How Can Teams Avoid Product Goal Anti-Patterns?
One option for avoiding product goal anti-patterns is to use the Product Goal Canvas, a collaborative alignment tool by Ralph Jocham(1). It helps structure conversations, integrate diverse perspectives, and continuously inspect and adapt the goal throughout its lifecycle.
What Is the Product Goal Canvas?
The Product Goal Canvas is a free tool that provides a structured way for teams to define and align around a Product Goal. Creating the first version may take 60–90 minutes if prior work like a Business Model Canvas exists, but requires longer if no groundwork is in place.
Works Consulted
In addition to any sources cited above, the following works informed my thinking:(2)
1.
Jocham R. Product Goal Canvas [Internet]. [cited 2025 Sep 4]. Available from: https://effectiveagile.com/canvases/product-goal-canvas/
2.
Wolpers S. Your Unfit Product Goal and the Product Goal Canvas — Making Your Scrum Work (28) [Internet]. 2022 [cited 2025 Sep 4]. Available from: https://www.scrum.org/resources/blog/your-unfit-product-goal-and-product-goal-canvas-making-your-scrum-work-28