In this episode of the Product Agility Podcast, host Ben Maynard shares a practical approach to helping people grow beyond their job titles—an approach that improves collaboration, accelerates delivery, and supports meaningful development without adding unnecessary bureaucracy. At the centre of the conversation is the concept of a “Market of Skills.”
Originally introduced by Lisa Adkins in Coaching Agile Teams, the Market of Skills encourages individuals to share the skills they have and the ones they want to develop, making capability visible and growth more intentional. While rooted in Agile, this method has proven valuable across departments—from product and design to leadership and operations.
Ben reflects on recent experiences facilitating this approach and offers guidance on how to bring it into your own team in a way that feels natural, human, and impactful.
Topics include:
- Why focusing on roles limits potential and skills-based thinking broadens it
- How to create space for peer-to-peer learning and reduce costly dependencies
- The benefits of visible, self-directed development over formal training platforms
- How to introduce a Market of Skills without overwhelming your teams
- What leaders can do to support learning cultures that actually support performance
Whether you're a CPO, Agile coach, product manager or people leader, this episode provides an actionable, people-first perspective on growing capability in modern product organisations.
Host Bio
Ben is a seasoned expert in product agility coaching, unleashing the potential of people and products. With over a decade of experience, his focus now is product-led growth & agility in organisations of all sizes.
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Ben Maynard
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Product Agility Podcast
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- iTunes - https://apple.co/3YvTX8p
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