The Best Roadmapping Tool

People frequently ask me what the very best roadmapping tool is. While I use a number of tools in my day-to-day work, I find that "old faithful" always turns out to be the lowly 3x5 index card.

I use cards of different colors to represent different types of roadmapping concepts -- green for products/services, yellow for features/capabilities, etc. The cards are used in every step of roadmap development. For example, the priority ranking of each feature/capability gets written directly on the card at the end of the prioritization workshop. I typically keep the cards on one wall of my office while they are not actively being used in a workshop -- this lets people come by and add new cards or add comments/notes to existing ones. Here is what the wall looked like on my last project:

Finally, index cards are cheap!

I am thinking of creating a simple/inexpensive roadmapping tool for iPad and would like your feedback as to the features you would like to see in it -- just post a comment if you can think of anything.

Roadmapping Tools Update

It's been a while since my last post -- I've been busy working on e-Services roadmaps for the public sector (more on that later). Many people ask me about the best "roadmapping tools". There isn't a single answer to this question, due to the fact that there are many different types of roadmaps. I will identify three tools here, however, and point out where they best apply. The tools are Accolade Vision Strategist (www.sopheon.com), Accept360 (www.accept360.com) and Onedesk (www.onedesk.com). If your intent is strategic planning at the (medium to large) enterprise level, then Vision Strategist is the right tool for you. I created a Wordle from their product information and you can see prominent words associated with strategic planning:

If your interest is product planning across a portfolio, then both Accept360 or Onedesk represent good choices. Although comparable in many respects, Onedesk has more to offer in the requirements gathering space (including social media), while Accept360 has more to offer on the product planning side. I again created Wordles (you can tell I am hooked on these) from their corresponding product briefings, from which you can see the respective emphasis on requirements gathering vs. product planning:

Please note that none of these products represent "standalone" roadmapping tools. Until next time...

I am thinking of creating a simple/inexpensive roadmapping tool for iPad and would like your feedback as to the features you would like to see in it -- just post a comment if you can think of anything.

Meanwhile I have created a portable hardcopy version of my roadmapping methodology. It consists of a series of photo business cards, each depicting a step in the method. I bought a nice metal card case for it so I can look professional when presenting the methodology to clients. Here is a photo of the case, as well as a few of the cards themselves:

If you'd like to try my approach, just send me a $75 cheque for the set (cards and case) -- price includes postage. Make your cheque payable to "Dan Murray" and mail it to Dan Murray, 10040 Hyndman Rd, RR#2 Mountain, Ontario Canada, K0E 1S0