Quick bits

🧩 Strategy: Mckinsey - Charting a path to the data- and AI-driven enterprise of 2030

📊 Trends: Inside How Stripe Crafts Quality Products

🛠️ Training & Tools: Release Notes that Make a difference

🧩 Strategy

Charting a path to the data- and AI-driven enterprise of 2030

‘Data is the new oil’ might sound cliché, but make no mistake—if you don’t start strategically curating your data now, you’ll find yourself at a serious competitive disadvantage by 2030. The race for AI dominance is accelerating, and without the ability to harness your data effectively, you’ll struggle to extract the insights needed to stay ahead of your peers.

Executive Summary:

As we approach 2030, data and AI are set to transform the business landscape, creating opportunities for innovation and growth. However, to succeed in this data-driven future, companies must rethink their strategies, focusing on integrating AI, managing unstructured data, and building scalable, enterprise-wide systems. Data leaders will play a pivotal role in unlocking the value of these technologies while navigating complex risks and governance challenges.

Key Takeaways:

1. Data Ubiquity and AI Integration:

By 2030, data will be embedded across all systems and processes, driving automated actions with AI oversight. To harness this, organizations need to standardize data access, tracking, and trust.

• Quantum and AI technologies will enable real-time, personalized product updates and customer interactions.

• Data leaders must adopt an "everything, everywhere" mindset to ensure seamless data usage.

2. Unlocking Competitive Advantage:

With widespread adoption of generative AI and low-code tools, competitive advantage comes from how companies use and integrate proprietary data with AI technologies.

• Customizing AI models with proprietary data unlocks superior performance.

• Integrated systems combining AI and data enable predictive models and personalized customer experiences.

3. Managing Unstructured Data:

The majority of future data will be unstructured (e.g., images, emails, reviews), requiring advanced capabilities like natural language processing and model recalibration to derive value.

• Companies must invest in converting unstructured data for AI use.

• Efficient data management will unlock "alpha" and enable new, scalable AI-driven solutions.

Authors: Asin Tavakoli and Kayvaun Rowshankish

📊 Trends

My mantra remains the same: what’s old is new again. In the AI race, mastering the craft of AI is the secret sauce that will set apart the winners from the rest. The companies that perfect this craft will rise to become the next tech giants, outpacing the competition in our AI-driven world.

Executive Summary

In an insightful interview with Katie Dill, Head of Design at Stripe, she shares the principles and rituals Stripe uses to deliver exceptional products. She emphasizes the importance of balancing utility, beauty, and craft, and how these values are ingrained in the company's culture, from product design to user feedback loops. Stripe focuses on building products that not only meet functional needs but also delight users, contributing to business growth.

Key Takeaways

1. Craft and Quality Defined:

Craft represents the process, while quality is the outcome. Dill emphasizes that true quality in design means achieving a balance between utility, usability, and aesthetics. Products should be not only functional but also enjoyable to use.

• AI Connection: In AI product design, craft involves refining algorithms, while quality reflects user experience. A well-crafted AI model should be both efficient and intuitive.

2. Balancing Utility and Beauty:

Dill challenges the idea of prioritizing utility over beauty. A Minimum Viable Quality Product (MVQP) should integrate both, as aesthetics can elevate the user's experience and foster deeper engagement with the product.

• AI Connection: In AI-powered apps, a clean, user-friendly interface helps users engage more deeply with complex functionalities, like predictive models or chatbots.

3. Building with Users:

Stripe relies heavily on user feedback, continuously testing and iterating products to align with real-world needs. Programs like "friction logs" allow employees to experience pain points firsthand, improving the final product.

• AI Connection: Similarly, AI solutions must be developed iteratively with user feedback to ensure they solve the right problems, stay relevant, and improve usability across diverse user journeys.

By applying these product design principles, AI teams can craft user-centered solutions that are not only innovative but also high-quality, intuitive, and impactful.

Author: Peter Yang

🛠️ Training & Tools 

How to Write Release Notes in 2024 [With free template]

I believe in the power of precision and artistry in every detail, no matter how small. Just like a finely crafted piece of work, release notes are a unique opportunity in the AI era to showcase your product’s excellence. They aren't just updates—they're a chance to captivate your audience, elevate their experience, and clearly communicate the transformative value your AI-driven improvements bring. In a world where AI advancements are becoming the norm, polished release notes can be a key differentiator, helping your product stand out and truly resonate with your users.

Executive Summary:

Writing high-quality release notes is a critical yet often neglected task in product management. Effective release notes not only keep customers informed but also drive user engagement, transparency, and feature adoption. By treating release notes as an opportunity, rather than an afterthought, companies can improve customer satisfaction and product performance. The key is to make release notes clear, concise, and engaging, using structure, visuals, and customer-centric language.

Key Takeaways:

1. Importance of Release Notes:

Well-crafted release notes are a direct communication tool that drives customer engagement and adoption of new features. They can also reduce the support burden and enhance transparency by clearly explaining product changes.

• Release notes can act as a mini product tour, helping users discover features they may have missed.

• They can also be repurposed as marketing material to boost product visibility.

2. Best Practices for Writing Release Notes:

Successful release notes should follow a consistent template, be easy to scan, and be customer-centric. Avoid vague language, and instead provide clear explanations about changes and their impact on the user.

• Use visuals like screenshots or videos to demonstrate key changes.

• Stick to your brand voice to keep the tone conversational and engaging.

3. Ownership and Delivery of Release Notes:

Release notes should be a collaborative effort between development and product teams, with Product Managers playing a central role. Regular updates should be scheduled based on product changes, with larger releases highlighted through various channels like email, blogs, and tutorials.

• A changelog within the app is a common way to deliver release notes.

• Frequent updates should be balanced to avoid overwhelming users while ensuring they stay informed.

Author - Domenic Edwards

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