Artificial intelligence has been one of the most discussed topics on social media lately, and one of the most talked-about products is Chat GPT.
But the question many have been asking is:
"how can this technology help the work of a Product Owner?"
To answer this question, we used the Chat itself to gain insights into how it can be used in the role. The result was surprising, as the tool can support Product Owners in various ways, assisting with tasks and responsibilities associated with the role.
In this article, we will present eight ways in which Chat GPT can be utilized to help Product Owners in executing their role.
1. Requirements Definition
Requirements definition is one of the crucial activities in product management. In this regard, Chat GPT can be a valuable tool to assist the Product Owner. It can help in crafting user stories, defining acceptance criteria, as well as facilitating communication with stakeholders and the development team.
To illustrate this possibility, we employed the Chat GPT itself and requested the creation of a user story for making a purchase in an e-commerce platform using a credit card, along with the necessary acceptance criteria to validate the card information. To our surprise, the Chat GPT promptly responded with a well-described user story and detailed acceptance criteria.
Among the presented acceptance criteria, we highlighted the validation of the credit card number entered by the user, checking its validity and the correct digit count, as well as verifying the expiration date and security code (CVV).
This demonstration highlights that Chat GPT can be a useful tool to assist the Product Owner in swiftly and accurately defining requirements. By doing so, it is possible to optimize time and enhance product management efficiency, providing a more satisfying user experience and adding value to the business.
2. Backlog Prioritization
Backlog prioritization is one of the most challenging tasks for a Product Owner, as it requires careful analysis of requirements and balancing the demands of stakeholders and the development team. It is in this context that Chat GPT can be a significant ally in decision-making.
Based on factors such as business value, risks, and effort dependencies, the tool can help prioritize backlog items more efficiently. To illustrate this in practice, we conducted a test with the tool, providing it with a shuffled backlog outline and asking it to prioritize the items considering the user journey.
And the result was astonishing! Based on the user journey, the artificial intelligence presented the following prioritization: e-commerce homepage, product search by category, selection of items in the shopping cart, cart checkout, payment details, delivery address information, sending a purchase confirmation email, and finally, sorting of product search.
Chat GPT justified its choices, stating that although sorting of product search is useful for users, it is less critical in the purchase journey compared to the other functionalities. This clearly demonstrates that Chat GPT can be a powerful tool to assist the Product Owner in backlog prioritization, bringing more objectivity and accuracy to the product development process.
3. Sprint Planning
Indeed, Chat GPT can be a tool to support the Product Owner in sprint planning, but it is important to remember that its suggested task distribution among team members may not always be the best option. The artificial intelligence relies on information provided by humans, and there may be inaccuracies or inadequacies in the input used to train it. Therefore, it is essential to exercise critical thinking when evaluating the suggestions presented.
While it can be helpful in defining sprint goals and objectives, it is crucial to emphasize that task distribution is the responsibility of the team, not the Product Owner. Team self-organization is one of the core principles of Agile and should be upheld. Therefore, it is advisable to discard suggestions that may impede the team's autonomy, critically evaluate what it has offered, and use that data cautiously.
4. Stakeholder Management
Chat GPT can also be a valuable tool for the Product Owner in stakeholder management, providing tips and advice on managing expectations, effective communication, and conflict resolution.
Although it is a basic tool, it can be effective in offering information management suggestions and management advice. To illustrate, an example would be a simple instruction given to Chat GPT to provide tips and advice on managing expectations, effective communication, and resolving conflicts among stakeholders. Through this, it was able to provide valuable and helpful insights on a variety of stakeholder management topics.
5. Analysis of Metrics and KPIs
Within the project's metrics and KPI analysis, Chat GPT can assist in identifying relevant metrics and key teams to track project progress and success, while providing insights to improve team performance.
During a test with the tool, it was possible to generate fictional data and metrics from an e-commerce platform called Fashion X. The artificial intelligence created several examples of interesting metrics, highlighting the value of the tool. However, it is important to note that for a more critical and in-depth analysis of the data, providing context and more detailed information is necessary. In practice, the data used in the project will be specific, and it is important to understand the metrics in a broader sense.
Chat GPT can make optimization suggestions based on the presented metrics, but it is important to emphasize that these suggestions are generic and dependent on the project's context. It is the responsibility of the Product Owner to carefully analyze these suggestions and evaluate their applicability to their specific context.
Some suggestions that were offered include increasing conversion rates, reducing costs, decreasing return rates, and boosting social media engagement. It is crucial to approach these suggestions with caution and conduct a more thorough analysis to determine their true applicability to the project's context.
6. Conducting Meetings
In addition to assisting with agenda preparation, artificial intelligence can also automatically summarize meetings. However, it is possible to go beyond that and explore the chat GPT's ability to suggest agenda topics.
When testing this capability, we achieved success in obtaining a well-structured agenda proposal. The chat suggested a comprehensive agenda that included a review of the Sprint's progress with the participation of developers and the retrospective of the Sprint, despite a slight confusion in the placement of this activity.
Overall, the dynamics presented by the intelligence were quite interesting and can provide valuable assistance in preparing efficient meetings. However, it is important to remember that it is always necessary to evaluate and adapt its suggestions according to the team and project's specific context.
7. Research and Validation
By providing a specific context, such as developing an investment management app for a brokerage firm, valuable information can be obtained regarding best market practices, trends, and emerging technologies. During the exercise, Chat GPT offered suggestions such as intuitive and user-friendly design, app personalization based on the investor's profile, automation, security, and gamification.
The chat also emphasized the importance of financial education, suggesting that the concept be integrated into the platform. The suggestions provided can help create a backlog with ideas for future trends. By considering the specific context, the Product Owner can make more informed decisions and create a more appealing product for their clients.
8. Continuous Improvement
With the ability to identify areas for improvement, the tool can provide suggestions to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the product. Furthermore, it can be used to conduct benchmarking comparisons between your product and competitors, which can help better understand the market and identify strengths and weaknesses.
For instance, if you have a visible product in the market, you can ask Chat GPT to compare your product with the leader in your segment and highlight relevant features of the competitor. While the responses may be somewhat generic, they still provide enough groundwork to guide the analysis of the Product Owner.
Conclusion
In summary, the complete replacement of the Product Owner's role or other knowledge-based professionals by artificial intelligence is not yet possible. While AI can enhance and assist in certain tasks, it still lacks the ability to understand the context and nuances of business needs, market dynamics, user requirements, as well as communication and negotiation skills.
Therefore, those who should be concerned about job displacement by AI are those whose work is merely a variation or combination of what others have already created before them.
The contribution of AI is to amplify and catalyze value delivery, thereby evolving the roles of market professionals and their careers.
