A Few Tips Before the Product Releases

A sprint is on the verge of release.

The QA gives the green signal & asks the product manager to review the work before it goes live.

How deeply should the PM test the build?

As PMs we are experiencing a salad bowl of emotions at this point.

A part of us is blowing up with excitement to see what we made.

Another part is fighting anxiety as a discovery of a bug or something non-ideal could jeopardize a timely release.

Or worse, what if I start ideating about improvements now that weren't a part of the original spec?

The QA hat is truly one of the heaviest ones that a PM has to bear.

This is because testing emanates from a mindset to deconstruct while most PMs are creationary by nature.

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A few tips:

1. Always test the primary "happy" flow, no matter what. If the core value has been misplaced, you need to raise the red flag, however hard that might be.

2. Spectate someone else. Call in a neutral team member & watch them use it.

As PMs, we are sub-consciously aware of limitations & might tread carefully. Observing someone else helps you see typical usage & be objective.

3. When sharing feedback, always appreciate the positive first. For the negatives, surface only dealbreakers or trivial changes. Keep bigger changes for later iterations.

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