This week on the Expert Voices podcast, Randy Wootton, CEO of Maxio, speaks with Tami Reiss, Founder and CEO of The Product Leader Coach. Tami shares how understanding customer needs and creating a compelling vision that aligns with the company’s goals, leads to successful product management. Randy and Tami talk about the value of coaching for product leaders and the necessity of collaboration across departments to drive growth and innovation. Her upcoming children's book, 'What Do Product Managers Do?', showcases her passion for demystifying the role of product managers, particularly for aspiring young professionals. 

 Quotes

• So first of all, the promise of SaaS is that your product is always going to get better, right? Right. It's why someone's paying for a subscription. So you always have to keep that in mind. So there has to be something you're doing to enhance your product for your current market. Your current users are paying you on a monthly or annual basis, because theoretically you're going to serve them more, and solve more of their problems. -Tami Reiss [24:42]

• “The product leader has to coach their employees and say ‘You need to set up listening posts with the onboarding team. You need to set up listening posts with the platform team, or whatever else, and emphasize to them that they are also building trust and confidence in the entire product team and the product way of working." -Tami Reiss[33:21]

Expert Takeaways 

• Establishing a clear vision and strategy is crucial for product leaders to drive successful outcomes in their organizations.
• The importance of aligning product management with sales and customer service to meet market demands effectively.
• Product leaders need to focus on building trust and confidence in their relationships with stakeholders for long-term success.
• The distinction between product management and project management is essential for effective product strategy execution in a company.
• Coaching can help product leaders navigate complex organizational dynamics and enhance their decision-making skills.

Timestamps

(00:00) Meet Tami Reiss: Product Expert

(00:56) The Inspiration Behind Tami's Book

(02:12) The Importance of Product Management Education

(09:09) Establishing a Winning Strategy

(09:15) The Role of a Product Leader Coach

(19:07) Understanding Product-Market Fit

(18:43) Defining Your Kingdom: Market Strategy

(21:44) The Need for a North Star Metric

(28:39)The Value of Coaching for Product Leaders

(35:21) Speed Round: Metrics, Books, and Influencers

Links

Maxio

Upcoming Events

Maxio Institute Report

Randy Wootton LinkedIn 

Tammi Reiss LinkedIn