Applying MVP to enterprise

The traditional enterprise approach to software development is focused around delivering the perfect, full-blown and feature-rich product before it is released to customers. Neither of this is minimal or viable, as it relates to MVP guidelines and best practices. Enterprise teams struggle to define minimal (just the right amount of features that add value and utility) and balance it against viable (do I have enough features in my product that people are willing to pay for?).

There are different methods that can be applied to enterprise products that help redefine MVP in that space:

• Data-driven design: Place data at the center of product decisions. It's easier than ever to use the voice of customers, usage metrics, and existing performance reports to create a hierarchy of features that can be prioritized and paired down to minimum and viable.
• Know your market: You can't build everything for everyone. Make sure you have a clear target market segment and start there, even if that means your customer is an enterprise player. Clearly defining who it is you are building your product for will help you define a barrier of entry into market and solidify your MVP.
• Minimum Sellable Product (MSP): Once you've defined your MVP, don't forget to make sure it's viable. Test it with your target market to ensure that it has the minimal amount of features that your users would be willing to pay for. And avoid the common mistake of relying solely on the product manager's intuition and internal assumptions to predict which features drive products. Validate!
• Apply incremental UX: Bring the concept of MVP down to the component or feature level, it's not an all-or-nothing proposition anymore. The basic idea is to have a planned progression (leaving room for improvements through testing) of a feature that adds functionality at each stage. This will allow you to get to the market faster (viability) and mature your product over time through validated learning that saves time and costs.

But don't think that everyone will understand this process immediately, especially in an enterprise where your colleagues and teams are spread out across the world. It requires relentless evangelism. In our company, Dominion Dealer Solutions, we have offices around the US supported by offshore teams in three different countries. To make things more challenging, many of the teams were former acquisitions that came with their own inherited cultures and biases. Getting everyone to understand and embrace the concept of developing MVPs took a lot of evangelizing by key people to develop buy-in. This took many months, but once the idea took hold, it spread like wildfire.