home / skills / coowoolf / insighthunt-skills / taste-driven-core

taste-driven-core skill

safe

This skill helps product teams prioritize long-term vision and architectural integrity over short-term metrics, guiding decisions by taste and leadership

npx playbooks add skill coowoolf/insighthunt-skills --skill taste-driven-core

Review the files below or copy the command above to add this skill to your agents.

Files (1)

SKILL.md

2.6 KB

---
name: taste-driven-core
description: Use for core product areas defining long-term brand value, when A/B tests are fragmenting product vision, or when short-term optimization threatens architectural integrity
---

# The Taste-Driven Core Model

## Overview

A product development philosophy that removes metrics/KPIs from **core product teams**, relying instead on founder intuition ("Taste"), long-term vision, and technical quality.

**Core principle:** Make the best product first, make money second. Never reverse them.

## The Hierarchy

```
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                         100-YEAR VISION                         │
│                        (The North Star)                         │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                     TASTE & INTUITION                           │
│              (The "Okay-to" Review Process)                     │
│         Every release reviewed by leadership via video          │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                 TECHNICAL ARCHITECTURE                          │
│               (The "How" Enables Optionality)                   │
│       Spend time debating architecture, not just shipping       │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```

## Key Principles

| Principle | Description |
|-----------|-------------|
| **No KPIs for core** | Metrics are banned for brand-defining work |
| **Taste over data** | Founder intuition drives decisions |
| **"Okay-to" reviews** | Leadership approves via video demos |
| **Aim heavy** | Build 100-year solution, not A/B test winner |

## When to Apply

- Core product defining brand identity
- Long-term architectural decisions
- Work requiring deep technical integrity

## Common Mistakes

- Demanding KPIs for every feature
- Letting A/B tests decide product direction
- Compromising architecture to ship faster

---

*Source: Archie Abrams (Shopify VP Product & Growth) via Lenny's Podcast*

Overview

This skill captures the Taste-Driven Core model for product teams that must protect long-term brand value and architectural integrity. It advocates removing KPIs from core product work and relying on founder or leadership taste, a long-range vision, and rigorous technical standards. Use it to guide decisions when short-term optimization threatens the product’s identity or structural quality.

How this skill works

The model organizes priorities into a hierarchy: a 100-year vision at the top, taste and leadership review in the middle, and technical architecture as the enabler. Core teams deliver work without being judged by short-term metrics; instead, leadership performs “okay-to” video reviews to validate releases. Teams focus debates on architecture and optionality rather than chasing A/B test wins or incremental KPIs.

When to use it

Defining brand-defining core features or experiences
Making long-term architectural and platform decisions
When A/B testing fragments product vision or causes churn
During redesigns that must preserve product identity
When short-term metrics pressure teams to compromise quality

Best practices

Ban KPIs for core product initiatives and avoid using them to justify design choices
Record short video demos for leadership review to surface qualitative judgment
Document a long-range ‘north star’ vision that guides all core work
Prioritize architecture discussions and deliberate trade-offs over rapid shipping
Treat founder or leadership taste as a primary input, not a fallback

Example use cases

Launching a new flagship experience that sets the company’s brand direction
Re-architecting backend systems where future optionality matters
Deciding visual language and interaction patterns that define the product
Halting feature splits caused by A/B tests that dilute user experience
Guiding core roadmap choices during a company pivot or rebrand

FAQ

Does this mean never measure anything?

No. Metrics still matter for growth, performance, and experimentation on non-core work. The rule is to avoid KPIs as the primary decision tool for core, brand-defining efforts.

How do you prevent bias when relying on taste?

Combine taste with structured reviews, recorded rationales, and architectural debate. Treat taste as informed judgment, not unexamined opinion.