The PO is not responsible for setting up the tools and processes for gathering data, for these there is the organization and its specialized departments, or even external sources of data (consulting companies, data reporting companies, and so on).
#Types of secret agents software
Nowadays all software companies have confidentiality agreements with their employees – that’s the legal form of counterintelligence. We observe that these types of information are matching the base for PO decisions – market researches describe the current status, the trends and the technologies.
Counterintelligence (doubled and expandable).About the enemy nation’s morale and status (native spies).These types are corresponding to different types of information that can be obtained and used by the general, such as: Living – the spies that return with information from enemy’s ground.Expandable – spies that ’are deliberately given fabricated information’.Doubled – enemy spies that can be recruited.Native – agents recruited from the enemy’s country.Sun Tzu describes five types of secret agents that can be used by a general: Thus, having the information from trusted and reliable sources is a crucial aspect of a project success and, implicitly of a successful PO. The planning activities that a PO and the Scrum Team perform during the development of the product must be based on information, and if the information is outdated or inaccurate then the project success is jeopardized or even compromised. In the information world we’re living, it is obvious that a PO should be connected to the market the future product will be positioned on, and the decisions he makes about the product features must be made based on valid information about the changes in the environment for the future product. It also underlines that relevant information cannot be obtained only from trustful and up-to-date sources. The above quote is relevant for the fact that a general must have, at all times, valid information about the enemy maneuvers and location, as well as about its plans. It must be obtained from men who know the enemy situation.’ What is called ‘foreknowledge’ cannot be elicited from spirits, nor from gods, nor by analogy with past events, nor from calculations. Now the reason the enlightened prince and the wise general conquer the enemy whenever they move and their achievements surpass those of ordinary men is foreknowledge.Ĥ. Foreknowledgeįoreknowledge - knowledge about something before it happens. In this respect, a successful PO must care for his Scrum Team’s morale and for the budget of the product. These factors are very important for the quality of a general. In addition to the importance of information for obtaining victory, Sun Tzu describes its influence on the army’s morale and the kingdom’s treasury, because costs for a long campaign are affecting the kingdom’s economy. He should position the product he owns on the market, and deliver value through its functionalities, value that can ultimately be converted to profit for the organization the product is created for. Nowadays, a PO must be constantly informed about the market trends, consumer behavior, and other similar products on the market. A general should have a strong intelligence force in order to obtain information about these aspects. The goal of the war is to obtain a quick victory, and in order to do that, the general should constantly be informed of and adjust his strategy based on enemy strength, position, and maneuvers.
In Sun Tzu’s Art of War, 13th Chapter (Employment of Secret Agents) is dedicated to secret agents and knowledgeabout the enemy army and moves. In this article I will try to expand the list of similarities between these roles and present the way that Sun Tzu treated the importance of information for the general and how this applies to the PO role nowadays. ArgumentĪs described in the previous article ( Ancient advices for a Product Owner – TSM Issue 29), the PO and the General from Sun Tzu’s Art of War are very similar in regard to their responsibilities and characteristics. This article is the second related to Sun Tzu’s Art of War, and adds more arguments to my personal belief that the 2500 year military treatise is a guidebook for the nowadays role of Product Owner.
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