Are you looking to visualize the goals, milestones, and outcomes of your project? If so, these Google Sheets roadmap templates are exactly what you need.
In this article, we will take a closer look at some of the best roadmap templates available on Google Sheets and how you can use them to streamline your project management process. We will also discuss the essential elements of a good template and how to create one from scratch.
What Makes a Good Google Sheets Roadmap?
Every roadmap template varies based on individual needs. However, here are some general categories to look for in an online template:
- Roadmap title
- Key steps
- Important dates
- Progress status
- Priority level
- Responsible individuals
- Notes
Some people believe that dates should not be included in a roadmap. Indeed, many changes can occur during a project. Therefore, it is essential to decide whether you need a template with a date category or without, depending on your preferences.
The Best Google Sheets Roadmap Templates
Here are some of the best Google Sheets roadmap templates that can help you effectively plan and manage your projects.
1. Kanban-style Roadmap
Developed by Taiichi Ohno, former industrial engineer at Toyota, Kanban is a project management system that allows you to divide your tasks based on their progress. Following its principles, here is our Kanban-style roadmap template.
Inside the template, you will find two tabs:
- Kanban: This is where your key steps are displayed by category. You will see them divided into “Planned,” “In Progress,” “Under Review,” and “Completed.” You don’t need to modify anything in this tab.
- Details: This is where you list specific items for your roadmap. In addition to the main field where you enter your entries, you can also choose or enter values in the “Priority,” “Status,” and “Details” fields.
2. Google Sheets Product Roadmap Template
This standard product roadmap template allows you to present your steps, from the planning phase to subsequent product enhancements. Here, you can categorize your steps or activities into three sections: “Product,” “Sales,” and “Marketing.”
These categories are then subdivided based on the phase: “Planning,” “Execution,” and “Development.” You will learn more about using these categories once you have a copy of our template.
3. List-style Project Roadmap Template
Use this template if your ultimate goal is to present your project roadmap in an easy-to-follow manner. As it is a list, your readers will need to read from top to bottom. Thus, you can organize your steps based on their importance: place the most urgent ones at the top of the list and miscellaneous tasks at the bottom.
Our template also includes the categories “Priority,” “Responsible,” and “Details.” Determine the tasks to be completed first and who is responsible for them using these fields.
4. Agile Roadmap
The main concept of the Agile methodology is to break down a large plan into several smaller parts. It is often used in software development teams, especially when releasing features and updates for a product.
Our roadmap template offers multiple “sprints” (as Agile defines them), which you can consider as phases to be completed one by one. We have designed it as a quarterly roadmap template, with each quarter consisting of six sprints.
5. Now-Next-Later Roadmap
If you simply want to prioritize your tasks in relation to your current time, this roadmap template is ideal. You will also want to use this type of roadmap if you plan on long-term planning, with the “Later” category. Additionally, it works well with Agile methodologies.
Why Use Our Templates?
In addition to their practicality, here are a few more reasons why you’ll want to get a copy of our roadmap templates:
- Integration of project management best practices: When designing our templates, our goal is to adhere to the best practices in project management. You can see this in our Agile roadmap and Kanban-style roadmap.
- Equipped with formulas and drop-down lists: We have used several functions in the roadmap sheets to make them organized and easy to use. You will also find drop-down lists containing commonly used values, such as “Low,” “Medium,” and “High,” for priority.
- Pre-formatted for good organization: Roadmaps would be useless if they were not clean and organized. Therefore, we have ensured that our Google Sheets roadmap templates include conditional formatting and pre-selected colors.
How to Structure a Product Roadmap
A common type of template is a product roadmap template on Google Sheets, which provides an overview of what a product is, its development directions, and the general timeline of phases from launch to improvements. Here’s how you can structure one:
1. Identify Your Audience
You typically create product roadmaps to present them to clients, stakeholders, product managers, and more. Therefore, you need to tailor your roadmap template to the specific needs and interests of each group.
For example, you may need to create a roadmap with a detailed breakdown of activities when working with a product manager. Another example is a roadmap for marketers so they can see which product features are being released when, allowing them to align their strategy accordingly.
2. Define the Scope of Your Product
Clearly define the scope of your product by identifying its ultimate goal, target audience, and value proposition. This will help you determine the features to include in your product.
3. Determine Your Timeline
Identify when you will start and finish your project. No need to specify exact dates in your plan. Present them in chronological order.
For example, you can organize the launch phases of different features of your new product. To be more specific, you can indicate the quarters of the year in which you will launch them.
4. Select a Layout for Your Roadmap
Once you have determined all these elements, choose a roadmap format. The now-next-later structure can be ideal when planning to release multiple versions of your product. On the other hand, a list-style roadmap template would be suitable if you want to present your steps in an easy-to-read manner.
How to Create a Roadmap Template
We have already mentioned different roadmap templates on Google Sheets above. But if you haven’t found one that suits your needs exactly, here’s how to create a roadmap from scratch:
Step 1. Create a New Spreadsheet
- Go to Google Sheets and create a new spreadsheet.
- Enter a file name in the “Untitled spreadsheet” field.
Step 2. Insert Column Headers
- On the first row of each column, type the following headers:
- Key Step
- Start Date
- End Date
- Status
- Priority
- Select the column headers, then press “Ctrl” + “B” (or “Command” + “B” for Mac) to make them bold.
- You can also click on the “B” icon in the toolbar at the top.
Step 3. Add Checkboxes and Dropdown Lists
Here, the concept is to give your key steps their current progress status and urgency. We have simplified the statuses into checkboxes that you can tick once a step is completed. For priority levels, we have indicated how to create dropdown lists in Google Sheets below.
- Select the cells under the “Status” column.
- Click on “Insert” > “Checkbox”.
- Select the cells under “Priority”.
- Go to “Data” > “Data Validation”.
- Click on “Add a rule” in the sidebar that appears.
- Enter the following items in the fields provided under “Criteria”:
- Low
- Medium
- High
- Click “Done”.
Step 4. Customize Your Template
The final step is to customize your new roadmap with the color and font style you prefer.
In conclusion, Google Sheets roadmap templates provide valuable assistance in visualizing the progress of a project. To get started, simply get a copy of one of the roadmap templates mentioned above.
Do you want access to more advanced templates? Check out our premium spreadsheet templates and use the code “SSP” for a 50% discount.
Get Premium Templates
You can also use Google Sheets in other aspects of your work. Check out our Google Forms and Sheets Masterclass to start mastering it today!
Related Articles:
- The Ultimate Guide to Creating a Timeline on Google Sheets
- 5 Useful Google Sheets Project Management Templates [Free]
- The 9 Best Google Sheets Templates to Make Your Life Easier
- The 9 Best Project Status Report Templates on Google Sheets
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