Linear’s secret to building beloved B2B products | Nan Yu (Head of Product)
Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career
Intro
This chapter delves into the philosophy of achieving both speed and quality in product development, positing that they are not mutually exclusive. It highlights the need for skilled professionals to efficiently prioritize essential features while managing user feedback and mitigating software bloat.
Nan Yu is the head of product at Linear, one of the most beloved and fastest-growing B2B SaaS products out there today, and the gold standard for high-performing tech teams. In our conversation, we discuss:
• Why speed and quality aren’t actually at odds
• Linear’s unique approach to product development
• Nan’s systematic approach to creativity
• Linear’s philosophy on deadlines
• The “double triangle” framework for product management
• Nan’s approach to landing his dream product roles
• Much more
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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/linears-secret-to-building-beloved-b2b-products-nan-yu
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Where to find Nan Yu:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thenanyu/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to Nan Yu and Linear
(04:54) Survey insights: Linear vs. Jira
(07:51) The speed vs. quality myth
(09:24) Building and iterating quickly
(15:31) Avoiding bloat in enterprise software
(23:57) Understanding user needs deeply
(30:09) How to approach customer calls
(34:10) Creating strong emotional hooks
(40:31) Managing the product backlog
(44:46) Systemizing creativity
(48:16) Demo: Saving drafts in Linear
(51:38) Breaking constraints and building at extremes
(54:15) Adopting new tools
(58:22) The “double triangle” framework for product management
(01:04:23) Effective job-hunting strategies for PMs
(01:09:15) Thoughts on deadlines
(01:14:15) Lightning round
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Referenced:
• Jira: https://www.atlassian.com/software/jira
• Linear: https://linear.app/
• Patrick Collison’s post on X: https://x.com/patrickc/status/1869422495985750459
• Magnus Carlsen on X: https://x.com/magnuscarlsen
• Hikaru Nakamura on X: https://x.com/gmhikaru
• Geoffrey Moore on finding your beachhead, crossing the chasm, and dominating a market: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/geoffrey-moore-on-finding-your-beachhead
• Customer Request feature on Linear: https://linear.app/customer-requests
• Everlane: https://www.everlane.com/
• Schlep Blindness: https://paulgraham.com/schlep.html
• Linear’s triage tool: https://linear.app/docs/triage
• Patrick Collison’s post about mental models on X: https://x.com/patrickc/status/1443215022029619200
• Brian Chesky’s new playbook: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/brian-cheskys-contrarian-approach
• Unpacking Amazon’s unique ways of working | Bill Carr (author of Working Backwards): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/unpacking-amazons-unique-ways-of
• Mode: https://mode.com/
• The Diplomat on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81288983
• Sakura Micron pens: https://www.amazon.com/SAKURA-PIGMA-MICRON-ESSENTIAL-COLORS/dp/B07VJFXT3C/
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Recommended books:
• Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling Disruptive Products to Mainstream Customers: https://www.amazon.com/Crossing-Chasm-3rd-Disruptive-Mainstream/dp/0062292986
• The Design of Everyday Things: https://www.amazon.com/Design-Everyday-Things-Revised-Expanded/dp/0465050654/
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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.
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Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe
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