Stop Writing Better Docs. Start Having Better Conversations.

Finding yourself frustrated with endless requirement documents that still lead to misunderstandings?

You're not alone.

Recently on my Product Driven podcast, I sat down with Josh Herzig-Marx, a startup coach who helps early-stage founders and tech teams tackle this exact challenge.

The reality? Most technical leaders are chasing the wrong goal.

The Dangerous Myth of Perfect Documentation

Many engineering leaders and founders believe there's some magical "perfect document" that will solve all their communication problems.

I see this misconception constantly at Full Scale, where we work with over 250 developers across various client teams.

No document, no matter how detailed, can replace meaningful conversation.

Josh shared a powerful insight from his work with early-stage companies: "The goal of these documents and artifacts isn't to better communicate - it's to have better conversations."

Why Engineers Need to Be Part of the Story

At Full Scale, I've learned that a key part of any developer's job is asking questions.

But here's what many leaders miss: product requirements are not technical requirements.

Let me give you a real example.

Recently, I worked on software for plumbers. Instead of just saying "build a mobile app," we needed to understand that our user is wearing gloves and has maybe five minutes between client visits to use the app. That story changes everything about how we approach the solution.

The best solutions come when engineers understand the complete picture.

As Josh puts it, "Your engineers are some of the smartest, most dedicated, hardest working people in your organization. If you aren't engaging them in the how and what to do, you're really failing."

Creating Space for Real Collaboration

One critical lesson stands out: You have to actively create an environment where engineers feel safe speaking up. Here are three practical approaches we discussed:

Make it Safe to Ask Questions

Your team watches every expression, every word. One thoughtless response from leadership can kill the collaborative spirit you're trying to build.

At Full Scale, we explicitly tell our teams that asking questions and challenging assumptions is part of their job.

Use Visual Stories Over Written Specs

Josh shared a brilliant example from his time at Google, where they would create short "ads" showing their vision for new products.

This visual storytelling helped engineers understand the end goal and sparked better questions about implementation.

Let Engineers Own the Details

Stop trying to write perfect user stories. Instead, provide high-level epics and let your engineering team break down the work in ways that make sense to them. This naturally forces better questions and conversations.

Moving Forward: Actions You Can Take Today

Start treating your requirements documents as conversation starters, not final specifications.

Include your engineering team earlier in the process - during product discovery, not just implementation.

Focus on outcomes over outputs. As Josh reminded us, "Nobody cares if your engineers worked 50 hours a week coding if you're not creating value for customers."

Creating space for meaningful technical discussions might actually mean less documentation but better results.

Like all fundamental skills, this takes practice and consistency.

Some weeks will be better than others.

But as a leader, your job is to keep beating this drum and reminding everyone that great software comes from great conversations.

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