Planning & Roadmapping helps you transform validated insights and strategic thinking into executable plans. Create comprehensive Product Requirements Documents (PRDs) and visualize your roadmap on a timeline to keep stakeholders aligned and teams focused.
Planning & Roadmapping encompasses two core planning features:
Product Requirements Documents (PRDs): Structured documents that outline what you're building, why you're building it, who it's for, and how success will be measured. PRDs connect your research, personas, markets, and solutions into a comprehensive plan.
Roadmaps: Visual timeline representations of when features and initiatives will be delivered. Roadmaps help you communicate plans, manage dependencies, and track progress across multiple initiatives.
These features help you bridge the gap between strategic thinking and tactical execution, ensuring your team builds the right things at the right time.
Navigate to planning features from the main sidebar:
PRD Editor
A Product Requirements Document (PRD) is a comprehensive document that outlines:
PRDs in Castspells.io are dynamic documents that link directly to your existing research, personas, markets, solutions, and tasks - ensuring your plans stay connected to validated insights.
Your PRD will be created with a default template including common sections like Overview, Target Market, Target Personas, Goals & Success Metrics, Requirements, Roadmap, and Related Data.
PRDs are built from flexible sections that you can add, remove, and reorder to match your workflow:
Text Sections: Free-form rich text content for descriptions, requirements, specifications, and any other written content. Perfect for:
Data Sections: Link to existing entities from your workspace like Hypotheses, Solutions, Tasks, Insights, and more. These sections automatically stay in sync with your data.
Market Sections: Display comprehensive market information including size, growth rate, customer segments, and key trends. Links directly to your Market Research.
Persona Sections: Show detailed persona information including demographics, goals, frustrations, and behavioral patterns. Links to your Customer Voice personas.
Roadmap Sections: Embed roadmap timelines showing scheduled initiatives, their timelines, and current status. Links to your Roadmapping data.
Click the Add Section button between any existing sections or at the end of your PRD. Choose from:
Text Sections: Click into the text area to edit using the rich text editor. Format text, add lists, include links, and structure your content.
Entity Sections: Use the selector buttons to add or change linked entities:
Click the delete button in the section header to remove a section. This only removes it from the PRD - it doesn't delete the underlying data.
Set start and end dates for your PRD to indicate the planning period. This appears in the PRD details section and helps teams understand the timeframe for delivery.
Lock your PRD to prevent accidental edits during review or after approval:
Toggle the lock status using the lock icon in the header.
Generate professional PDF versions of your PRD:
The PRD is automatically formatted for print with:
Connect your PRD to validated research and data:
This ensures your PRD is based on evidence, not assumptions.
Keep PRDs Focused: Create separate PRDs for distinct initiatives rather than one massive document. This makes them easier to review, approve, and execute.
Update Regularly: Because PRD sections link to live data, they stay current automatically. Update text sections as plans evolve.
Use Templates: Create a PRD with your preferred structure, then duplicate it for new initiatives to maintain consistency.
Share with Stakeholders: Use the print/PDF feature to share PRDs in meetings and reviews. The read-only format is perfect for alignment discussions.
Roadmap Timeline View
A roadmap is a visual timeline that shows when initiatives, features, and tasks will be delivered. Roadmaps help you:
Castspells.io roadmaps are dynamic and connected - they automatically reflect changes to linked Hypotheses, Solutions, and Tasks.
Roadmaps are organized with:
Lanes: Horizontal rows that group related work. Common lane types include:
Roadmap Items: Individual pieces of work displayed on the timeline. Each item:
The item appears on your roadmap and can be moved or resized.
Change Timeline: Drag the left or right edge of an item to adjust start or end dates.
Move Between Lanes: Drag an item up or down to reassign it to a different lane.
Reposition: Drag an item left or right to change when it starts while maintaining its duration.
Use filters to focus on specific parts of your roadmap:
Roadmap sections in PRDs automatically embed roadmap timelines:
This keeps your PRD and roadmap in sync - changes to roadmap items automatically appear in the PRD.
Start with Validated Work: Only add Hypotheses that have been validated or Solutions backed by research to your roadmap. Don't roadmap assumptions.
Use Lanes Strategically: Choose a lane structure that matches how you organize work. Team-based lanes work for resource planning; theme-based lanes work for strategic communication.
Keep It Current: Update roadmap items as timelines change. Because items link to live data, status updates happen automatically.
Show Dependencies: Place dependent items in sequence on the timeline. Consider creating a "Dependencies" lane for work that blocks other initiatives.
Communicate Frequently: Share roadmap views in planning meetings, stakeholder reviews, and team syncs to keep everyone aligned.
Account for Uncertainty: Use longer timeframes for later items. Near-term work should be detailed; future work can be approximate.
Start building your first PRD and roadmap:
Planning features help you turn strategic thinking into executable plans that keep teams aligned and focused on validated user needs.
For more information on related workflows: