Framework for structured product decision-making. Use when facing complex tradeoffs, aligning stakeholders, documenting decisions, or choosing between multiple valid approaches.
A meta-framework for making and documenting product decisions. Combines decision science principles with practical product management needs to ensure better decisions, stakeholder alignment, and organizational learning.
+------------------+------------------+
| Type 1 | Type 2 |
| (One-way door) | (Two-way door) |
+------------------+------------------+
| Irreversible | Reversible |
| High stakes | Lower stakes |
| Slow, careful | Fast, iterate |
| Senior decision | Delegate widely |
+------------------+------------------+
| Good Outcome | Bad Outcome | |
|---|---|---|
| Good Decision | Deserved success | Bad luck |
| Bad Decision | Good luck | Deserved failure |
Judge decisions by process quality, not just outcomes.
| Approach | When to Use |
|---|---|
| Data-driven | Clear metrics, sufficient data, understood system |
| Data-informed | Incomplete data, novel situations, judgment needed |
| Intuition-led | Time pressure, expert domain, pattern matching |
Most product decisions should be data-informed, not purely data-driven.
| Element | Question |
|---|---|
| What | What exactly are we deciding? |
| Why | Why does this decision matter? |
| Who | Who should be involved? |
| When | When must we decide by? |
| Reversibility | Type 1 or Type 2 door? |
Always have at least 3 options:
Avoid binary framing - it limits thinking.
| Criterion | Weight | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| [Criterion 1] | [1-5] | [Explanation] |
| [Criterion 2] | [1-5] | [Explanation] |
| [Criterion 3] | [1-5] | [Explanation] |
| Option | Criterion 1 | Criterion 2 | Criterion 3 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Status quo | [Score] | [Score] | [Score] | [Sum] |
| Option A | [Score] | [Score] | [Score] | [Sum] |
| Option B | [Score] | [Score] | [Score] | [Sum] |
Record:
## Product Decision Record
**Decision:** [Clear statement of what was decided] **Date:** [Date] **Decision