Many organizations, if allowed to self-diagnose, would probably say that they’re mature, but that’s rarely the case. Aspiring toward that coveted status is sort of like chasing a unicorn: the “mature” phase doesn't really exist because internal and external disruptors constantly push you back into the scaling phase. 

In truth, it’s less about maturing and more about sustaining. So, if “mature” is a fallacy, what should you focus on to become a high-performing product org, and how do you know if you’re on track?

Today, I’ll cover the key behaviors that must be prevalent in your organization to maintain success, along with the KPIs and green flags to watch for that indicate forward momentum. 

Three Key Behaviors of High-Performing Product Orgs + KPIs to Watch

1. A collective mindset that balances perseverance with curiosity 

I spend a lot of time inside transforming product-led organizations, so I can always spot the ones destined to succeed based on their ability to balance perseverance with curiosity. In other words, can everyone—from C-suite to individual contributors—stick with a problem long enough to solve it and then keep improving things once they do? Teams persevere in solving wicked, complex problems, but even once the problem appears to be solved, they remain curious to see how that solution could be improved upon. 

This challenges traditional project management that suggests when a problem is solved, it is “done” and it’s time to move on to the next issue. The heart of this balance is an org-wide commitment to growing, learning, and finding opportunities to serve customers better, continuously, over time.

Green Flags + KPIs:

• Roadmaps have outcomes related to specific customer problems.

• Work is broken down into reasonable chunks, and outcomes are tracked against reasonable time frames (if you haven’t seen progress on a related KPI in three quarters, then you probably haven’t hit the balance of perseverance and curiosity, or success is being measured in unreasonable ways). 

• Personal development plans include markers for curiosity and perseverance (in addition to outcomes, watch skills development, like learning a new type of testing or tool, etc.). 

• Nobody is questioning “the whole customer-centricity thing” (you’d be shocked how often I hear people trying to check this off the list as though it’s a one-and-done).

2. Diversified ownership of transformation

It’s not atypical for one charismatic leader to champion the shift to a Product Op Model, but what happens when that person is no longer in the mix? Will the whole thing fall apart? Will the gravitational pull of the “old ways” suck people back into the past?

In order to sustain transformation, ownership behaviors must be prevalent at every level of the org and belong to more than one person or team. Teams and leaders across functions need to understand the "why" behind the shift to a Product Operating Model and take active responsibility for embedding and championing it within their domains. By fostering a shared sense of accountability and encouraging transformation behaviors, your teams become more adaptable and autonomous, and the organization becomes more resilient. And all of this is key to a transformation that can outlast any single leader’s influence.

Green Flags + KPIs:

• Your CEO is putting somebody other than a historical transformation leader in front of the board to talk about progress in meaningful terms, and they can sell it as well as the original champion. 

• Titles at all levels—from sales, marketing, HR, customer service, and beyond—can speak confidently about transformation. That’s the true litmus test!

3. Storytelling Perseveres

Oral traditions carry immense power in any business. They bridge the gap between the past, present, and future, which is why storytelling is such a critical (albeit underappreciated) behavior inside high-performing product organizations.  

Not convinced? Imagine you’ve been pushing transformation forward for the past three years and are finally reaping the rewards of the “sustained” phase (thanks to no shortage of blood, sweat, and tears). What happens when new hires join without understanding the historical context, or what’s at stake if they deviate from the new ways of working? Spoiler: your teams may start to backtrack.

When storytelling is prevalent, legacy employees become custodians of the transformation narrative, sharing what has changed and why it matters greatly. This historical context helps acclimate new talent and also reminds tenured employees of how far they’ve come (and why they should stay the course). 

Green Flags + KPIs:

• During culture check-ups, you hear things like, “This is where you work if you want to learn and grow.”

• Pay attention to the sentiment on Indeed/Glassdoor, through internal surveys, at the watering hole, and during exit interviews

Remember, Transformation is Never Done

I often joke that the work is never really done, but it’s a core truth of transformation. “Total” maturity as a finish line to be crossed is a bit of a fallacy and the real work lies within sustaining transformation amidst myriad disruptors. And that’s not a failure, it’s the work! My advice to you is to try not to be discouraged by it and, instead, remember not to take your foot off the gas even when the desire to do so is strong. 

Want to see what this looks like inside a real organization? Check out this story of a 150-year-old company that stalled out on transformation after three years, and what Tuckpoint did to get them moving and, eventually, releasing new work within weeks.