Businesses are always looking for ways to get high-quality products into their customers’ hands faster and more efficiently. This quest to find ways to improve the product development lifecycle has given us several popular development methodologies, like Extreme Programming (XP), Agile (Scrum), Kanban, and Waterfall.

But even the best product development methodology can lose its effectiveness over time. For example, if your team focuses too much on the mechanics of completing agile tasks, they could overlook important work while prioritizing busy work. This is where the Shape Up methodology can help keep your teams focused on the most important aspects of your projects.

In this post, we’ll explain the Shape Up development process, its benefits, key concepts, and how it works.

What is the Shape Up methodology?

Like other development methodologies, Shape Up is a time-boxed, iterative method that focuses on shipping quality products on time. Where it differs from other methodologies is its emphasis on solving problems, leaving room for experimentation, innovation, and learning from past projects and user feedback. 

When using the Shape Up process, teams collaborate on “shaping” a product before work is committed to a six-week iterative cycle. This approach gives the team six weeks of uninterrupted work to focus on delivering value while having a clear direction and being optimally engaged. It reduces scope creep and burnout while promoting innovation and creativity in the development process. 

Where did the Shape Up method come from?

The Shape Up methodology is a relative newcomer to the world of product development. It was developed at Basecamp, a project management platform.

The methodology was developed to address problems with Basecamp’s product development process during a period of rapid growth. Project schedules became misaligned, project scope was unclear, deadlines were missed, and teams weren’t delivering meaningful value.

By getting feedback from team members and writing down product development best practices, they developed a time-managed approach consisting of six-week cycles—a time period long enough to produce significant value but short enough to make decisions quickly.

Ryan Singer, head of strategy at Basecamp, introduced the Shape Up method to the world in his 2019 book, Shape Up: Stop Running in Circles and Ship Work that Matters.

What are the benefits of using the Shape Up methodology?

Using the Shape Up methodology offers the following benefits.

• Clearly defined problems: When the team clearly defines issues before diving into solutions, they’ll better understand what needs to be done. This understanding leads to more relevant products that offer more value and meet customer needs.

• Fixed cycles: The Shape Up methodology adheres to strict six-week cycles. This structure prevents scope creep and ensures consistency.

• Team autonomy: Managers and leaders spend their time defining and shaping better products without micromanaging the development team. This clear definition of the product gives the team more autonomy and responsibility for assigning tasks.

• Time for learning and housekeeping: There is a “cool-down” period between the six-week cycles. This gives your team the time to learn new skills and to work on any tasks that need to be cleaned up. 

How the Shape Up method works

There are three main phases or stages in the Shape Up method: shaping, betting, and building.

Shaping

The shaping stage is typically for senior members of the team and those in leadership roles. This stage includes the following set of principles:

• Define the problem: This involves understanding what your customers need so you can explore possible solutions.

• Set boundaries: This is where you set clear boundaries for the project. In the Shape Up framework, this is known as appetite—how much work you’re willing to take on or how much work you can do in a six-week cycle. How much time and resources will you give the project to address the defined problem?

• Rough out the elements: Use rough sketches or wireframes rather than detailed plans or prototypes to describe the solutions to your defined problems. These solutions need enough detail to maximize clarity. At the same time, the descriptions need to leave enough flexibility so the team can be creative while working out the best solution.

• Identify risks: Try to identify all the possible risks that might derail or delay your project. Identifying these risks and their potential solutions before work begins ensures that you won’t be surprised during development. Additionally, you’ll want to identify the features that are not necessary for the project to succeed.

• Write the pitch: This document outlines the project’s structure. It includes a description of the problem, the solution, project boundaries, potential risks, and risk mitigation.

Betting

After completing the shaping process, you will have identified multiple problems and solutions. The betting stage is where the team comes together to ask critical questions to help you decide which problem and solution to work on in the next cycle.

To do this, you should include team members who have a wide range of skills and experience so you can get input from multiple perspectives. The team members will bet on the solutions they believe have the most potential. The solution with the most bets is generally selected for the next cycle.

Building

In this stage, the project is handed over to the development team to build the work that has gone through the shaping process. During the building stage, a new shaping stage starts for the next six-week cycle. This keeps the work flowing and ensures regular deliveries with meaningful value added.

How can Lucidspark help?

With a variety of templates, including problem-solving templates and wireframe templates, Lucidspark can support Shape Up process on your team. Plus, our timeline maker can help map out work cycle’s timeline to hit milestones and deadlines. Or, create workflow diagrams to help track and manage work during the six-week cycle.