Understanding Leadership Accountability: Signing Up vs. Feeling Responsible

Christian sits down with Shreyas Doshi to discuss product leadership. Shreyas has led teams at Stripe, Twitter, Google, and Yahoo, and he has coached 100s of founders and product executives across the industry. Learn why most product problems are product leadership problems, and how to hire the right product leader for your company stage. 

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Today’s discussion unpacks:

• Why nearly every product problem is a product leadership problem

• The essence of great product leadership

• 3 archetypal leadership styles—and how to spot them

• The key questions to ask before hiring a product leader

• How to hire the right product leader for your company stage

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References:

• 3 types of product leaders: https://coda.io/@shreyas/3-product-leader-archetypes

• The MSN exercise for hiring:  https://www.linkedin.com/posts/shreyasdoshi_a-job-description-jd-is-the-first-thing-activity-7058964842530934784-4H8F/

• SVPG articles on product leadership: https://www.svpg.com/insights/product-leadership-articles/

• Switching from creating to editing products: https://x.com/shreyas/status/1284499367383035904 

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Where to find Christian Idiodi: 

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cidiodi/

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Where to find Shreyas Doshi:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shreyasdoshi/

• X/Twitter: https://x.com/shreyas

• Threads: https://www.threads.com/@shreyas.threads 

• Shreyas’ Product Sense Course (for founders & product leaders): https://maven.com/shreyas-doshi/product-sense

• More: https://linktr.ee/shreyasdoshi

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Where to find SVPG:

• SVPG’s newest book, TRANSFORMED: https://www.svpg.com/books/transformed-moving-to-the-product-operating-model/

• Other books: https://www.svpg.com/books/

• Articles: https://www.svpg.com/articles/

• Workshops: https://www.svpg.com/

• Videos: https://www.svpg.com/videos/

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Episode intro 

(00:20) Shreyas’ product leadership philosophy 

(07:37) Defining the product leader role

(12:46) Step #1 before hiring a product leader 

(15:55) The most important consideration when hiring product leaders

(17:33)  A common failure pattern in product leadership hiring 

(19:53) The 3 archetypal product leadership styles

(25:35) How to uncover someone’s product leadership style 

(31:37) The MSN exercise

(37:13) Before hiring a product leader, ask yourself these questions 

(40:39)  Closing recap 

(42:25) Where to find more from SVPG 

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Disclaimer:

While this podcast is named “Product Therapy”, it is not hosted by licensed therapists or mental health professionals, and it is in no way a substitute for professional mental health services. We recognize the importance of mental well-being and encourage anyone facing personal difficulties to seek support from qualified professionals. See https://findahelpline.com/

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Production:

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