The Best Books on Product Development
Here are four product development “schools of thought” and the best books to read on each of them.
The Waterfall Method
Waterfall describes the traditional, linear product development method: idea, prototype, testing, launch.
Product Design and Development — Karl Ulrich and Steven Eppinger. This is a textbook, so it’s not going to be super interesting to read, but it’s a very clear overview of traditional product development. It’s product development 101.
Winning at New Products — Robert Cooper. Cooper created “Stage-Gate,” which is basically waterfall with more formal meetings. Stage-gate gets shit on a lot in the world of lean and agile, but it does have merit in some industries. This book provides a solid foundation of knowledge for anyone working in product development.
Revolutionizing Product Development — Steven C. Wheelwright and Kim B. Clark. This book is super dense and a bit intimidating, but it’s packed with great content. The case studies are a bit out-dated and it’s not going to make you laugh or cry, but it’s got some next-level stuff and is a good third read after the two books above.
Honorable Mentions:
What Customers Want — Anthony Ulwick. Customers hire products to do jobs for them, and they expect certain outcomes from their products. This book can teach you to think about product development in this manner. Applicable no matter what method you use to develop products (not just waterfall).
Change By Design — Tim Brown. The best primer on Design Thinking out there.
The Lean Startup Method
I differentiate between Lean methods and Lean Startup methods. Both rely on efficiency and fast learning, but the Lean Startup books focus much more on customer development and finding product-market fit.
Crossing the Chasm — Geoffrey Moore. Important stuff on customer models and the adoption of a new technology into a market. Not as much actionable advice unless you’re the CEO of a startup, but the fundamental analysis of a market make this book required reading.
Four Steps to the Epiphany — Steve Blank. I read this after reading a number of other product development books and was like “oh shit, this guy Steve Blank pretty much invented this entire Lean Startup method.” A lot of focus on developing customers while developing the product. A must-read.
The Lean Startup — Eric Ries. Not wholly original, but probably the most widely cited book for the Lean Startup method. Made the terms MVP and pivot ubiquitous. Essential.
Honorable Mentions:
The Innovator’s Dilemma — Clayton Christensen. The grand-daddy book about disruption, but I honestly don’t think you actually have to read it. (Gasp!!) This video sums it up pretty damn well.
The Lean Product Playbook — Dan Olsen. Lot’s of good applicable stuff in the first few chapters on product-market fit, but then gets super “how-to” and detailed later on, which is good if that’s what you’re looking for.
The Lean Methodology
Lean describes taking the fat out of any process and improving efficiency and speed. Lean product development methods can be applied to any PD methodology — from waterfall to agile.
The Goal — Eli Goldratt. What is the ultimate goal of a system and what constraints limit the achievement of that goal? Goldratt’s classic will teach you to think in systems and constraints, plus it’s written like a novel so it’s much more entertaining than a textbook.
Developing Products in Half the Time — Don Reinertsen. Self-explanatory title. Learn how to go faster. Identifies the usual suspects that slow a development process. Will provide some “this describes my company perfectly” moments.
The Principles of Product Development Flow — Don Reinertsen. This probably should have been a textbook because it’s quite technical. Despite there being sections that can make you cross-eyed — warning: do not read about queueing theory and operate heavy machinery — this book delivers serious insight into how to avoid process inefficiencies…you just have to reread the dense parts to really get it.
Honorable Mentions:
Managing the Design Factory — Don Reinertsen. That’s right — a third book by Don “Donny Lean” Reinertsen (not his real nickname). This book will feel a little redundant to the above two, but it’s easier to read than Principles and worth your time.
The Agile Method
Agile is a methodology that is primarily defined by the values it emphasizes: being adaptive, responsive, iterative, incremental, cross-functional, and flexible. Most commonly deployed for software development, Agile uses “sprints” to create deliverables that improve a product in some limited manner. The Manifesto can be read in 2 minutes.
The Product Manager’s Desktop Reference— Steven Haines. Not really a book on Agile principles, but it’s the first book I’d hand to a product manager. If you can’t understand what’s in this book, you’re not going to be able to do Agile.
Inspired — Marty Cagen. Reads like an engaging blog post. Focused on software development and the principles of creating consumer-centric products.
Agile Software Development With Scrum — Ken Schwaber and Mike Beedle. Fundamentals of Scrum. Short and sweet, with practical guidance.
Honorable Mentions:
Anything from the above lists. Don’t make the mistake of trying to be an Agile expert or Product Manager without reading the fundamental books listed above.
If you have a book you think should be on this list, I’d love to hear about it. Find more content on product development at my website productdevelopmentdistillery.com or at Product Development Distillery on Medium.
