Tools, data, and process for product ops – lessons for product managers from Pendo

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TLDR

This episode dives into the increasingly impactful world of product operations, with insights from Robert Marten, Senior Manager of Product Operations at Pendo. We discuss what product operations is, how it streamlines efficiency for product teams, its key pillars (tools, data, process), cultural shifts toward focusing on customer problems over requirements, and practical examples of tool use and benefits at Pendo. You’ll learn how product operations makes product management less chaotic, accelerates onboarding, and fosters a collaborative, efficient culture.

Introduction

Today’s topic is product operations. A lot of product teams are drowning in documentation, don’t have a clear focus, and might not really know what their North Star is. Groups that have adopted product operations have found success, but a lot of organizations don’t know about product operations yet. We’re going to dive into details about what product operations is.

I am joined by Robert Marten. He is the Senior Manager of Product Operations at Pendo. You may recognize Pendo as the software tool that helps people writing software products themselves augment them with instrumentation to get better insights. Robert is revolutionizing how Pendo does operations themselves. He has a unique background spanning military operations as an Air Force commander to leading Agile transformations at Johnson & Johnson. Robert brings a systems thinking approach to produce development and product management.

Find out more about the Product Development and Management Association (PDMA) and next year’s innovation conference.

Summary of Concepts Discussed for Product Managers

What is Product Operations?
Robert shares that product operations is about maximizing efficiency in executing a product’s mission. At Pendo, it focuses on tools, data, and process, aiming to empower product managers to do deep work rather than get bogged down in administrative chaos.

Reducing Process & Enhancing Efficiency
Process isn’t about bureaucracy—it’s about streamlining activities and ruthlessly removing unnecessary steps. Robert emphasizes that the goal is efficiency, not standardization for its own sake. Product ops should remove process whenever the cost of the process in time or money outweighs its benefits.

Solving Communication Challenges
Disjointed communication and documentation practices slow teams down. Standardized reporting and tool use help with transparency, giving everyone access to current information and helping align teams on customer-centric objectives.

Focus on Solving Customer Problems
Robert has observed product teams focusing on the product’s scope or requirement document instead of solving the customer problem. This leads to inefficiencies like not killing a feature soon enough or killing it too soon. Simply changing your language in conversations to reference the customer problem rather than the scope of the product can help the team maintain the right focus.

Tooling at Pendo
Robert describes how Pendo itself, Airtable, and the Atlassian Suite (JIRA, Confluence) are used to drive product ops. Tools are chosen for flexibility, enabling tailored views and efficient status reporting.

From Chaos to Clarity
One of the most tangible benefits of product ops is the reduction in “fires”—less confusion, fewer last-minute emergencies, and more time for meaningful work. Product ops ensures that everyone is on the same page, facilitating faster time to market and better alignment to customer needs.

Impact on Career Growth
Product ops helps product managers ramp up faster, develop their skills more quickly, and spend more time on impactful work that helps them build their brand within the organization.

Useful Links

• Connect with Robert on LinkedIn
• Learn more about Pendo
• Listen to episode 363: Get better performance by being a product-led organization – with Todd Olson

Innovation Quote

“Learning is not compulsory. Neither is survival.” – Edwards Deming

“Every system is perfectly designed to get the result it gets.” – Edwards Deming

Application Questions

1. How does your team currently manage product documentation and communication, and where do inefficiencies show up?
2. In your organization, do product managers “dual hat” with ops roles? Would separating these roles improve your team’s efficiency?
3. How do you ensure your product work stays focused on solving customer problems rather than just completing the documented scope?
4. What tools and processes do you use for status reporting, and are they flexible and accessible to everyone who needs them?
5. How could product operations help you reduce chaos and fires in your daily work, and what barriers do you see to implementing it in your organization?

Bio

Robert Marten is currently the Senior Manager of Product Operations at Pendo, a high-growth SaaS company, where he helps the product organization scale effectively and deliver with impact. With more than 15 years of experience spanning agile, project management, product operations, and leadership, Robert has built a career focused on developing high-performing R&D teams and driving efficiency in product delivery. 

Like many in the technology industry, Robert is in his second career. Before moving into the civilian sector, he served for eight years as a pilot in the U.S. Air Force, where he developed the leadership and adaptability he now brings to building successful product teams. 

Thanks!

Thank you for taking the journey to product mastery and learning with me from the successes and failures of product innovators, managers, and developers. If you enjoyed the discussion, help out a fellow product manager by sharing it using the social media buttons you see below.

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