What is outcome and output?
Challenge is a very tricky and abstract term. It defines a destination location that you want to go to. In order to make a challenge more concrete we have to define sub-challenges.
In order to find a challenge, Toyota Kata advance a very good pattern :
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if …
For example
- Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could reduce customer lead time
- Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could complete the software with zero bug
- Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could go to China in this summer
Before commiting to a challenge, be sure that it is really a challenge. I mean combining challenges with an experiment is the key step for your journey.
Sub-challenges also known as outcomes or key results. In that manner outcomes should be specific, measurable, testable and be behaviour changing.
Lead and Lag metrics
Here is an example for selling a cinema ticket story. Assume that a cinema lover wants to go to a movie. In that story we have two actors. One of them is cinema-lover. Another actor in that story is a cashier. In this story we will decompose the story with the help of Domain StoryTelling technique.
Best part of Domain Storytelling is that you can decompose the parts of the process one by one from the actors point of view. So what is the output? In the above example outputs are :
- [01] — tells about the show
- [02] — gets the setting plan
- [03] — gets available seats
- [04] — offers available seats
- [05] — accepts given seats
Outputs are lead metrics. We can influence lead metrics. For example we can send email to our past customers about the new movies and make them ask about the new show.
Outcomes are lag metrics. We can’t directly influence them. So what is the outcome? In the above story, example outcomes are :
- [06] — cinema lover gets movie ticket
- [07] — cashier takes the money
Outcomes depend on actors. I mean every actor in the story may have a different outcome. We can only interfere to lead metrics. After that lag metrics would be changed. Lead and lag metrics should change the behavior of the customer.
From a customer point of view just focusing on outputs doesn’t make sense. Again if we just focus on measuring how many people ask for the movies [step-01] is good step but it doesn’t make sense from a business point of view. Business aim is to create an impact. Here is a simple formula:
Lead metrics > Lag metrics > Impact (Challenge)
Here is another example. If you would like to increase sales from your website for your organization (Impact/challenge). In order to increase sales you have to change the behaviours of your customers.
- Increase sales from your website (Impact / challenge / objective)
→ Increase web visit rate %10 (outcome / sub-challenge / key results)
→ 4 mentions on industry top blogs (outcome / sub-challenge / key results)
→ 500 new users registration in first month (outcome / sub-challenge / key results)
As you can see, impact(challenge) is very abstract. In order to create that impact we have to define measurable and behaviour changing outcomes.
Outcomes also can be called as sub-challenge in Toyota Kata world or key results in OKR world. All terms show the same direction. Are people’s behaviours changing? Are the behaviours valuable to the business? What is your finish line? Just trying to finish features or stories is an output mindset and it doesn’t help for business value.
Everything is connected as a layered approach. Experiments (4.layer) creates conditions (3. layer). These conditions create an outcome (2. layer). This outcome creates impact for our customers (1. layer).
Outcome oriented view is a coordination level (high-level) view. Output is an operation level (low-level) view. Domain Storytelling helps to see all layers in that journal.
Definition of ready and Definition of Done terms fits fits very well with layered approach. Outcomes are DoD but in order to start this journey we have to satisfy DoR conditions.
Hope to hear your feedbacks.
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