Why we focus on milestones, not on tasks

At the task level, some companies, such as Google, do not impose a way of working to their teams. They can follow whatever “ways of working” method that makes them the most productive. However, alignment was always done at a higher level, on top of the task level. At Luna, we embrace the diversity of work styles and encourage teams to self-organize around the methods and tools that work best for them. We believe in empowering teams, not dictating rigid processes.

Our focus is on aligning teams around milestones, the cornerstones of successful launches. We trust you to manage your tasks using your preferred frameworks (Scrum or Kanban) and task management tools (Jira, Asana, ClickUp etc.). Luna will leverage milestones to provide visibility to executives and cross-functional partners, freeing you from unnecessary busywork.

Milestones vs Tasks

Even though crucial for team work, tasks can hardly be used to drive alignment and communication between teams and stakeholders (eg. execs, sales, marketing). Milestones are a necessary level of abstraction which unites teams, drives progress and empowers successful launches. 

In essence, milestones provide a high-level overview of project progress, while tasks represent the detailed work required to achieve those milestones.

Always start with milestones

To achieve team alignment and engagement during a project, we recommend starting with milestones before diving into tasks. This approach is more beneficial in driving the following outcomes: 

1. Provide a clear roadmap for the project, from start to finish. It identifies the key teams involved, allowing them to derive their own tasks and work independently. 
2. Enhance stakeholder visibility, who can track the project's progress and important information, throughout the lifecycle of a launch. For example, improving visibility greatly helps harmonize the relationship between product and sales. 
3. Boost team motivation by bringing a sense of accomplishment and progress when milestones are met.
4. Facilitate effective communication and alignment between teams. Different progress reports will be faster to create, without having to constantly aggregate tasks information, translate them to a higher level of abstraction, and do the reporting from there. ‍
5. Involve the right decision makers proactively at the right time without having to wait for checkpoints and meetings. Decision makers will be able to follow and engage with milestones information such as updates, decisions and risks, and provide timely support.

At Luna, milestones are the control panel of each launch  

At Luna, we consolidate milestones to establish a common language between all stakeholders. Our milestones are rich in information and are leveraged to automate time-consuming reports. Luna’s milestones: 

• Show the entire picture of a project, capturing real progress, detecting potential delays and risks, giving you a comprehensive picture of the project's health.
• Structure critical project level workflows anchored around them, such as approval flow, decisions taken, and weekly team updates, ensuring streamlined collaboration. ‍
• Integrate with your task management tools, to constantly reflect the right data, reflecting the latest progress data.

• ‍Automate and generate different types of reports in Docs, Slack or Slides, including weekly launch digest, up to date launch progress and roadmap. 

As mentioned above, milestones serve as key checkpoints and phases, which all the teams have to navigate throughout a launch lifecyle. Each launch owner (eg. PMs) should collaborate with their respective teams and stakeholders to carefully define the milestones that will guide the launch towards completion, ensuring that no steps are missed and that the launch “lands” with the highest quality in the eyes of users. Here are examples of milestones:

Key takeaways  

Milestones are often hastily assembled when updates are requested or compiled by other stakeholders, leading to a fragmented understanding of project progress. The larger the volume of concurrent launches, the more complex it becomes to track their progress effectively. Prioritizing milestones over tasks empowers teams to navigate their launches with clarity, collaboration, and control. By establishing milestones as the guiding framework, teams can effectively align their efforts, foster a shared sense of progress, and streamline communication across all levels. Luna's milestone-centric approach provides a single source of truth for launch success management, enabling teams to focus on achieving their goals efficiently and driving successful launches.