding policy and coherent actions, explicit non-goals, positioning (who it is for, against what alternative, why better), competitive analysis without copying, and OKRs that measure outcomes.

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Vision, strategy and objectives

Strategy is a choice that makes some good things impossible. A "strategy" that includes everything is a wish list.

FROM VISION TO ROADMAP
each layer constrains the one below
visionwhere we want customers to be in 3-5 yearsstrategythe few bets that get us there, and what we will not doobjectivesoutcomes per quarter (OKRs)roadmapproblems to solve, sequenced, with confidence levelsbacklogthe next few weeks of work
swipe the figure sideways, or tap expand for full screen
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vision
A vision describes a future for customers, not features: "anyone in Nigeria can borrow and repay without visiting a branch, and prove it in seconds".
a customer future, not a feature liststable for years
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Positioning

code
positioning statement (April Dunford's components)
for          salaried borrowers who need proof they have repaid a loan
who          today wait days for a branch or support agent to produce a letter
our product  issues a verifiable clearance letter in the app in under a minute
unlike       emailing support or visiting a branch
because      it reads the live ledger and signs the letter digitally with a QR the receiving bank can check

Competitive alternatives are often not competitors' products but what customers do today: a spreadsheet, a phone call, a branch visit, doing nothing. Positioning against the real alternative keeps the value proposition honest.