Discontinuation Canvas
Short Tip: A Canvas with items to be covered when a product or initiative is discontinued.
What is it?
It is a Canvas containing the main items to be covered when a product or initiative is discontinued. It directs the discussion to the impacts of discontinuity and the necessary actions to generate maximum value in the process. Additionally, a reflection is made about the journey of product development and the learning of the process.
Why use it?
Discontinuing a product or initiative can be a troubled stage, with little reflection about the impacts and practices involved. The Discontinuation Canvas can help with this reflection, which is to be jointly conducted by the team.
How to use it?
The Product Owner (PIM-Go© Agile) or the Initiative Leader (PIM-Go© Hybrid) conducts its use together with the Development Team and other relevant stakeholders.
The following steps should be followed:
- Print the Discontinuation Canvas and fill it in with the product’s basic data;
- Describe in a clear, honest manner the reason for discontinuity;
- Defining the reason for discontinuation in the Canvas is essential and promotes transparency, which prevents rumors about hidden reasons that can undermine teams’ trust;
- Describe the external audience (users and customers) and the internal audience (Employees and Partners);
- Assess the impacts of discontinuation for each of the actors listed in the previous item, as well as actions that can help generate value;
- In some cases, the focus of value generation may be on reducing a negative impact of discontinuation. For example, some employees may see an impact on their work processes as a result of a discontinued solution. Seeking alternatives or work process changes in advance can reduce their dissatisfaction or the impact on their work.
- Having completed the value actions, start a Retrospective with the group to evaluate the whole product development journey. Two aspects must be listed:
- Aspects that must continue, i.e., actions that the team or stakeholders appreciated and desire in future developments;
- Aspects that could be different, i.e., actions that should be discontinued or reviewed in future developments. To encourage the improvement of these actions, appoint someone to be in charge of it.
- Finally, create a Roadmap with the discontinuation actions. It should include the value generation tasks, as well as the improvements listed in the item above (“What we could do differently”).