Opportunity Solution Tree

An Opportunity Solution Tree (OST) is a visual framework for product discovery that connects business outcomes to customer opportunities and potential solutions. Developed by Teresa Torres, it prevents the common trap of jumping straight to solutions by ensuring every feature idea traces back to a customer need and measurable outcome.

When to Use

• During continuous product discovery to organize learning
• When prioritizing what opportunities to pursue
• To communicate product strategy to stakeholders
• When you have too many feature ideas and need structure
• After user research to connect insights to action
• When aligning team on what outcomes matter most

When NOT to Use

• You need to score and rank a flat list of known candidates -> use define-prioritization-framework; the tree structures discovery, not a ranking exercise
• You have one specific problem to frame for a team -> use define-problem-statement
• You are ready to test a single assumption -> use define-hypothesis, then measure-experiment-design
• The outcome you want to drive is not yet agreed -> set it first with foundation-okr-writer; a tree without an agreed outcome decorates opinions