As a project management framework, Scrum introduces many changes. One of the biggest is the role of the product owner who represents the users or customers of a product or system. The product owner is responsible for making sure the right product is being built and in the right order. This forces the product owner to think iteratively and incrementally about the product--rather than a small set of large decisions made at the outset of a project, the Scrum product owner makes many more but smaller decisions throughout the course of a typical development project.
This excellent book provides new and experienced product owners with the guidance they will need to work in this new way. The book focuses on precisely what you need to know in order to be a great product owner. Author Roman Pichler assumes that the reader is either an experienced traditional product manager learning Scrum or will pick up an additional book on traditional product management. This allows him to focus specifically on the unique product management challenges of using Scrum. He covers how to create a shared vision of the product, which is more difficult on Scrum as its iterative nature avoids a prolonged upfront specification phase. Pichler covers thorough coverage of creating a product backlog, planning a release, and collaborating with the team during the sprints ("iterations") of the project. He also provides advice on how to transition into the new role of product owner.
There is a shortage of fantastic product owners in the world. This book will help fix that problem.
