From Co-op CPO to Co-Founder - Adam Warburton (Co-Founder, Rove)

In this conversation on this week's podcast, Adam Warburton, Co-Founder of Rove, shares his journey from being a Chief Product Officer at large firms like Co-op and Travelex, to co-founding his startup, Rove. He discusses the challenges and learnings from transitioning to a startup environment, the importance of prototyping and user feedback, and the balance between being product-led and sales-led.

Featured Links

• Follow Adam on LinkedIn  
• Rove  
• Co-op 
• Marty Cagan's book 'Inspired: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love'

Chapters 

• 00:00 Expectation vs. Reality in Happiness
• 05:08 Transitioning from Corporate to Startup Life
• 10:05 The Importance of Prototyping and User Feedback
• 14:58 Navigating Product vs. Sales-Led Strategies
• 20:00 The Value of Co-Founders in Entrepreneurship
• 25:13 Learning from Experience: Shaping Product Practices
• 29:46 Pragmatism Over Theory in Product Management
• 35:08 Coaching and Training: Evolving Perspectives

Key takeaways

• Happiness is expectation divided by reality.
• Transitioning from corporate to startup life brings unexpected challenges.
• Prototyping and user feedback are crucial in early stages.
• Navigating product vs. sales led strategies is essential for growth.
• Co-founders significantly enhance the entrepreneurial experience.
• Pragmatism often trumps theoretical frameworks in product management.
• Learning from experience shapes product practices.
• The importance of being adaptable in product strategies.
• Building a prototype can lead to significant traction.
• Coaching should focus on maximizing impact with available resources.

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.