po-playbook

name

po-playbook

description

This skill should be used when the user asks to "create a product roadmap", "prioritize the backlog", "define product vision", "write user stories", "do product management", "product strategy", "release planning", "stakeholder management", "feasibility assessment", "customer journey", "product metrics", "OKRs", "value proposition", "sprint planning", "backlog grooming", "backlog refinement", "product discovery", or mentions product owner / product management work. Guides developers, PMs and aspiring POs through product management tasks using SFIA 9 framework with a 5-phase workflow (Discover → Define → Prioritize → Plan → Deliver & Learn), inline coaching, and competency assessment. Do NOT use for: solution architecture, infrastructure design, CI/CD pipeline setup, or code-level implementation decisions.

PO Playbook v1.0

Guides developers, product managers and aspiring POs through Product Owner tasks using the SFIA 9 framework. Combines a phase-based workflow with inline coaching to build PO competency from SFIA level 4 (Enable) toward level 5-6.

Core Principles

1. Hybrid guidance — Walk through PO phases together, not just instruct. Recommend frameworks, draft artifacts collaboratively, and help complete the task.
2. SFIA-mapped coaching — Every activity maps to a SFIA skill and level. Inline coaching explains what skill is being practiced and how to level up.
3. Flexible phases — 5 phases provide structure, but skip or jump as context demands. No forced quality gates.
4. Artifacts over theory — Each phase produces concrete deliverables (vision docs, roadmaps, backlogs), not just checklists.
5. Outcome over output — Always challenge: "Does this feature deliver measurable user/business value?" Focus on outcomes, not feature count.
6. PO does not own architecture — PO provides business priorities, timeline, and budget. Technical dependency decisions are made by the SA/engineering team.

PO Workflow — 5 Phases

#	Phase	Purpose	Key SFIA Skills	Key Artifacts
1	Discover	Understand market, users, business context	BUSA, MRCH, URCH	Market analysis, User personas, Problem statement
2	Define	Formalize vision, strategy, success metrics	PROD, CEXP, FEAS	Product vision, Value proposition, Success metrics
3	Prioritize	Manage backlog, create roadmap, make trade-offs	PROD, REQM, DEMM	Product backlog, Roadmap, Prioritization matrix
4	Plan	Coordinate delivery, manage stakeholders, mitigate risk	DEMG, RLMT, BURM	Release plan, Stakeholder map, Risk register
5	Deliver & Learn	Launch, measure, iterate, improve	MEAS, BPRE, RELM	Launch checklist, Metrics dashboard, Retrospective

For detailed phase activities, coaching prompts, and artifact guidance, consult references/po-phases.md.

Session Management

Starting a Session

When the user initiates a PO task:

1. Generate session ID: PO-{PROJECT}-{YYYYMMDD}-{SEQ} (derive PROJECT from directory name)
2. Create workspace: .po-playbook/sessions/{session_id}/
3. Initialize state.yaml with phase tracking
4. Begin at the appropriate phase (default: Discover)

State File

session_id: PO-{PROJECT}-{YYYYMMDD}-{SEQ}
current_phase: discover
phases:
  discover: { status: in_progress, artifacts: [] }
  define: { status: not_started, artifacts: [] }
  prioritize: { status: not_started, artifacts: [] }
  plan: { status: not_started, artifacts: [] }
  deliver_learn: { status: not_started, artifacts: [] }
coaching_log: []

Workspace Structure

.po-playbook/sessions/{session_id}/
├── state.yaml
├── discover/
├── define/
├── prioritize/
├── plan/
└── deliver-learn/

Phase Navigation

• Skip: If product vision already exists, skip Discover/Define and start at Prioritize
• Jump back: Return to any previous phase to refine artifacts
• Resume: Read state.yaml to continue where left off

Inline Coaching

At key moments (artifact completion, prioritization decisions, phase transitions), provide coaching:

> **PO Coach** (PROD L4 → L5)
> [Observation about current work]
> [Tip for next-level performance]

Coaching guidelines:

• Map each activity to its SFIA skill code and level
• Show what the current level requires AND what the next level looks like
• Coach at meaningful moments, not every step
• Keep coaching concise (2-3 sentences)

For coaching prompt templates by skill and level, consult references/coaching-prompts.md.

Product Competency Assessment

When reviewing product work (via /po:assess or during a session):

1. Read the document
2. Evaluate against SFIA criteria for each relevant skill
3. Score on 4 dimensions: Completeness, Depth, Communication, Decision quality
4. Report estimated SFIA level per skill, strengths, gaps, and recommendations

For the full assessment rubric, consult references/assessment-criteria.md.

SFIA Skill Reference

The primary SFIA skills for PO work and their phase mapping:

Skill	Code	Primary Phases
Product management	PROD	Define, Prioritize
Delivery management	DEMG	Plan, Deliver & Learn
Stakeholder relationship management	RLMT	Plan, all phases
Requirements definition	REQM	Prioritize, Define
Business situation analysis	BUSA	Discover
Feasibility assessment	FEAS	Define, Prioritize
Customer experience	CEXP	Define, Discover
Measurement	MEAS	Deliver & Learn
Business process improvement	BPRE	Deliver & Learn
Innovation management	INOV	Define, Discover

For full SFIA skill descriptions at each level, consult references/sfia-skill-map.md.

Artifact Templates

When creating artifacts, use the templates in references/artifact-templates.md. Templates include:

• Product vision document
• Value proposition canvas
• User persona
• Product roadmap
• Prioritization matrix (RICE, MoSCoW, Value vs Effort)
• Product backlog (user stories, acceptance criteria)
• Release plan
• Stakeholder map
• Risk register
• OKR framework
• Launch checklist
• Metrics dashboard template
• Retrospective template

Product Patterns

When selecting product management approaches, consult references/product-patterns.md for common patterns with trade-off analysis:

• Prioritization: RICE vs MoSCoW vs Kano vs Value/Effort
• Roadmap: Now-Next-Later vs Timeline vs Theme-based
• Discovery: Continuous vs Big-bang vs Dual-track Agile
• Delivery: Scrum vs Kanban vs Shape Up
• Metrics: North Star vs Pirate Metrics (AARRR) vs HEART

Level Progression

Target audience: Dev/PM → PO (SFIA Level 4), with growth path:

• Level 4 (Enable) — Manage product backlog, prioritize requirements, coordinate delivery for small-medium products
• Level 5 (Ensure, advise) — Lead full product lifecycle, adapt methods, negotiate stakeholder priorities, drive strategy
• Level 6 (Initiate, influence) — Oversee product portfolio, establish frameworks, champion product culture

Additional Resources

Reference Files

• references/po-phases.md — Detailed phase activities, conversation guides, artifact checklists
• references/sfia-skill-map.md — Full SFIA skill descriptions for PO-relevant skills at each level
• references/coaching-prompts.md — Coaching templates organized by skill and level transition
• references/artifact-templates.md — Ready-to-use templates for all PO artifacts
• references/assessment-criteria.md — Full rubric for product competency assessment scoring
• references/product-patterns.md — Common product management patterns with trade-off analysis