Do You Need a Roadmap?

Part of what AICE Labs offers to founders and businesses alike is a roadmapping engagement in which we identify the best way to build out a feature, MVP, or internal capability, and, most often, we recommend doing that before any other work on the project starts.

But how does that square with our advice to remain agile and adaptable and react to change rather than trying to design everything up front?

Map vs Plan

A map tells you what's where. If you want to go from A to B, you can look at the map to see possible routes and their trade-offs. A map is not a plan. It does not tell you where to go, in what order, or at what time. For that reason, a plan indeed rarely survives contact with reality while a map remains accurate over a much longer timescale. And a good map is what allows a navigator to adjust the plan on the fly in the face of the unexpected. With a clear understanding of the territory, you can make quick and confident adjustments to the plan.

A bit of time spent upfront to create that map means that you'll have much less need for an overly specified plan, because it'll let you pick the best way forward at any given moment, no matter what happens along the way.

In short: We stand by our advice not to create a detailed plan upfront. Instead, obtain a detailed map so you can make the plan up as you go.