Framework · Template
Pressure-test a feature before you build it. The Feature Canvas maps the problem, the user and the outcome on one page — so you stop shipping features nobody asked for.
The Feature Canvas is a one-page tool for validating a feature before building it — clarifying the underlying problem, the user, and the expected outcome so teams stop shipping features nobody needs.
Who this is for
The problem
Someone wants it, so it gets built — no test of whether it solves a real problem.
The request jumps straight to a solution, and the underlying need goes unexamined.
You ship it, and then have no way to say whether it worked.
What you get
A one-page case for building — or not building — it.
The need behind the request, made explicit.
Agreed up front, so you can judge it later.
A clear, shared basis for dropping weak ideas early.
How it works
What need is this really addressing?
Who is it for, and in what situation?
What changes, and how you will measure it.
Go, refine, or drop — with reasons.
Deliverables
A one-page thinking tool that forces you to describe the problem, the user and the intended outcome of a feature before you commit to building it — so effort goes into features that actually matter.
Any time a feature request arrives or a backlog item is about to be picked up. It is a fast filter in discovery, refinement and prioritisation that catches weak ideas before they eat engineering time.
A PRD specifies how to build something once you have decided to. The Feature Canvas comes earlier and answers whether you should build it at all — problem and outcome, not detailed requirements.
Yes — the template, guide and example are free. Paid facilitation is available if you want me to run a discovery session with your team.
Yes. I run discovery and refinement sessions using the Feature Canvas to help teams separate the features worth building from the ones worth dropping.
Use the template, or book a discovery session to pressure-test your feature ideas together.
