How a ServiceNow delivery team can support customer Product Owners

[Robert Maxwell]

Delivering a ServiceNow implementation in an agile manner obviously means the need for the identification of a Product Owner. The likelihood of the person identified  to take on that role in the customer organisation to have never been in such a role - or not even wanting to be, is fairly high, but with good fortune they just might be a subject matter expert at the process level of what's being delivered. Whichever it is, they will need to be motivated, engaged and supported.

As an experienced product development team, the way that the Product Owner can be supported starts with the employment of a team first culture. Treating the PO as part of the team, and empathising if necessary will provide a level of comfort for a PO who may or may not be excited about being in the role. Communication is also key - to both team culture and engagement, explanations on how and why you'd do something in a particular way in ServiceNow will help give a greater level of context for a PO, and might even result in a champion as delivery progresses.

Working with the customer PO in getting to know their organisational culture you're delivering into will also be beneficial. Identifying decision makers, stakeholders and technical contacts within the customer organisation that you can work with will also hopefully help drive engagement from others in the business and prepare you for backing up the PO when dealing with external influencers, with the added benefit of potentially setting you up for the next product delivery in following implementations.

Another crucial factor is providing structure. This may prove trying for teams with a lesser amount of experience, however teams with a strong history of experience can ease the burden on the PO having to manage the expectations of the business they're representing. Structure brings with it visibility, which is essential for awareness if the delivery is on target, be that financials or schedule. If a realignment becomes necessary, knowing where you are will make commencing that process easier - or even identifying the need for realignment in the first place. Visibility for the PO is also fundamental to enabling them to report back to the business on the status of development.

Prime them for the inevitable change or predicament. No matter how impactful, letting the PO know in advance what steps you'll undertake when it comes will allow them to maintain focus on the issue without the need to worry about having to manage you. If they know beforehand that some of the options you might present - like cutting down the level of functionality so a feature can still get to test in some form, or coaching them on the idea of bumping something to back to the backlog if a different feature becomes critical.

Finally, help them help you. Going agile means iterating right? So this is where we go back to the idea of a team! Lean on them for advice so they feel that you’re engaged with them and here to be that partner who is invested in their outcomes.