In the latest episode of Serverless Craic, we delve deeper into The Value Flywheel Effect, specifically Chapter 6, “Obsess Over Time to Value.” This chapter emphasises the importance of prioritising time to value over time to market, exploring how modern tech organisations can create efficient feedback loops to deliver real, measurable benefits to users. Here’s a recap of the episode’s key insights, covering organisational structure, innovation, and the evolving demands within the tech landscape.
Why Focus on “Time to Value” Over “Time to Market”?
Historically, the emphasis in technology and product delivery has been on “time to market” — how fast products can be developed and released. However, a shift has taken place over the past decade, driven by the understanding that simply getting products out isn’t the ultimate goal. The focus now is on time to value: how quickly we can deliver something meaningful, usable, and valued by customers. This concept isn’t new; leaders like Adrian Cockcroft highlighted it years ago. But it’s gained traction as companies realise that delivering valuable products promptly is a crucial differentiator in today’s fast-paced environment.
Innovation Theatre vs. True Innovation
In recent years, we’ve seen a rise in “innovation labs” and “innovation initiatives.” While these efforts can be beneficial, they sometimes become “innovation theatre,” where innovation appears to be happening, yet it lacks meaningful outcomes. Many organisations set up innovation labs without the technical and organisational foundations to support rapid delivery. High-performing teams are crucial for generating real, impactful change. Without them, innovation labs risk becoming showpieces, unable to translate their ideas into improvements that reach users.
The Power of Organisational Agility
A key point we explored was how organisational structure can either enable or inhibit a company’s ability to adapt to market changes. Imagine trying to turn a massive oil tanker compared to a nimble speedboat. Large, bureaucratic structures struggle to adjust course quickly, as decisions often need to pass through multiple layers of management. High-performing teams and empowered individuals, by contrast, can make quick decisions, iterate on products, and respond rapidly to customer feedback. This flexibility allows organisations to deliver continuous value, avoiding the delays caused by internal friction.
The Role of Experiments and “Trap Doors”
Experimentation is essential to fostering innovation while keeping costs low and avoiding wasted resources. We discussed the concept of the “trap door” — a low-cost experiment designed to test an assumption before a full-scale launch. For instance, before investing in a large, resource-heavy project, you can implement a simple trap door, like a link or call-to-action, to gauge user interest. If customers respond positively, you know you’re onto something. If not, you can shut it down without significant losses. This approach aligns with Lean and Agile principles, where the focus is on learning quickly and adapting based on real data.
Decision-Making and the Rate of Turn
The “rate of turn” — how quickly an organisation can pivot or adjust direction — is an essential measure of agility. High-performing tech companies can assess new opportunities and potential threats quickly, empowering teams to make informed decisions. This rate of turn isn’t just about team speed; it involves a company’s overall ability to make decisions and act on them without excessive bureaucracy. In many large enterprises, even executives can be hampered by structural barriers. Achieving a high rate of turn often requires removing these barriers, aligning teams, and creating an empowered culture across all levels of the organisation.
Building Situational Awareness
For any organisation striving to improve its time to value, situational awareness is essential. This involves understanding who your key stakeholders are, identifying potential barriers, and recognising groups or individuals who can either support or hinder progress. Building situational awareness requires a clear understanding of both internal and external factors that could impact your strategy. For tech companies, this also includes staying informed on technological trends and user needs so they can respond quickly and keep their solutions relevant and valuable.
The Importance of Developer Enablement and Architecture Flexibility
Modern technology stacks, especially those built on cloud infrastructure, are designed to be flexible and adaptable. A well-defined, loosely coupled architecture enables faster changes, allowing companies to deliver new features or respond to emerging needs efficiently. By investing in developer enablement and adopting an architecture that supports flexibility, companies can improve their rate of turn, reduce time to value, and stay responsive to customer demands.
Event-driven and modular architectures facilitate this adaptability, making it easier to introduce new functionalities without disrupting the existing system. By contrast, companies reliant on monolithic on-premise systems may struggle to achieve the same levels of agility and speed.
Time to Value in Practice
One of the most valuable insights from The Value Flywheel Effect is how time to value complements continuous delivery and metrics like the Dora metrics (from Accelerate). As we discussed, time to value goes beyond the speed of software deployment; it addresses the entire journey from product ideation to real-world usage. Even if a team can build and deploy software quickly, if the organisation can’t get the product into users’ hands swiftly, they lose their competitive edge. True time to value is achieved only when rapid development cycles are paired with effective go-to-market strategies.
Embracing Failure as Part of Learning
An essential component of time to value is the willingness to embrace failure as part of the process. Experimentation involves taking risks, and not all tests will yield positive results. However, teams that view failure as a learning opportunity can pivot faster and improve over time. Many successful tech companies today embrace this mindset, recognising that failure is not the opposite of success but rather a step towards it. By making room for failure, companies can cultivate a more flexible, resilient approach to innovation and value delivery.
Wrapping Up: Time to Value as a Strategic Advantage
As we discussed in the podcast, prioritising time to value can set high-performing technology organisations apart. It aligns business and technology strategies and fosters a culture of empowered teams that can pivot and adapt quickly. This approach ensures that the organisation remains focused on creating and delivering real value, not just meeting deadlines. Whether you’re a small startup or a large enterprise, focusing on time to value can accelerate growth, enhance user satisfaction, and provide a sustainable competitive advantage in a rapidly changing landscape.
If you found these insights valuable, be sure to tune in to Serverless Craic for more discussions on The Value Flywheel Effect and other essential concepts in modern technology strategy.
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