A successful framework distills the complex, and in that synthesis, gets to a timeless insight. That’s always my aspiration, to varying degrees of success.

A few years ago, I published a framework I called The Hierarchy of Engagement (Version 1, and updated “Expanded” Version) which synthesized my thinking on how to build enduring consumer products.

I think of user engagement as the fuel powering products. The best products take that fuel and propel the product (and with it, the company) forward. Just how products do that is something I’ve been thinking about for most of my career.

I wrote that Uber built a multi-billion dollar business by using mobile to create a 10x better product than the incumbent (taxis), and did so at a lower price. The “and”, as I wrote, is everything.