Open-Ended Product Design: Choose a Community and Build a Tool for Its Biggest Need

Pick a community and design a tool that helps it. The prompt does not name a community, so choosing one, and defending that choice, is part of the exercise. Explain whom in the community the tool serves, which shared problem it solves, what the first version does and how you would know it is working. ```hint Pick the community on purpose Communities differ in what holds them together and in what they struggle to do as a group. Compare a few kinds on how painful and how poorly served their shared problems are, and pick one where a tool for the group, not just for one person, makes a difference. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Is the tool meant for one of Meta's existing community surfaces, such as Facebook Groups or WhatsApp Communities, or for a standalone product? - Does "community" mean an online group, a physical one such as a neighborhood or a school, or either? - Is the tool for the members, for the organizers who run the community, or for both? - What should success mean: more active communities, more time spent, or real-world outcomes for the members? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A reasoned choice of one community, compared with alternatives on need, existing tools and fit. - The community's roles, such as organizers, regular members and newcomers, and the shared problems a group tool can solve better than individual tools. - A focused first version, prioritized against other ideas, with trade-offs stated. - Success metrics at the community level, not only per user, plus guardrails such as notification fatigue, privacy and safety. - Risks including the cold start inside each community and misuse of the tool. ### Follow-up Questions - How would the tool behave in a community of 20 members compared with one of 20,000? - Organizers love the tool, but most members ignore it. What do you change? - How would you take the tool from the community you chose to other kinds of communities?