Balancing technical frameworks with human coaching

In this episode of The Product Experience, Mariah (Executive Director of Product at The Atlantic) discusses the often-vague transition from being a great Product Manager to becoming an effective manager of people. Drawing on her background as a journalist, Mariah explores how empathy and storytelling translate into product leadership. She deep-dives into using the Reforge PM Competency Model to remove subjectivity from performance reviews, fostering growth through "Development Conversations," and integrating AI into the PM workflow without losing the human touch.

Chapters
[0:00] The Pitfalls of People Management
[1:15] Mariah’s Origin Story: From Journalism to Product
[3:24] Product Goals at The Atlantic
[4:14] Transferable Skills from Journalism
[6:08] The Evolution of the News Product Industry
[8:40] Why Product Leaders Struggle with Management
[13:12] The Reforge Competency Framework
[15:13] Running 6-Week Development Conversations
[21:20] Linking Development to Pay and Promotions
[22:58] Managing the Human Element of Performance
[26:12] Addressing Burnout and Imposter Syndrome
[28:58] Upskilling Teams in the Era of AI
[31:40] AI Disruption in the News Industry
[33:01] Closing and Resources

Key Takeaways
— Journalism as a Product Foundation: Skills like active listening, asking the "question behind the question," and storytelling are directly transferable to discovery and stakeholder management.
— The "Liking" Trap: Effective management isn't about being liked; it is about challenging your team. Radical transparency often leads to more long-term gratitude than avoiding uncomfortable conversations.
— Structured Development: Using a competency framework turns vague performance evaluations into objective, actionable growth plans.
— The 6-Week Pulse: Dedicated "Development Conversations" every six weeks help track progress and adjust goals in real-time, far beyond the utility of an annual review.
— Protecting Focus: "Focus Fridays" (no-meeting days) are essential for PMs to escape the "weeds" and execute high-value work.

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.