Mik Kersten - Project to Product: How to Survive and Thrive in the Age of Digital Disruption with the Flow Framework

Praise for

With the introduction of the Flow Framework, Mik has provided a missing element to any large-scale Agile transformation. I recommend that anyone involved in complex product delivery read this book and think about how they can apply this thinking to their value stream.

Dave West , CEO Scrum.org and author of Nexus Framework for Scaling Scrum: Continuously Delivering an Integrated Product with Multiple Scrum Teams

During our transformation to 100% Agile BMW Group IT organization, we discovered early on that the former project portfolio approach did not sufficiently support our journey. Therefore, we started with a transition from project to product. The exchanges with Mik on the topic of product orientation and the Flow Framework was very helpful and a real inspiration for me. The fact that Mik is now sharing his vast knowledge in this book makes me particularly happy. It provides the motivation and the toolset necessary to help create a product portfolio based on a value driven approach. For me it is a must readand indeed it is also a fun read.

Ralf Waltram , Head of IT Systems Research & Development, BMW Group

Organizing software development as a group of loosely connected projects will never lead to good products. Kersten explains how to tie work products to value streams corresponding to features, defects, security, and (technical) debt....[ Project to Product is a] major contribution to the theory of management in the age of software.

Carliss Y. Baldwin , William L. White Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School, Emerita, and co-author of Design Rules, Volume 1: The Power of Modularity

If you want to get rid of obsolete practices and succeed with the new digital, read this book.

Carlota Perez , author of Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital: The Dynamics of Bubbles and Golden Ages

Every now and then, a body of work comes along with such timely precision that you think hallelujah! Miks book Project to Produc t is the perfect antidote for those businesses struggling with digital transformation, broken Agile implementations, and the onslaught of enterprise disruption. In fact, its a really important component in the world of flow which is at the forefront of business agility. Not only will this framework help your teams to ignite their software delivery cadence but to do it at scale with high quality, reduced costs, and increased value. And more importantly, with happy teamsand with the metrics to prove it.

Fin Goulding , International CIO at Aviva and co-author of Flow: A Handbook for Change-Makers, Mavericks, Innovation Activists , Leaders: Digital Transformation Simplified, and 12 Steps to Flow: The New Framework for Business Agility

I had the pleasure of having an advance copy of Project to Product at my company over the summerand what an eye opener it is. This book is spot on the journey Volvo Car Group is starting up right now. The insight Mik has in our industry and the way his book describes the Age of Software makes this our new go to book for our product journey in our digital landscape!

Niclas Ericsson , Senior IT Manager, Volvo Car Corp

Project to Product is going to be one of the most influential reads of 2019 and beyond. One that connects work outcomes to business results. One that provides models to make better business decisions. One that gives technology leaders a framework to enable the change necessary for companies to remain relevant.

Dominica DeGrandis , author of Making Work Visible: Exposing Time Theft to Optimize Work & Flow

Many large organizations are still applying a management model from the early 1900s optimized for manual labor to everything they do, including complex, unique, product development. With this book, Mik provides a great articulation of the importance of focussing on the work not the workers, on the value stream network, and lessons learned on what to avoid. Mik, who has many years experience working with hundreds of companies on this topic, shares his wisdom and insights via a Flow Framework, which is immensely valuable for organizations who recognize the need to move to better ways of working.

Jonathan Smart , Head of Ways of Working, Barclays

Project to Product is a very insightful book, and the overall model Mik lays out for the Flow Framework is especially intriguing. Not only does Mik address the complexities of Agile transformation and moving to a product-based development, he also discusses how to get your architecture, process, and metrics integrated in a way to effectively measure value delivery. I got pretty excited about the Flow Framework and look forward to applying it to my own technology transformation activities.

Ross Clanton , Executive Director, Technology Modernization, Verizon

25 NW 23rd Pl, Suite 6314

Portland, OR 97210

Copyright 2018 by Mik Kersten, all rights reserved.

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to

Permissions, IT Revolution Press, LLC, 25 NW 23rd Pl., Suite 6314, Portland, OR 97210.

First Edition

Printed in the United States of America

22 21 20 19 181 2 3 4 5 6

Cover illustration by Rachel Masterson

Figure illustrations by Zhen Wang

Cover and book design by Devon Smith

Author photograph by Janine Coney

Library of Congress Catalog-in-Publication Data

is available upon request.

ISBN: 978-1-942-78839-3

eBook ISBN: 978-1-942-78840-9

Kindle ISBN: 978-1-942-78841-6

Web PDF ISBN: 978-1-942-78842-3

Publishers note: Many of the ideas, quotations, and paraphrases attributed to different thinkers and industry leaders herein are excerpted from informal conversations, correspondence, interviews, conference round tables, and other forms of oral communication with the author. Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at press time, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause.

For information about special discounts for bulk purchases or for information on booking authors for an event, please visit our website at ITRevolution.com.

The Flow Framework, the Value Stream Diagrams and studies, and all related materials, to include tables, graphs, and figures, are copyrighted by Tasktop Technologies, Inc. 2017-2018, with all rights reserved, and are used with permission wherever they may appear within this book.

PROJECT TO PRODUCT

To my mother, who made me who I am,
and my father, who taught me who to be.

CONTENTS

ILLUSTRATIONS

FOREWORD

by Gene Kim

T he mark of a great book is that it makes obvious what is wrong with the old worldview and replaces it with one that is simultaneously simpler and yet presents a better model of reality. The transition from Copernican to Newtonian physics has been long held as a great example of such a breakthrough. I believe Project to Product presents a new way to think that enables a new way of doing.