Balancing short-term goals with long-term product success

The other day, I came across Francesca Cortesi’s article, “The Importance of Discovering Solutions Beyond Opportunities.” I was curious to see her take on Opportunity Solution Trees (OSTs) and their limitations. But what stuck with me wasn’t about the mechanics of OSTs—it was this part:

“I honestly never saw a behavioral change [in users] that was executed and brought results within a quarter. Yet, putting quarterly goals on a product team will push them to have an even higher pressure on focusing on short-term wins and a lower inclination on dedicating a lot of time on discovering different solutions.”

That hit home.

As product managers, we constantly operate between delivering immediate results and building for the long term. Francesca’s article reminded me of the times I’ve had to justify why I wanted to stick to working on the same opportunity for longer. I watched countless teams move on from promising opportunities too quickly—settling for “good enough” because the next quarter’s priorities were already around the corner.

But the truth is, meaningful change rarely fits neatly into three-month cycles. Impactful solutions demand patience, iteration, and a willingness to go deeper. And yet, most organizations don’t make it easy.

This tension isn’t just theoretical. It’s a constant battle, and it plays out like this:

• Teams abandon opportunities prematurely. Quarterly goals encourage quick fixes or favoring easy solutions over deep exploration.
• Pressure for quick wins stifles creativity. Deliverables take precedence over outcomes.
• Iteration gets deprioritized. Once a solution ships, the focus shifts to “what’s next” instead of making it better.
• Competing priorities create chaos. Stakeholder demands and shifting objectives pull teams in too many directions at the same time.

I’ve been in those meetings too often, trying to justify why we should refine a solution that looks “done” on paper. I’ve had to explain why an opportunity wasn’t truly resolved or why moving on too soon could mean leaving value on the table.

The challenge isn't only with the planning tools themselves, but with the broader economic and organizational systems that create pressure for short-term results. Our planning cycles are deeply intertwined with financial quarters, investor expectations, and economic rhythms that prioritize immediate measurable outcomes. These systemic pressures create a cascade of short-term thinking that flows down through organizations, affecting how we plan, execute, and evaluate product work.

The real skill lies not in criticizing these systems, but in learning to navigate them strategically. How can we work intelligently within these constraints, finding creative ways to maintain focus on meaningful, long-term impact while still meeting near-term expectations?

How can we solve this

This ties into a larger issue within product management. While we’re often told to optimize for outcomes over outputs, we’re just one part of an organization. Most of the planning and thinking around us is naturally gears toward shorter time horizons.

There are exceptions, like for example Shopify, where Tobias Lütke has set a 100-year vision, and experiments are evaluated a full year after starting. But this is rare. Most of us work with six-month roadmaps, quarterly changing OKRs, or two week sprint cycles. Results almost never come so direct which makes balancing short-term pressure with long-term focus incredibly difficult.

After diving into this topic further, I found that many in the product community share the same frustrations. Fortunately, some great advice exists on how to tackle this challenge. Here are the best recommendations I found around the web to answer this question:

How can product teams stay focused on the right opportunities and solutions long enough to achieve meaningful, lasting impact while balancing the pressure for short-term results?

Francesca Cortesi: Keep a balance between discovery and delivery

After reading Francesca’s article, I reached out to her to learn more. She emphasized the importance of balancing discovery and delivery. Not every team can focus on discovery simultaneously—especially early on—but skipping discovery entirely increases the risk of waste during delivery. Product leaders must orchestrate these phases across teams to ensure progress without sacrificing efficiency.

Shreyas Doshi: Establish clear long-term objectives

Shreyas highlights the importance of connecting opportunities to long-term strategic objectives. These objectives act as a compass, helping teams prioritize their work and avoid distractions from short-term pressures. With a clear focus on where they’re headed, teams can make more disciplined decisions and reduce the temptation to chase less important opportunities.

Gibson Biddle: Embrace a portfolio approach to opportunities

Gibson advocates treating opportunities like a portfolio, balancing high-risk, high-reward bets with safer, incremental improvements. This ensures focus isn’t spread too thin while maintaining a steady pipeline of impactful projects. A portfolio approach also helps teams avoid overcommitting to one area, allowing them to make meaningful progress across multiple fronts.

Julie Zhuo: Build a culture that embraces depth over FOMO

Julie emphasizes the importance of creating a culture where teams feel comfortable diving deeply into a few meaningful problems rather than chasing every new idea. This focus on depth fosters better solutions and stronger outcomes. It also creates an environment where teams feel empowered to stay the course and resist distractions.

Andrew Chen: Set guardrails to avoid overcommitment

Andrew recommends defining clear success and exit criteria for initiatives. These guardrails help teams know when to keep going with a solution and when to pivot or stop. Without these boundaries, teams risk overinvesting in ideas that aren’t working or prematurely abandoning projects with potential. Guardrails provide clarity, helping teams balance persistence with flexibility and avoid wasted effort.

Leading the way

Ultimately, balancing short- and long-term priorities isn’t just a PM problem—it’s an organizational challenge. Leadership plays a critical role in setting the tone. They need to define clear objectives, establish boundaries, and foster a culture that values focus and persistence.

At the same time, product managers on the ground can’t wait for perfect conditions. We need to adopt smarter approaches, advocate for the right priorities, and communicate why depth and iteration matter.

One question I’ve found helpful to ask ourselves is this:

The answer often lies in making the process visible. Tools like Opportunity Solution Trees or similar frameworks help teams align on the big picture while breaking it down into actionable steps.

Final thoughts

Balancing short-term pressures with long-term impact will always be hard, but it’s not impossible. It requires intentionality, collaboration, and a willingness to embrace discomfort.

And when you get it right? The results can truly speak for themselves. Not just in the outcomes your team delivers but in the overall confidence you gain in making better product decisions.

Thanks to Francesca for giving feedback and writing her article that sparked the conversation in the first place.