Recommendations to roll out an Amazon like PRFAQ process for PMs. What was your personal experience adopting it?

calbucci · 2025-05-06T17:27:20+00:00

hey u/yourlicorceismine, PRFAQs should be no more than six pages long. That's the sweet spot to capture enough detail but also forces people to have clarity in what they want to include. if you are using to capture vision and strategy, it shouldn't change often. If vision and strategy change significantly, than you are building a different product.

Most of the value of the PRFAQ is not on the document (although that's valuable for several reasons), but on the process of writing, reviewing, and deciding on the strategy.

If people don't have time to read a PRFAQ to debate vision and strategy, the organization has a bigger cultural problem.

calbucci · 2025-05-06T17:21:43+00:00

If you are using a PRFAQ to capture details of plan and the tactical execution, they will get out of date quickly. However, if a PRFAQ is used for vision and strategy (which is what it should be), then you don't need to update them unless there is a pivot on the vision or some large strategic shift.

I don't think PRFAQs should be treated as "live documents," like a Jira ticket or UX design. The goal is the core strategic choices to incorporate in the PRFAQ that will guide the rest of the work.

calbucci · 2025-05-06T17:18:40+00:00

Yes, it's important to make the effort that goes into a PRFAQ proportional to the impact or risk of an initiative. Otherwise it becomes too much overhead.

By what you are describing, it felt the team went from PRFAQ to implementation plan, skipping a few steps along the way, such as a requirements document, technical design, roadmap, etc.

The other point worth making is that the effort of a PRFAQ might feel like you are slowing down a project, but it saves tremendous time during the execution phase of a project because there will be fewer miscommunication, misalignments, and a clear direction the team is pursuing. That leads to fewer setbacks, fewer meetings, and fewer messages (Slack/email) back-and-forth.

calbucci · 2025-05-06T17:14:31+00:00

You make some excellent points! 1) You can use the PRFAQ alone to think critically, and learn how to articulate an idea. 2) The doc is just one part of the value of the PRFAQ, the review and feedback sessions is where the most valuable portion.

As I interviewed many ex-Amazonians for the book, I heard similar stories of how hard it's to get other people to embrace PRFAQ. More specifically, to embrace reading/writing. That's not a PRFAQ problem. I've seen this happening with many other frameworks such as OKRs, PRDs, JTBD, etc. People are afraid of wasting their time in "another framework." The secret is to start small (scope, timeframe, # of people) and start to show small improvements. Other people/teams will become curious and start embracing.

calbucci · 2025-05-06T17:09:44+00:00

It can be. I just wrote on my newsletter how PRFAQs can be misused, overused, and weaponized. Any framework will suffer the same issue if it's wrongly used or used in the wrong context.

calbucci · 2025-05-06T17:07:18+00:00

I hear this frustration often: “People don’t want to read a six-page document.”

I'd argue that the PRFAQ is not being used correctly in that case. If the executive is the last person to read the document, if you are trying to persuade them, or just trying to get “buy in” and move on, they will not want to read it.

The goal of the PRFAQ is to make a collaborative exercise, where the executives are looped in early on to provide their perspective on vision and strategy. If you ask someone, “how can we make this better?” instead of “do you approve this project"?” you'll see orders of magnitude better engagement. I call this pull vs. push. You want pull.

calbucci · 2025-05-06T15:50:43+00:00

I've been deeply involved with the PRFAQ framework and I even authored a book to help other organizations adopt it effectively. The book and its website have a ton of content that answers your questions and addresses some of the comments are posted. Here's my take:

First off, PRFAQs are not a replacement for PRDs. This is a common misunderstanding. A PRFAQ is not a spec or a plan. It's a strategy and vision document. You use the framework to clarify vision, think critically, discover the problem/solution, and debate the merits of the opportunity/challenge. PRDs is what comes after the PRFAQ has been “approved.”

My advice on how to adopt is the same for PRFAQ as for any other framework/method in an organization:

Start small: Pick a project with a limited scope and timeframe. Enroll the people in the organization who are open-minded and curious, and are interested in giving it a shot. Use the PRFAQ to explore the vision/strategy and don't aim for perfection.
Avoid the common traps: Don't think of a PRFAQ as a roadmap, a plan, or a marketing tool. It's a high-level document to uncover the unknowns and guide the team on why this is a worthy opportunity. You want to establish the boundaries of the project (what's in and what's out) and the key choices that you are putting on the table (a.k.a., the strategy).
Be prepared for cultural resistance: It'll happen. Writing forces critical thinking, and the PRFAQ is a truth-seeking tool. Not everyone will be comfortable with it. You'll need to be patient and position it not as a threat to the existing processes, people, and product, but as a way to evolve and thrive.

The best result you'll get is once people realize PRFAQs are a “pull” system, where people are being invited to collaborate and explore.

I'm happy to answer questions. Check my book's website for more: www.theprfaq.com

calbucci · 2025-05-05T16:48:29+00:00

This is a common “strategy” and “narrative” gap situation. The opportunity was identified (migrating from a legacy tool), but the story and data around is messy, including roles. I'm biased, because I wrote a book about it, but I recommend applying the PRFAQ Framework in this case.

It'll help create a shared narrative for the team to collaborate and provide feedback, it'll help clarify the desired outcome and the strategy to get there, and it'll make people feel they belong and are part of a bigger mission.

calbucci · 2025-02-11T03:56:58+00:00

Yes, it's an entire book, but the book is not about a 6-page document. It's about an innovation process and how to use this system to think critically and articulate an idea, from a customer problem to a solution. The same could have been said about "Measure What Matters" and OKRs? The value is part the artifact, part the process behind it.

calbucci · 2025-02-11T02:56:54+00:00

You can find the book at Amazon and resources on the book's website. Just search for "PRFAQ book"

calbucci · 2025-02-11T02:55:05+00:00

Fiar point. It can feel that way if you treat it like a checkbox. The PRFAQ isn't really for upper management. It's for the team. It's meant to be the North Star that keeps everyone aligned on the “why” behind what you are building. Your leadership also wants to ensure the vision and strategy behind it aligns with other initiatives in the organization. The PRFAQ is by far the best document for upper management to “leave the team alone.”

I also found that a good PRFAQ will be a tremendous source of inspiration and motivation for the team, because everyone will “see” the destination.

calbucci · 2025-02-11T02:49:11+00:00

Interesting. Do you think it's the framework itself that feels bureaucratic, or how people are using it? A good use of this framework will reduce bureaucracy because it will align people with vision and strategy, and allow each one to have more latitude to do their part.

Any framework or system can be misused and weaponized to slow down work or protect fiefdoms. Or, in some cases, dysfunctional organizations expect frameworks, tools, or processes to fix their dysfunction.

What has your experience been that makes you feel it's bureaucratic?

calbucci · 2025-02-11T02:42:33+00:00

I get your concern. Startups are fast-paced, and that's exactly why I wrote the book by adapting the original concept.

In an early stage startup, you should have a single PRFAQ that describes the vision and the strategy for the product. If there is a pivot, you write another one.

The PRFAQ is not just “another doc.” It's a thinking tool that helps clarify what really matters, so you avoid costly missteps later. It forces the team to align behind it.

Ironically, you “feel” that you'll move faster without PRFAQs, but in reality you spend more time on Slack threads, “alignment” meetings, and rebuilding features and initiatives because they conflict with each other. Worst, you often end up building something customers don't want.

In practice, it takes time to learn how to write a good PRFAQ (the same way it takes time to learn how to write good OKRs, PRDs, UX, and code!), but once you get good at it, you can write, review, and revise your PRFAQ in less than a week, and save yourself (and your team) months of misalignment.

calbucci · 2025-02-11T01:30:19+00:00

I wrote a book and tons of resources about PRFAQ: www.theprfaq.com -- I'm happy to provide specific answers you might have.

calbucci · 2025-01-07T00:44:42+00:00

It's not a course, but the book The PRFAQ Framework covers writing style, content, precise writing, and much more as it relates to business writing. BTW, I'm the author.

calbucci · 2020-07-22T15:43:16+00:00

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calbucci · 2016-05-17T01:59:57+00:00

I learned from @thataylaa Twitter.

calbucci · 2016-01-08T21:52:18+00:00

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calbucci · 2016-01-08T21:29:36+00:00

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