Supporting sustainable growth with product processes

The transition from hyper growth to sustainable growth represents a critical transformation for scale-ups. It requires not just adjustments to how products are developed but often a fundamental update of how teams operate and how success is measured.

By supporting the product management practice, nurturing cross-functional collaboration, and leveraging AI to increase productivity, our team of product operations is contributing to building a foundation for PayFit’s long-term success.

First mission, keep our craft sharp

In the fast-paced world of scale-ups, it is crucial for product managers to keep working on their craft. Because the Product Ops team is transversal to all the squads, we can help fuel this continuous improvement. One example is how we supported the improvement of the velocity and predictability.

Understanding velocity helps in aligning squad output with broader business objectives and timelines.

Driving sustainable growth in a scale-up requires a focus on velocity and predictability in product development and delivery. Monitoring velocity over time can highlight trends, allowing teams to identify factors that positively or negatively impact their productivity. Predictability is also an additional parameter in managing the delivery, unlocking better planning and mid-term visibility. Yet mastering increased velocity is more important in our context.

At first, the squads were wary about this initiative, which looked like one more reporting tool. So, to ensure we were moving in the right direction and building an effective tool, we identified and worked closely with champions across different squads. These champions not only provided valuable insights from their respective contexts and areas of focus; but also helped in gaining buy-in from their teams. 

This tool first and foremost allows the squads to analyze their own metrics, spot the bottlenecks, and provide data points for conversations about workload with their directors. The true value of those graphs lies in showing trends that teams can then interpret with their context in mind: for example, variability can highlight unknowns in the scope or inconsistency in the processes.

Finally, to ensure a widespread adoption and maximize the impact of our project, we set up a training program. This initiative equipped team members with the skills to interpret and leverage data effectively, fostering a culture of informed decision-making that propels the scale-up towards sustainable, long-term growth.

Two dashboards, one playbook, and 15 training sessions later, we are now ready to dive into the second chapter of this hefty initiative: predictability.

Second mission, ensure alignment

As PayFit grew, the need for seamless collaboration and transparent information sharing became increasingly vital. Product teams can not operate in isolation. They thrive on cross-functional partnerships that bring together a wealth of insights, and these collaborations are essential in designing an articulated and responsive product roadmap.

Our roadmapping process at PayFit is structured around two key timelines, each serving a distinct purpose in our strategic planning.

Twice a year, following the validation of our Objectives and Key Results (OKRs), we share with the other departments our high-level tentative roadmap, and we sit together to discuss trade-offs and confirm the alignment. The ideal for this conversation is to be able to focus on key topics. Each party prepares clear examples of decisions, while the majority of our roadmap (70% in our case) is already defined with multiple inputs (behavioral data, user research, customer feedback, ad hoc analyses, and more).

One challenge we faced was to ensure the information is flowing in both directions. What format? What process? So, in addition to all the documentation already available internally, we decided to consolidate key elements in a very simple document, in addition to questions and asks for inputs. 

And the second challenge was the adoption. We realized that our roadmapping tool (ProductBoard at the time) was not enough to ensure that the stakeholders were able to understand and use the roadmap, so we decided to repurpose into other formats, such as slides.

Complementing this broader view, we conduct quarterly refinements of our roadmap. These more frequent, focused sessions allow us to dive deeper into the practical aspects of execution. We gather key team members to discuss dependencies between projects and make necessary trade-offs, ensuring our plans remain realistic and achievable. 

This dual approach – combining yearly strategic alignment with quarterly tactical adjustments – enables us to maintain a dynamic roadmap.

By the end of each quarter, we are able to confidently share a well-vetted, detailed roadmap that reflects both our long-term vision and our immediate operational focus.

Last but not least, leverage the best resources

As we reach a maturation phase, tools and processes optimisation drives a high impact on the company performance. Effective collaboration, streamlined workflows, and smart resource management all depend on having the right operating system in place. The goal is not to minimize our toolset, but rather to cultivate one that precisely serves our needs and empowers our teams to excel.

While simplicity has its merits, our evolving technological landscape — particularly with the rise of AI — shows us that value often lies in having purposefully chosen, specialized tools that work harmoniously within our ecosystem.

With that in mind, one of our key missions was to harness the power of AI to enhance our internal productivity. Recognizing the vast potential of this technology, we listed and evaluated numerous opportunities, estimating their potential impact on our operations. 

Moreover, acknowledging that our Ops colleagues - from CS, sales, growth, finance, and more - form the backbone of our operating system, we decided to involve the entire community in this initiative. We host training and showcases sessions, and we also offer dedicated support where we are hands-on partners to accelerate strategic use cases. You can learn more about our approach in our series of articles: AI at PayFit: Empowering Through Education and Innovation.

This collaborative approach already yields some cool results: today, we have access to a suite of over 40 AI assistants deployed across the company, each designed to address specific productivity challenges. These range from generating Slack highlights, to creating concise meeting summaries, to facilitating conversations with our personas. This widespread adoption of AI tools has not only streamlined our workflows but has also fostered a culture of innovation and efficiency throughout the organization.

In conclusion

As we look to the future, these three pillars - craft excellence, cross-functional alignment, and technological innovation - will continue to be the cornerstone of our sustainable growth strategy. By continuously refining our practices, fostering collaboration, and embracing cutting-edge technologies, we are not just adapting to change but actively shaping our path forward.

We hope this article gave you some actionable insights to leverage for your own growth.