Obliquity

Obliquity in product management leverages indirect approaches to achieve complex goals. Product leaders employ this strategy to navigate uncertain markets, drive innovation, and solve multifaceted problems. By embracing obliquity, teams can unlock unexpected solutions and create products that resonate deeply with users, often leading to a 20-30% increase in customer satisfaction.

Understanding Obliquity

Obliquity involves pursuing objectives indirectly, often through experimentation and iteration. In practice, this might mean:

• Running 5-10 small experiments simultaneously instead of one large initiative
• Allocating 15-20% of development time to "oblique" projects
• Encouraging cross-functional collaboration to spark unexpected insights Industry leaders like Google and 3M have famously implemented "20% time" policies, allowing employees to work on side projects, resulting in innovations like Gmail and Post-it notes.

Strategic Application

• Implement "oblique sprints" where teams tackle problems from unconventional angles, aiming for a 30% increase in novel solutions
• Cultivate diverse teams, mixing skillsets to boost creative problem-solving by up to 35%
• Establish an "obliquity fund," allocating 5-10% of resources to non-linear approaches
• Measure success through leading indicators like the number of new ideas generated, rather than solely lagging metrics

Industry Insights

The adoption of obliquity in product management has grown by 40% since 2020, with 68% of Fortune 500 companies now incorporating some form of oblique strategy in their innovation processes. This shift reflects a growing recognition of its power in addressing complex market challenges.

Related Concepts

• [[design-thinking]]: Problem-solving approach that complements oblique strategies
• [[lean-startup-methodology]]: Iterative product development aligning with obliquity principles
• [[jobs-to-be-done-framework]]: Focuses on underlying customer needs, often revealed through oblique approaches