Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career cover image

Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career

Inside Linear: Building with taste, craft, and focus | Karri Saarinen (co-founder, designer, CEO)

Oct 8, 2023
Karri Saarinen, co-founder and CEO of Linear, shares insights from his impressive background, including design leadership at Airbnb and Coinbase. He discusses the importance of prioritizing craft in product development and how Linear’s unique hiring strategies set them apart. Karri reveals how the company operates with just one PM and emphasizes that good design is essential in today’s market. He offers strategies for maintaining focus amidst distractions while providing a sneak peek of an upcoming feature that enhances team communication.
01:39:49

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

  • Design is crucial in attracting attention, instilling trust, and differentiating from competitors.
  • Linear's method focuses on opinionated software, consistent cycles, and project teams.

Deep dives

Design as a Key Differentiator

In the podcast episode, the importance of design in the success of a product or company is emphasized. The speaker believes that as the significance of a domain or industry increases, so does the importance of design. Design is seen as a way to attract attention, instill trust, and differentiate from competitors. The speaker mentions that today, high-level design is crucial from the beginning to be taken seriously. Several examples are given to highlight the impact of design on user experience and perception, emphasizing the need for a well-designed product in today's competitive landscape.

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