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What is a Product Owner? - a self-paced online learning course

Description

This adaptive learning online course looks at the Product Owner concept.

As Agile product development has accelerated, so has the concept of the Product Owner. Originating in Scrum it has expanded to be used in other Agile approaches. The International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA) has produced its own framework for product ownership. In this course we defend the Scrum Framework’s idea of product ownership. It is an accountability within the Scrum team. It may or may not be a job title. Some in the role have the job title Product Manager, but if they are following Scrum, they do not act like traditional Product Managers. The Silicon Valley Group have a ‘Product Manager’ role in their Product Operating Model but point out that while traditional Product Managers are essentially elevated Project Managers, what is needed is someone with a deep knowledge of customers and the market, who is immersed in the data and has authority over the product. This pretty well describes the Product Owner role in Scrum.

The Product Owner is the one member of a Scrum Team that has any formal, independent authority. That is because she has responsibility for business-related decisions that the Scrum Team has to make. In the face of a lack of consensus she has the authority to make those decisions – particularly in the ordering of work listed in her Product Backlog – for the team as a whole.

The Product Owner is essential for the long-term sustainability of Business Agility.

Why This Course?

·        Upgrade your Product Owners’ skills – understand the key responsibility of the Product Owner to bring business and domain information to the Scrum Team so that they can take ownership of business aims and objectives.

·        Learn how to maximize the delivery of business value  – resulting from the work of the Scrum Team by prioritizing work items in the Product Backlog

·        Recognise the misconceptions of the Product Owner -  that can undermine an organisation’s Business Agility.

·        Understand the importance of clarifying and communicating Product Vision and Strategy – and create the context for informed, rational decisions about the Product Backlog

Who is This Course Suitable For?

Whether a Product Owner, Product Manager, Portfolio Manager, Program Manager or a Business Analyst, or someone who needs to understand Agile product development then this course is for them.

What They’ll Come Away With

After completing this adaptive learning course, attendees will have learned that the Product Owner is essential for the long-term sustainability of Business Agility, and how the concept is defined in the Scrum framework.

They’ll be able to:

·        Explain the difference between a traditional Product Manager and a Product Owner

·        Understand how the Product Owner is accountable for the value, usability, feasibility and viability of the product

·        Recognise that the Product Owner is the one Scrum Team member with any independent, formal authority and how this is expressed in her ordering of the Product Backlog

·        Understand the key role of Product Owners in maintaining business alignment

·        Recognise the typical misconceptions of the Product Owner that can undermine an organisation’s Business Agility

·        Describe the Product Owner Team as a group of professionals that help the Product Owner with Backlog refinement, but own nothing themselves

What Topics are Covered?

The ‘What is a Product Owner?’  course has four modules, with a total of 31 learning objectives and 58 probes.

The Singular Role of the Product Owner

·        The Product Owner accountability in the Scrum Framework

·        The formal authority of the Product Owner

·        The importance of singular accountability in Agile product management

·        The core responsibilities of the Product Owner in decision-making

The Benefits of Effective Product Ownership

·        Key benefits of effective Product Owners

·        Focus on customer value

·        Enhancement of product vision and product strategy

·        How Product Owners increase stakeholder engagement and collaboration

Common Misconceptions of the Product Owner Role

·        Underpowered and overloaded Product Owners

·        The partial Product Owner

·        The proxy Product Owner

·        The concept of the Product Owner Team

The Independent Authority of the Product Owner

·        The tendency of business-related decisions to time out before consensus is reached

·        Balancing authority and collaboration

·        Maximizing the delivery of value through the ordering of the Product Backlog

·        Ensuring the strategic alignment of the product

What the Course Includes:

·        High-quality instruction with slideshows supported by an audible coach’s text, created by Agile expert and Certified Scrum Trainer, Alan O’Callaghan

·        Multiple probes for each Learning Objective

·        Immediate feedback to answers, including remediation where appropriate.

Different pricing models apply depending on the size of your organisation. Please contact  maria@emerald-hill.co.uk to book a conversation.