Product Owners (POs) share a unique camaraderie—born from the balancing act of prioritizing, clarifying, and navigating their complex world. We asked seasoned POs: “What do you wish you’d known when you were just starting out?”

The result? A wealth of practical advice. Here are the top 10 tips to becoming a better PO:

1. Love Your ScrumMaster.

Your ScrumMaster’s main job is to help the team excel at delivering what you need as a PO. Show appreciation, and you’ll build a stronger partnership that enhances the team’s performance. Think of your ScrumMaster as a sports medicine doctor, prescribing the right training and care to make your team lean, strong, and high-performing.

2. Know Your Stakeholders.

Scrum helps teams self-organize, reducing political distractions. But as a Seasoned PO, staying connected to your stakeholders is crucial. Understand their needs and perspectives deeply. Your team’s priorities should align with stakeholder desires—not your assumptions about what they want.

3. With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility.

The PO role comes with high visibility—both praise for good results and blame for setbacks. Always be ready to justify your prioritization decisions. A clear rationale provides you a safety net and a clear path to course-correct when challenges arise.

4. Don’t “Pull an Al Haig.”

During an attempted assassination of President Reagan, Secretary of State Alexander Haig mistakenly declared, “I’m in control here.” The same holds for your role as PO. You’re a key team member making tough calls, but you don’t “run” the team. Stay part of the team—don’t attempt to control it.

5. Stop Micromanaging.

It might seem tempting to choreograph your team’s every move for faster results however, Seasoned Product Owners know better. Micromanagement stifles growth. Allow your team the space to stretch, learn, and self-organize. Stepping back empowers them to become more effective.

6. Don’t Be a Know-It-All.

Your team knows their work best. Take time to listen, trust their estimates, and respect their insights. Leaning into their expertise leads to greater productivity and makes your role as PO more rewarding.

7. Avoid Meetings for Meetings’ Sake.

Before scheduling a meeting, ask: Why is this meeting necessary? What needs to be accomplished, and is a meeting the best way to achieve that? If a meeting is unavoidable, come prepared with an agenda, and set a timebox. Your team will appreciate the efficiency.

8. Respect the Sprint Timebox.

The sprint timebox is designed to maintain focus and provide valuable data on velocity and retrospection. Don’t extend or cut a sprint without a compelling reason (e.g., a major shift in project direction). Vacations and minor adjustments are not compelling.

9. Use Your Scrum Toolbox.

Beyond the sprint board, there’s a range of tools—burnups, velocity tracking, story mapping and writing—that can make your job easier and improve communication. Use these “information radiators” to increase transparency both within the team and with external stakeholders – we teach these techniques in our Scrum Team Training.

10. Clarify, Clarify, Clarify.

Clarification is key—whether it’s for stakeholder requests, team expectations, or ScrumMaster feedback. Misunderstandings can lead to wasted time and decreased productivity. When something’s unclear, don’t hesitate to ask: “What does this look like in practice?”

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Seasoned Product Owners have learned these lessons the hard way, but you don’t have to. Keep these tips handy to become a more effective Product Owner.

References

Larman, C., & Vodde, B. (2010). Practices for Scaling Lean & Agile Development: Large, Multisite, and Offshore Product Development with Large-Scale Scrum.
A resourceful book offering advanced practices for scaling Agile, including tips for POs working within large Scrum teams.

Schwaber, K., & Sutherland, J. (2020). The Scrum Guide™.
Retrieved from https://scrumguide.org/
The official Scrum Guide, which provides the definition of Scrum, including its roles, events, and artifacts.

ScrumDictionary.com.
Retrieved from https://scrumdictionary.com/
A comprehensive dictionary of Scrum terms and practices for further understanding of key concepts.

Scrum Alliance. (n.d.). What is a Product Owner?
Retrieved from https://www.scrumalliance.org/
Overview of the role of a Product Owner within Scrum, detailing responsibilities and best practices.

Cohn, M. (2009). Succeeding with Agile: Software Development Using Scrum.
A practical guide for implementing Agile using Scrum, providing deeper insights into the Product Owner role and Scrum practices.

Stay Agile.