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Run a pre-mortem that names owners and early warnings

  • For Product managers
  • You practice Keeping the AI to your sources
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Intermediate

About this exercise

Before the self-checkout launch, run a pre-mortem: imagine it's 3 months after launch and it failed. List exactly 5 numbered failure reasons, each on one line with three labels: Failure:, Early warning:, Owner:. Base every reason on a risk in the planning notes, and use only owners named there. Keep it under 220 words.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Generic failure reasons. The AI lists textbook risks like 'poor user adoption' instead of the ones in your notes. Try: Add: "Base every reason on a risk in the notes."
  • Missing the footnote. The AI skims and misses the PCI renewal added at the bottom. Try: Say: "Include the PCI certification renewal due Feb 20."
  • No owner or vague owners. The AI assigns 'the team' or invents roles. Try: Add: "Owner must be a person named in the notes."
  • Loose format. The AI writes paragraphs per risk, so you can't scan it. Try: Show it: "1. Failure: ... | Early warning: ... | Owner: ..." and ask for exactly 5.
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for a total word limit and it often lands over it. Try: Cap each part instead: "each line under 15 words."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Frames it as a pre-mortem
  • Fixes the count
  • Asks for the labels
  • Stays in the notes
  • Sets a word limit

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