For Schrödinger's FEP+ software, should we prioritize expanding the range of supported force fields or improving performance on existing ones?

Introduction

The trade-off we're examining today is whether to prioritize expanding the range of supported force fields or improving performance on existing ones for Schrödinger's FEP+ software. This decision is crucial for the product's future direction and its ability to meet user needs effectively. I'll analyze this trade-off by considering various factors including product understanding, potential impacts, key metrics, and experimental design.

Step 1

Clarifying Questions (3 minutes)

• Context: I'm assuming FEP+ is a critical tool in computational chemistry. Could you confirm if this is a standalone product or part of a larger suite? Why it matters: Impacts how we approach integration and user workflows. Expected answer: Part of a larger suite. Impact: Would need to consider cross-product dependencies.

• Business Context: Based on the industry, I'm thinking this might be a subscription-based model. Can you clarify our primary revenue stream for FEP+? Why it matters: Affects prioritization of features vs. performance. Expected answer: Enterprise licensing model. Impact: Might lean towards performance improvements for existing clients.

• User Impact: I'm guessing we have different user segments with varying needs. Can you describe our key user personas and their primary use cases? Why it matters: Helps tailor our solution to user needs. Expected answer: Mix of academic and industry researchers. Impact: Might need to balance academic desire for new force fields with industry need for performance.

• Technical: Considering the complexity of molecular simulations, I'm wondering about our current performance bottlenecks. What are the main technical challenges in improving performance? Why it matters: Informs feasibility of performance improvements. Expected answer: Computational intensity of calculations. Impact: Might influence decision towards optimization if significant gains are possible.

• Resource: Given the specialized nature of this software, I'm curious about our team composition. What's the current split between force field experts and performance optimization engineers? Why it matters: Affects our ability to execute on either option. Expected answer: More force field experts than optimization engineers. Impact: Might lean towards force field expansion if that's our current strength.