Have you ever noticed the subtle tension hidden within the INVEST acronym?

It's a nuance often overlooked, yet it holds the key to understanding why stakeholders and delivery teams sometimes find themselves having conflict, despite sharing the same goals.

INVEST is a cornerstone in Product Management and provides the characteristics of a good quality item of work. It stands for:

• Independent

• Negotiable
• Valuable

• Estimable

• Small Enough

• Testable

Among these, "Valuable" and "Small Enough" tend to be the root of friction.

Stakeholders naturally lean towards larger pieces of work —initiatives, epics, features— as they believe they promise greater value. Slicing the work too finely dilutes its potential value and can cause their interest to wane.

At the other end, delivery teams advocate for breaking down work into small and manageable chunks. This approach clarifies objectives, accelerates delivery, and fosters rapid feedback loops and learning opportunities.

Both viewpoints are valid, yet without being aware of this tug of war, this natural tension can escalate into unmanaged conflict.

The craft of exceptional Product Management is to balance these perspectives. A skilled Product Manager or Product Owner navigates this delicate balance, transforming potential conflict into opportunities for better collaboration and agreement.