Hard-won lessons building 0 to 1 inside Atlassian | Tanguy Crusson (Head of Jira Product Discovery)

Jun 16, 2024 1h 54m 16 insights Episode Page ↗
Tanguy Kursong, a 10-year veteran at Atlassian, shares candid insights on the unique challenges and lessons learned from building zero-to-one products within a large company, including successes like Jira Product Discovery and the struggles of HipChat and Status Page.
Actionable Insights

1. Silo New Product Teams

Disconnect new product teams from the core business as much as possible, even breaking established rules, to allow them the autonomy and speed needed to test and iterate quickly without being bogged down by existing processes or expectations.

2. Set Expectation of Failure

When starting new internal products, explicitly remind everyone that failure is the most likely outcome (e.g., 70% chance it won’t exist in six months) to prevent over-investment and allow the team to hack things together quickly without adhering strictly to all company standards.

3. Articulate the ‘Why Now’

When pitching new initiatives, clearly articulate the ‘why now’ – why the opportunity is perishable and requires immediate action – to gain urgency and commitment from leadership, preventing the idea from languishing on a shelf.

4. Protect New Ideas with Comms

Protect ‘ugly baby’ new products by maintaining constant internal communication, sharing weekly bite-sized updates (demos, customer snippets, learnings, data) to build momentum and demonstrate velocity, making it clear the initiative is a ‘high-speed train’ that shouldn’t be interfered with.

5. Direct Customer Feedback Loop

Foster a direct feedback loop where the entire product team (PMs, designers, engineers) regularly interacts with a small group of ‘Lighthouse Users’ to build empathy and drive action, rather than relying solely on formal research reports or surveys.

6. Implement Lighthouse User Program

Implement a ‘Lighthouse Users Program’ with defined stages (e.g., 10, 100, 1,000 users) to limit early exposure, gather qualitative feedback, and set clear, progressive success criteria, preventing premature scaling that could lead to bad experiences and churn.

7. Incubate, Iterate, Integrate

When innovating within a mature product, ‘incubate’ new features or products on the side, ‘iterate’ on them with a specific audience until they are proven, and then ‘integrate’ them back into the main product, rather than forcing early integration.

8. Validate Past Success Assumptions

Avoid assuming past success playbooks will automatically work for new ventures; instead, actively validate assumptions about new markets or customer segments to ensure they hold true for the current initiative.

9. Avoid Competitive Myopia

Avoid competitive myopia by primarily focusing on understanding and solving your target users’ problems, rather than constantly reacting to competitor’s features, as this can lead to losing focus on what makes your product unique and valuable.

10. Prioritize People in Acquisitions

When acquiring companies, prioritize the human and cultural integration, understanding that the acquired team will face significant culture shock and process changes, which can cause a slowdown before acceleration.

11. Acquisition as Acquihire

For smaller acquisitions, treat it as a ‘hire’ (acquihire) by integrating the team and rebuilding their successful product on your existing platform, rather than trying to maintain a separate ‘Frankenstack,’ to accelerate your roadmap efficiently.

12. Avoid Product Rewrites

Avoid full product rewrites, as they often lead to significant delays and competitive disadvantages; focus instead on iterative improvements.

13. Create Scarcity for New Bets

To emulate a startup within a large company, create scarcity by reminding everyone that new initiatives are likely to fail, which helps buy autonomy and avoid over-investment from the broader organization.

14. Keep it About the Work

When facing self-doubt or imposter syndrome, refocus on the work itself, as engaging with the tasks at hand can provide clarity and reveal a path forward.

15. Don’t Take Yourself Seriously

Adopt a perspective that in the grand scheme, individual importance is fleeting, which helps in not taking oneself too seriously and encourages giving one’s best effort without excessive self-doubt.

16. Choose a Supportive Environment

Ensure your work environment supports pushing for change and innovation; if it’s not safe or welcoming, consider seeking alternatives to avoid becoming cynical and doubting your abilities.