Investigating upstream versus downstream decision-making in software product management

Decision outcomes and their lead times are critical in product management, as the market success of a product may strongly depend on the both the decisions themselves and their timing in relation to the market and competitors. This paper presents an investigation of one particular industrial case study data set by comparing upstream scoping decisions with downstream change decision. The results in this case indicate that changes are more likely to be accepted during upstream decision-making compared to downstream. We also found that the most common value for upstream decision lead-time is three days, while only one day for downstream. The results trigger a general discussion on factors that may impact or explain decision lead-time. Assumptions and questions for further investigation in the context of product management decision-making are proposed.