Supplies needed: Whiteboard, Markers
Estimated time: 15 min
The Critical Path should be discussed after a Problem Statement has been agreed upon. Once completed, the Critical Path should give a step-by-step map of the user's most critical experience, from having the problem to solving the problem, and every step in-between.
How do you know which user story is most important? It depends on the problem you are solving in the sprint. For example:
- Helping people understand and get started with your product — you probably want to focus on the experience of a user encountering your product for the first time.
- Creating a new product concept — you probably want to look into the future and imagine the value proposition and core features for an engaged user.
- Improving conversion rate from a landing page — you probably want to understand why people land on your page and what their goals are.
- This step can be difficult and time-consuming, but it’s critical!
From The product design sprint: understand (day 1)
- Starting with the Problem Statement as the first step, as a group, use your understanding of the Problem Statement to map out the steps of the user's journey through solving that problem
- The Facilitator should stand at the whiteboard and draw the flow.
- Keep adding steps until you've reached a solution.
The end result often looks like the map of a bus or subway line:
