3 ways technology leaders can take the right risks

Throughout my engineering career, I’ve learned that fear of failure can hold back digital product teams. Conversely, I’ve seen what can happen when they act brutally.

I worked on groundbreaking location technology that mapped emergency room entrances for hospitals around the world for a client that builds car navigation systems. I helped the US government collect and build the first point address system in the US, which helped some rescuers with the exact location of the individual, just in time to help victims of Hurricane Katrina in 2004 find safety. When technical leaders, product teams and engineers take on a huge challenge, they not only create a better user experience (UX), but can make life easier and even save life.

Yet many tech companies fail at being great, settling for good enough. Why? Because the financial and reputational stakes feel too high; the pressure to deliver a product that works is real. So technology leaders and their product development teams too often play it safe: they’re afraid to do something different.

Tech companies need to get rid of the fear employees can have when it comes to taking big swings – the fear that making the wrong decision will get you fired. And this mindset change must start with the leadership of the company: in 2021 43% of U.S. entrepreneurs said they fear failure, which can lead to delays in decision-making, hurt product growth and damage team morale.

It’s not easy to take big risks, but the road to get there is relatively easy. Tech leaders who adopt three habits can instill the right risk-taking mindset in their teams, improving lives along the way.

Use business acumen to balance a bold vision

“Being fervent” is usually embraced and taught by leaders who have a strong desire to do the right thing. Doing the right thing is often difficult, and it takes dedication and the will to do it. To quote Amelia Earhart, “I want to do it because I want to do it.”

What is the most important ingredient in leading courageously? I believe it’s business sense that allows leaders of all types (technology, finance, talent) to do the right things as well, as they can weigh the impact of a project on humanity against how much it will cost a company.

How does business acumen help you be bold? I always calculate the expected ROI, looking at upfront costs, maintenance costs and value delivered. And sometimes you have to ask yourself: what is the value of someone’s saved life (as in the case of the emergency room entrance)? And if one life is saved each year by adding one feature, it’s well worth the cost.

The other way I want to be bold is to aggressively protect intellectual property (IP) for my company as I transition to a patentable and new world experience.

There are also potential pitfalls to being rude. Tech leaders can lose market share, or they can lose the trust of product teams. Both have a lot of impact, but I worry more often about losing the trust of the team. When you lose confidence, team members often lose motivation and focus. Confidence can make the difference between high-performing and average-performing teams.

Set bold goals, but evaluate the potential impact

Tech leaders should always remember that the impact of their product teams on the entire company is remarkable. Consider that 66% of tech executives say product and research and development teams are seen as most responsible for digital transformation. Their success is indeed crucial.

For me, evaluating impact is critical, and it means coaching teams and sharing market trends and making sure they deliver products and features that customers use and love. This is always measured by the acceptance rate and the net promoter score (NPS) of a product or feature. To strengthen those key performance indicators (KPIs), I create ambitious goals, look for improvements and monitor that we increase our impact.

Evaluating impact also validates projects. When technology leaders evaluate the impact of what we produce, we learn more about our customers or users. If they use and appreciate some of our products to solve a problem, then we can continue to evaluate the scope of that problem space in their daily life, what is the mental representation of a problem and all possible ways to solve it. to solve. And we can evaluate the persona who likes the whole product.

Build confidence by celebrating every step

Because not all risks are worth taking, mapping the business value of an initiative instills confidence in your team because they know the plan is credible and meaningful. A recent study found that unproductive workers are nearly three times more likely to not know their goals. So tech leaders need to inspire confidence and bring clarity, enabling team members to engage, deliver great work, and develop groundbreaking products.

To build confidence, celebrate the teams at all major milestones – even when they fail. So much can be learned from failure. Your team needs to know that learning is the goal – not winning – because there is never an end point in new product development. Goalposts are always moved backwards, forwards and side to side. A good tactic is to create moments to show the work of teams on a rhythm. Most teams will run to that cadence, so there’s something to show.

Also ask questions like, “Under what conditions can this concept work?” Encourage your team members to look for the answer. As a technical leader, be interested in the results.

Finally, everyone has feared failure and avoided risk, but the impact technology leaders can have is when they know what risks to take. For me, after years of executive product roles, it’s all about daring while using business sense, consistently evaluating impact and building trust. These three ingredients can build stronger product teams and even save lives.

Sarah Rossio is chief product officer at software marketplace G2.