I’ve built product teams in different companies over the last decade, and I’ve seen a recurring problem: Product organizations never reach their full potential, despite top-talent and agile teams product organizations don’t deliver at the level we know they could. Why?

One common reason is lack of customer awareness => Teams focus on output, rather than impact, and miss opportunities to deliver real value.

👀 Real-world example:
I worked with a company migrating their BI platform. The initial plan was to migrate 74 applications as a one-to-one lift-and-shift. But when I asked, “Who is the customer for each app, and what is its purpose?”, the answer was vague at best.

We started engaging with actual users and mapping their needs. The result? We merged 9 apps into 2 and eliminated 34 completely – reducing the scope and cost while maintaining (or even improving) the value delivered to users.

✅ How to become customer driven:

• Customer mapping workshops – Identify real customers and their needs.

• Establish customer feedback loops – Ensure teams continuously learn from customers.

Shift from projects to products – Deliver value continuously, not in isolated bursts.