Google Design

Start at the End

The "Start at the End" exercise flips traditional planning. Instead of starting with actions, define what success looks like and work backward. Adapted from Google Ventures' Design Sprint, it brings clarity to goals before solutioning.

Duration
45 mins
Group Size
5-7
Category
Google Design
Difficulty
Easy

  • Define a clear, measurable long-term goal.

  • Generate and prioritize key sprint questions.

  • Identify risky assumptions.

  • Align the team on goals.

  • Focus the sprint or project.


  • A clear, measurable long-term goal.

  • Prioritized sprint questions.

  • Identified risky assumptions.

  • Aligned team.

Push for a concrete, measurable goal. Questions should be answerable within a week. Don't let the team jump to solutions too early. The goal should feel ambitious. A vague goal (e.g., "improve user experience") won't work. If the decider isn't present, the exercise will be less effective. This goal becomes the North Star. Sprint questions guide prototyping. Refer back to these often.

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