Product Mastery Now for Product Managers, Leaders, and Innovators

A product manager’s journey to Product VP Watch on YouTube TLDR In this episode, I talk with Adam Feinstein, Vice President of Product at AppFolio, about what makes a great product leader in technology organizations. Adam shares his journey from electrical engineering in semiconductors to leading product teams in software, discussing the transitions, challenges, and valuable lessons he’s learned along the way. We explore topics like transitioning between industries, moving from individual contributor to leader, the importance of people problems over technical ones, business acumen, collaborating across functions, the value of mentors and coaching, and Adam’s strategies for staying organized and effective as a VP of Product. Introduction What distinguishes great product leaders in complex technology companies, and how do you become a great product leader? Is it technical knowledge, business acumen, or something else entirely? In this discussion, we’ll examine product leadership in tech organizations.  Our guest is Adam Feinstein. We met at a product leadership group Rich Mironov organized to help product leaders excel. Adam is Vice President of Product at AppFolio. He has navigated the challenging journey from individual contributor to executive leadership, including switching from the hardware industry to software. AppFolio is transforming property management through innovative cloud-based solutions. Whether you’re an aspiring product manager wondering about your career trajectory or a seasoned leader facing complex challenges, Adam’s candid insights on successes and trials will be helpful.  Summary of Concepts Discussed for Product Managers Adam Feinstein’s Career Path: Transitioned from semiconductor physics to software product management. Valued curiosity and willingness to learn over static domain knowledge. Took a step back in job title to move into software, which paid off in the long run. Key Product Leadership Transitions: Moving from individual contributor to group product manager was a significant growth point, emphasizing hiring, networking, and giving away ideas. Director and VP roles require more focus on people and cross-organizational collaboration. Learned the mantra: “Every problem is a people problem.” Importance of Business Acumen: Early exposure to business fundamentals (P&L, costing, pricing) was important. Understanding the business “money story” and being able to speak the language of business helped in senior roles. Collaboration and Communication: “Slow is smooth, smooth is fast” – taking time to align stakeholders leads to better and faster outcomes. Effective communication and ensuring others truly understand intentions and strategy is vital. Coaching, Mentorship, and Growth: Adam benefited from a variety of mentors, each teaching a different skill (business, marketing, strategy). Personal coaches were instrumental, especially in creating frameworks and honing people skills. Role of a VP of Product: A typical month is focused on clear priorities, impactful writing, coaching, product reviews, and cross-functional advocacy. Leverages AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude for clarity and efficiency in writing. Notes the reality of long hours and the need to balance family commitments. Challenges in Product Leadership: VP roles require balancing multiple priorities, not just optimizing for one goal. Clarity, focus in communication, and creative problem-solving are critical. Training and Continuous Learning: Foundational product management courses and ongoing coaching have been vital. Most recent coaching is focused more on human psychology and interpersonal dynamics rather than just product methods. Useful Links Connect with Adam on LinkedIn Learn more about AppFolio Innovation Quote  “Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast.” – Adam Feinstein Application Questions How does the perspective that “every problem is a people problem” shift the way you think about solving organizational or product challenges? When communicating with your team or cross-functional teams, what are some practical tactics to ensure your message is both clear and empathetic? What role have mentors or coaches played in your growth as a product professional, and how did you find or select them? If you don’t have a mentor, how could you find one? Or how could you be a mentor to someone else? How do you balance personal life with demanding leadership roles, and what boundaries or strategies have worked for you? Bio Adam Feinstein is the Vice President of Product Management at AppFolio, where he leads the Resident Industry Segment, a business dedicated to creating a modern, connected experience for renters—from application through move-out—and helping property managers deliver exceptional service throughout the resident journey.  Since March 2025, Adam has embraced this new strategic focus, after previously leading product management for AppFolio’s Guard, Payments, and Screening businesses (GPS). In his current role, he is responsible for driving product strategy, innovation, and growth in one of the company’s most dynamic and strategic areas.  Adam joined AppFolio in 2019 and has played a key role in scaling multiple lines of business through a blend of customer empathy, operational rigor, and cross-functional leadership. Before finding his home in proptech, Adam spent the early part of his career in semiconductor equipment manufacturing. Source

UX research practices to maximize product team resources Watch on YouTube TLDR During my conversation with Nick Cawthon, a UX research expert who drives innovation at Gauge and teaches at the California College of Arts, we explored how product teams can strengthen their customer research capabilities without slowing down development. Nick emphasized that while technology is accelerating design and development at unprecedented speeds, successful product managers must balance this velocity with strategic research methods like ethnographic studies and observational research. The key insight: Investing time upfront in understanding what customers actually need—not just what they say they want—prevents building dead-on-arrival products and saves significant development resources. Nick shared practical approaches for resource-constrained teams, including guerrilla research techniques at conferences and mixed methods combining qualitative insights with quantitative data. Key Topics De-risking product development through upfront customer research investment Ethnographic research methods Rapid research strategies AI integration in research Guerrilla research techniques Building research capabilities within existing product teams without dedicated researchers Service design perspective for understanding complete customer journey experiences Introduction We’re talking about research methods and tools that drive smarter product decisions. This is research that helps you uncover what customers really need, not just what they say they want. If you’ve ever wondered how to get better insights without slowing down development, this episode is for you. You’ll walk away with practical advice on how to strengthen your team’s research muscle, even if you don’t have a dedicated researcher. To help us, our guest is Nick Cawthon. Nick has been shaping the UX and research space in San Francisco for decades. He’s spoken at Google’s Tech Talks, Stanford, and PARC. He is an adjunct professor at the California College of the Arts and a Data Science Program Mentor at the University of California. He now drives innovation at Gauge, which helps companies solve complex design challenges. They integrate mixed methods research approaches into product design process to create products customers want, need, and love. The Evolution of UX Research in Product Development The landscape of product development fundamentally shifted when Apple introduced the iPhone, and with it, a new understanding of what makes technology truly user-friendly. During my recent conversation with Nick Cawthon, a seasoned UX research expert who has been shaping the research space in San Francisco for decades, he reflected on this pivotal moment that transformed how we approach customer research methods. Before 2010, Nick explained, anyone claiming to be a UX practitioner would raise eyebrows because the field simply wasn’t mainstream. The concept of user experience research was largely unknown outside specialized circles. However, the iPhone’s success sparked a question across the tech industry: Why do Apple’s products “just work” while others require extensive user manuals and troubleshooting? The iPhone marked a fundamental shift from subjective design approaches to objective, research-driven product development. Nick described how designers previously operated from a place of personal expression, creating products based on individual aesthetic preferences rather than user needs. The iPhone era forced a dramatic change in methodology—designers could no longer rely on personal taste alone. The transformation introduced behavioral sciences into mainstream product development. Research methods that were once confined to academic settings suddenly became essential tools for product teams. This evolution moved design from being an expression of self to a systematic approach focused on guiding users through experiences as intuitively as possible. Nick noted that early attempts at understanding user behavior included primitive methods like heat maps and click tracking during the Web 1.0 era. These tools attempted to decode where users focused their attention, though the insights were often scattered and difficult to interpret. This historical context matters for product managers because it highlights how recently customer research became integral to successful product development. Understanding this evolution helps explain why many organizations still struggle to implement effective research practices—they’re building capabilities that only became industry standard within the last fifteen years. The shift from subjective to objective design thinking represents more than just a methodological change. It established the foundation for modern product management research strategies that prioritize user needs over internal assumptions, setting the stage for the sophisticated research approaches that drive successful products today. The Need to Balance Speed with Strategic Thinking One of the most pressing challenges facing product teams today is managing the tension between development velocity and strategic depth. The efficiency with which teams can move from concept to execution in both design and development is accelerating. At the same time, a deliberate slowdown is necessary in research and strategy phases. While teams can rapidly prototype and build, the most successful products emerge when organizations invest time in observational studies and ethnographic research before entering the development pipeline. Fast Thinking (Execution) 26564_bb84d1-49> Slow Thinking (Strategy) 26564_1bf094-de> Design toolsComponent librariesAutomated developmentRapid prototyping 26564_40cf21-e8> Ethnographic researchObservational studiesStrategic reflectionCustomer empathy building 26564_b6a667-87> Product teams must understand which methods to choose based on the pace that allows for proper digestion and processing of insights. This isn’t about slowing down everything—it’s about strategic allocation of time resources. When development becomes more efficient, wise product leaders reinvest that saved time into better customer research and strategic thinking. De-risking Product Development Through Customer Research The concept of de-risking became central to Nick’s approach when working with clients who prioritized backend efficiency over frontend strategy. He developed this framework while consulting with an IT services firm that excelled at development execution but struggled with understanding whether they were building the right products for their clients. Nick created the DOA (Dead on Arrival) framework, which helps teams identify products likely to fail before significant development resources are invested. This approach treats customer research methods as insurance policies that protect against building products nobody wants. Ethnographic Research: Breaking Out of the Corporate Echo Chamber Corporate environments naturally create what Nick called “vicious agreement”—a phenomenon where teams become trapped in cycles of mutual affirmation that prevent genuine innovation. Ethnographic research methods serve as an antidote to this problem by introducing outside perspectives into internal discussions. When research teams bring back authentic customer voices—complete with emotional reactions, unexpected pain points, and surprising use cases—it disrupts the comfortable internal narrative that teams have constructed. Case Study: Global Ethnographic Research in Video Game Commerce Nick shared an example of how ethnographic research methods can reveal cultural insights that transform product strategy. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he worked with a client who needed to understand how different subcultures within a multinational video game identified with each other and used in-game commerce features for buying and selling items. Travel restrictions prevented traditional on-site ethnographic research, but the client needed deep cultural insights from seven different countries. Nick had to completely reimagine his research approach, coordinating with local interviewers and photographers across Brazil, Japan, France, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States. This remote ethnographic research strategy proved remarkably effective. Rather than trying to understand global customers from a single perspective, Nick’s team gathered authentic voices from each region, documenting how different subcultures expressed their identity through virtual items and digital commerce within the game environment. Cultural Insights That Shaped Product Strategy The research revealed profound cultural differences that directly impacted product development decisions. Each country’s players approached virtual identity and commerce in fundamentally different ways, reflecting deeper cultural values that traditional market research might have missed. These cultural insights directly informed product strategy in ways that would have been impossible without ethnographic research. The video game company knew which players were connected through their platform’s social features, enabling them to create targeted recommendation systems based on cultural preferences. Rapid Research Methods for Time-Pressured Teams Most product teams face the reality of competing priorities and compressed timelines, making extensive ethnographic studies seem impractical. Nick addressed this challenge by emphasizing that rapid research methods can be highly effective when designed with the same attention to user experience that teams apply to their actual products. Like products, surveys themselves also need high quality UX. When someone agrees to participate in a survey or research study, they’re essentially becoming a user of your research process. If that experience is frustrating, confusing, or poorly designed, participants will abandon the research just like users abandon poorly designed products. The mathematics of participant attention are unforgiving. Nick explained that researchers typically have five minutes of genuine participant attention, maybe ten minutes if compensation is involved. Within that narrow window, every aspect of the research experience must be carefully crafted to maintain engagement and gather meaningful insights. Designing Elegant Surveys The key to successful rapid research lies in creating elegant forms—survey instruments that feel pleasurable rather than burdensome to complete. These research tools avoid repetitive questions, maintain clear logical flow, and respect participants’ time investment. Poor Survey Design 26564_fc17b3-d5> Elegant Survey Design 26564_30780d-99> Repetitive questionsConfusing logic flowPoor user experienceHigh abandonment ratesUnreliable data quality 26564_68a929-26> Clear, focused questionsLogical conditional routingPleasurable completion experienceHigh completion ratesQuality insights gathered 26564_bec845-59> Managing the Data Volume Challenge Nick warned that increased data collection capabilities create new challenges. With more data comes the responsibility for more sophisticated analysis and interpretation. Teams must feel confident that their research questions are correct before launching large-scale data collection efforts. The ease of survey deployment can tempt teams to gather data without sufficient strategic thinking about what they actually need to learn. Nick emphasized the importance of defining clear research objectives before designing any rapid research instrument, regardless of how simple the technology makes the deployment process. Mixed Methods Approach: Combining Qualitative and Quantitative Research The most valuable research insights emerge when teams combine the emotional depth of qualitative research with the statistical validation of quantitative data. Nick shared his philosophy about creating research approaches that preserve authentic human voices while providing the numerical evidence that drives organizational decision-making. Nick described observing a colleague present research findings for a financial services company that demonstrated both the power and limitations of traditional research presentation methods. The presentation included all the expected elements: sticky notes, organized boards, pull quotes organized by themes, and detailed tables breaking down user needs by jobs-to-be-done frameworks and pain points. However, Nick noted what was missing from this otherwise comprehensive research presentation: the actual voices of the human beings who had provided these insights. The research had been processed and organized in ways that removed the emotional context, tone, and sentiment that make customer feedback truly compelling and actionable. Preserving Human Emotion in Research Nick recommended a video production approach to research presentation. Rather than simply organizing quotes into categories, he suggested creating supercuts of customer voices around specific themes. These compilations allow stakeholders to hear the actual language, tone, and emotional inflection that customers use when discussing problems or experiences. The themes that emerge from this approach carry much more emotional weight when presented through actual customer voices rather than sanitized summaries. This emotional connection often drives more meaningful organizational change than statistical data alone. When research involves written feedback, surveys, or other text-based data collection, Nick emphasized the importance of mapping those responses back to real human stories. This might require developing personas or conducting follow-up interviews, but the effort to maintain human connection in research findings significantly improves their impact. Traditional Research Presentation 26564_a27811-db> Mixed Methods with Human Voice 26564_993796-7a> Organized sticky notesCategorized themesStatistical summaries Pain point tablesAbstract insights 26564_7341f5-b1> Video compilations of voicesEmotional tone preservedHuman stories maintainedStatistical validation includedActionable insights with context 26564_690df1-ca> The Risk of Sanitizing Customer Feedback During our conversation, I raised concerns about how organizations often sanitize customer feedback as it moves through internal processes. Teams learn valuable insights from customer research, then translate authentic customer language into corporate jargon before presenting findings to leadership. Nick acknowledged this issue, particularly when research involves internal feedback that might reflect poorly on specific teams or individuals. He noted the delicate balance required when presenting customer feedback that might implicate someone’s job performance or strategic decisions. Nick suggested a democratic approach to managing this challenge. Rather than filtering or sanitizing customer feedback, he recommended providing leadership with access to complete, unfiltered research data while presenting interpreted insights as examples rather than definitive conclusions. This approach positions researchers as facilitators who demonstrate possible interpretations while allowing stakeholders to examine source material and draw their own conclusions. This transparency reduces the appearance of researcher bias while ensuring that authentic customer voices remain accessible to decision-makers. Practical Research Strategies for Resource-Constrained Teams Most product teams don’t have the luxury of dedicated researchers or extensive research budgets, but Nick shared practical strategies for gathering meaningful customer insights without significant resource investments. His approach focuses on being strategic about when, where, and how to connect with target customers. Nick introduced the concept of guerrilla research through an example from his work with a highly technical and typically inaccessible target audience. His client needed insights from infrastructure DevOps professionals—individuals who Nick described as reclusive, introverted, and well-paid professionals who were nearly impossible to reach through traditional research methods. These technical professionals typically avoided marketing outreach and weren’t easily influenced by conventional research recruitment approaches. However, Nick discovered that several times per year, these same individuals emerged from their usual isolation to attend industry conferences and networking events focused on open source technologies, AWS, and similar technical gatherings. Nick attended these conference to talk with DevOps professionals. He analyzed their social media feeds and conference communications to identify when target personas would be attending specific events. Nick would then arrange brief research conversations between conference sessions, leveraging the natural networking atmosphere that conferences create. This approach proved remarkably effective for reaching specialized personas who would be impossible to recruit through traditional methods. The conference environment created a natural context for professional conversations, and participants were often more willing to share honest feedback about products and services within the industry networking atmosphere. Traditional Recruitment Challenges 26564_776bc8-97> Guerrilla Research Solutions 26564_db3245-83> Hard-to-reach personasExpensive recruitment costsLow response ratesArtificial research environmentsLimited access to specialists 26564_6e4a7a-78> Natural networking environmentsCost-effective accessHigher engagement ratesAuthentic professional contextDirect access to specialists 26564_6740c3-c0> Capturing Authentic Feedback Nick shared an example of gathering feedback like “the one thing I hate most about your product,” delivered with the kind of directness that comes from peer-to-peer professional conversations. This level of honest, unfiltered feedback is often more valuable than carefully moderated focus group discussions or formal interview responses. Budget and Time Management For product teams concerned about research budgets, Nick pointed out that good researchers are available for project-based work that can be built into development budgets. However, he identified time allocation as often being more challenging than budget constraints. The key insight for product managers involves strategic scheduling decisions. When building project timelines, teams must decide whether to front-load time investment in design and development phases or allocate time for research and strategy upfront. Nick strongly advocated for the latter approach. Conclusion The insights Nick Cawthon shared reveal that customer research represents far more than a preliminary step in product development—it’s a strategic capability that determines whether teams build products customers actually need or waste resources on solutions nobody wants. As AI tools accelerate design and development processes at unprecedented speeds, the most successful product teams will be those that reinvest efficiency gains into deeper customer understanding rather than simply faster delivery cycles. The democratization of research tools means that sophisticated customer insights are now accessible to any product team willing to develop systematic research capabilities, regardless of budget constraints or dedicated research personnel. The path forward requires balancing technological acceleration with human understanding, treating research design with the same rigor applied to product design, and maintaining authentic customer voices throughout the product development process. Product managers who develop research skills, cultivate genuine customer empathy, and master the art of translating human needs into technical solutions will create sustainable competitive advantages that pure technological capabilities cannot replicate. In an era where development tools become quickly commoditized, deep customer understanding remains a differentiating factor that drives breakthrough products and lasting business success. Useful Links Check out Nick’s Dead-On-Arrival framework Learn more about Gauge Connect with Nick on LinkedIn Learn more about the California College of the Arts Design Strategy MBA Innovation Quote “Specialization is for insects.” – Kevin Farnham, Nick’s professor Application Questions 1. Breaking Out of Echo Chambers: How could you identify whether your product team is trapped in “vicious agreement” about customer needs, and what specific steps could you take to introduce authentic external customer voices into your next strategic planning session? 2. Time Investment Strategy: Given your current project timelines, how could you reallocate time from design and development phases to invest more heavily in upfront customer research, and what efficiency gains from AI tools could you leverage to enable this strategic shift? 3. Guerrilla Research Implementation: How could your team use industry conferences, professional events, or online communities to conduct “guerrilla research” with hard-to-reach customer personas, and what specific approaches would work best for your target audience? 4. Service Design Perspective: How could you expand your current customer research beyond end-users to include all stakeholders affected by your product (like customer support teams, implementation specialists, or business partners), and what operational challenges might you discover that traditional user research would miss? 5. Mixed Methods Integration: How could you combine qualitative customer stories with quantitative validation in your next research presentation to preserve authentic customer voices while providing the statistical evidence your stakeholders expect, and what tools or techniques would help you maintain the emotional impact of customer feedback? Bio Nick Cawthon has been shaping the UX and research space in San Francisco for decades. He’s spoken at Google’s Tech Talks, Stanford, and PARC. He is an adjunct professor at the California College of the Arts and a Data Science Program Mentor at the University of California. He now drives innovation at Gauge, which helps companies solve complex design challenges. They integrate mixed methods research approaches into product design process to create products customers want, need, and love. 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. Source

Product portfolio management skills that transform product managers into strategic leaders Watch on YouTube TLDR Innovation portfolio management is the bridge between strategy and execution that many product managers overlook, yet mastering it becomes essential for both successful idea championing and career advancement into senior leadership roles. Colin Nelson, Chief Innovation Consultant at Hype Innovation, explains how effective portfolio management requires strategic alignment through foresighting and core competency analysis, agile design with regular review cycles, and the implementation of an “innovation shelf” to store viable concepts for future development. Organizations must balance resources across incremental improvements, adjacent innovations, and disruptive projects while leveraging both internal teams and external partnerships to accelerate development and reduce risk. The key lies in creating transparency across all innovation efforts, establishing common data collection methods, and building flexibility into the portfolio to pivot when market conditions change. Key Topics Portfolio Management Fundamentals Strategic Innovation Alignment The Innovation Shelf Strategy Agile Portfolio Design Resource Optimization Three-Tier Portfolio Structure Collective Intelligence Portfolio Review Processes Introduction Have you ever pitched a brilliant product idea only to watch it disappear into the corporate abyss? When I teach product managers about the seven elements of product mastery, their eyes often glaze over when we reach portfolio management. “That’s someone else’s job,” they say, usually referring to senior leadership. But here’s the wake-up call that changes their perspective: First, you’ll never successfully champion your ideas if you don’t understand how they fit into the larger portfolio puzzle. And second—for the career-minded among you—you won’t ascend to senior leadership positions without understanding how portfolios are constructed and managed. Those are two good reasons to learn more about portfolio management, which is why Colin Nelson is joining us. Colin is the Chief Innovation Consultant at HYPE Innovation, a leading provider of innovation management software and consulting services. He is an expert in the field of Collective Intelligence, supporting global organizations and communities on how to achieve efficient, effective, and sustainable innovation and business change using online tools and processes. Colin is a respected thought leader on several innovation subjects, including Innovation Management, Enterprise Collaboration, and Innovation Portfolio Management, publishing numerous articles on these topics. So whether you’re trying to get your product ideas noticed or plotting your path to senior leadership, today’s conversation will equip you with the portfolio management knowledge you need to succeed. The Four Pillars of Innovation Performance In Colin’s work helping companies improve their innovation performance, he noticed four main themes that create the foundation for effective innovation portfolio management and provide a roadmap for systematic improvement. Absorbing External Signals Employee Involvement in Innovation Value Chain Innovation Effective Portfolio Management Today, we’ll focus on portfolio management. Why Product Managers Must Master Portfolio Management Colin described portfolio management as the journey that determines whether innovations move from ideas to market reality. Without mastering these skills, product managers remain stuck at the tactical level, unable to influence strategic decisions or demonstrate the business acumen that senior roles require. Understanding innovation portfolio management transforms how product managers approach their work. Instead of focusing solely on individual projects, they begin thinking about how their initiatives contribute to the organization’s overall innovation strategy. This shift in perspective not only increases the likelihood of project approval but also positions product managers as strategic contributors who can see the bigger picture and make decisions that benefit the entire organization. Objectives of Portfolio Management The primary objective of innovation portfolio management is protecting the organization’s future relevance in world of regular disruption. Innovation represents tomorrow’s sales, making portfolio decisions critical for long-term survival and growth. Organizations that fail to manage their innovation portfolios effectively often find themselves unprepared for market disruptions or changing customer needs. Portfolio management also creates efficiency in the development process by establishing clear frameworks for resource allocation and project prioritization. This efficiency becomes especially important when organizations face capacity constraints and must choose between multiple promising opportunities. The portfolio management function helps leaders make informed decisions about where to invest limited resources for maximum strategic impact. Good portfolio management provides leadership with clear visibility into all innovation activities, progress metrics, and resource utilization. This transparency supports strategic planning and helps identify opportunities for synergy or collaboration between different innovation initiatives. Perhaps most importantly, effective portfolio management enables organizational agility in response to constant market change. The pace of business disruption continues accelerating, making it essential for organizations to pivot quickly when circumstances shift. Portfolio management systems that provide real-time visibility and flexible resource allocation capabilities allow organizations to adapt their innovation strategies as new opportunities and threats emerge. The Strategy-Innovation Alignment Problem Colin identified a challenge that undermines many innovation efforts: Most backend development problems actually start as frontend alignment issues. When innovation projects fail to gain traction or deliver expected results, the root cause often traces back to poor strategic alignment rather than execution problems. Organizations frequently generate ideas and concepts that contradict existing strategic directions or compete with other initiatives for the same resources. Without strong portfolio management oversight, these alignment issues remain hidden until projects reach advanced stages, wasting time and resources. Successful innovation portfolio management addresses alignment problems by establishing clear strategic frameworks before development work begins. These frameworks help innovation teams understand which opportunities align with organizational priorities and which ones should be deferred or eliminated. Building Strategy Through Foresighting and Understanding Core Competencies Strategic innovation requires organizations to master two complementary capabilities that are essential for effective portfolio development. The most successful organizations combine external market intelligence with deep internal self-awareness to create robust innovation strategies that guide portfolio decisions. The Dual Approach to Strategic Direction Leading organizations excel at balancing present-moment awareness with future projection capabilities. They invest in understanding emerging trends and technologies while simultaneously analyzing how these external forces might create opportunities for their specific organizational context. This dual approach involves systematic foresighting activities that help organizations anticipate market changes, regulatory shifts, and technological breakthroughs before they become mainstream. However, external trend analysis alone provides insufficient guidance for innovation portfolio decisions. Organizations must marry this external intelligence with a clear understanding of their internal capabilities and strategic assets. The iterative process requires organizations to continually ask themselves what macro trends might impact their business environment and where these changes could generate new opportunities. This external scanning must connect directly to internal capability assessment to identify realistic pathways for innovation development. Understanding Core Competencies Organizations must distinguish between what they sell versus what they excel at doing. Core competencies often extend far beyond current product offerings. Colin illustrated this concept using McDonald’s as an example. While most people believe they could create better burgers than McDonald’s, the company remains the world’s most successful burger chain. This apparent contradiction makes sense when you examine McDonald’s true competencies: real estate management, marketing excellence, logistics optimization, and operational consistency. McDonald’s succeeds not because of superior burger quality, but because they leverage competencies beyond food preparation. Their innovation portfolio opportunities should focus on applications of these core strengths rather than just menu improvements. This insight applies broadly to organizations across all industries. The core competency analysis process requires organizations to honestly assess their unique capabilities, institutional knowledge, and strategic assets. These competencies might include manufacturing excellence, customer relationship management, regulatory expertise, brand recognition, distribution networks, or technological capabilities that competitors cannot easily replicate. Case Study: The Wheel Manufacturer’s Innovation Journey Colin shared an example of how strategic innovation develops through the intersection of external insights and core competency understanding. He worked with an automotive wheel manufacturer that felt trapped in a commodity business with limited innovation opportunities. The company decided to analyze external trends affecting their industry and customer experience. They discovered that consumers increasingly preferred larger wheels for aesthetic reasons, but this preference created unintended consequences. Larger wheels required thinner tire sidewalls, and when combined with deteriorating road conditions, this led to increased tire blowouts and poor customer experiences. Rather than accepting these market constraints, the wheel manufacturer asked themselves what core competencies they could apply to solve this emerging problem. They recognized their manufacturing excellence and metallurgy expertise, but acknowledged they lacked knowledge about flexible rim technology that could address the blowout issue. This honest capability assessment led them to pursue a strategic partnership with Michelin, a company with leading expertise in flexible wheel technology. Together, they developed innovative wheels with flexible rims that work harmoniously with tire sidewalls to reduce blowout risks while maintaining the aesthetic appeal of larger wheels. The success of this innovation came from combining external market intelligence about customer experience problems with a realistic assessment of internal capabilities and strategic partnership opportunities. The resulting product aligned perfectly with their brand identity and manufacturing strengths while addressing a genuine market need that competitors had overlooked. This example demonstrates how effective innovation strategy emerges from systematic analysis of external trends, honest evaluation of internal capabilities, and creative thinking about how to bridge capability gaps through partnerships or acquisitions. Organizations that master this strategic foundation create innovation portfolios that deliver sustainable competitive advantages rather than just incremental improvements. Building Agility into Portfolio Management Modern innovation portfolio management must incorporate flexibility as a core design principle rather than an optional feature. Static portfolios create significant risks in today’s rapidly changing business environment, where innovation timelines often extend far beyond the predictability of market conditions. Portfolio Flexibility Innovation projects face a timing challenge that makes agility essential for success. Aerospace companies might spend decades bringing new aircraft to market; pharmaceutical organizations often require 13 to 15 years for successful drug development; and even consumer goods companies need multiple years for complex product innovations. During these extended development periods, market conditions continue evolving at accelerating rates. Organizations that maintain rigid portfolio structures risk investing years of effort in innovations that no longer match market realities when they finally reach completion. Colin highlighted professional services as an example of industries experiencing rapid disruption that demands portfolio agility. Law firms that never needed innovation capabilities for survival now must rapidly adapt to artificial intelligence technologies that can generate legal contracts faster than human attorneys. This disruption creates urgent needs for business model innovation and portfolio restructuring to remain competitive. The solution is designing portfolio management systems that assume change rather than stability. These systems incorporate regular review cycles, flexible resource allocation mechanisms, and decision-making frameworks that support rapid pivoting when circumstances require strategic adjustments. Designing Agility by Design Effective portfolio agility requires establishing common data standards across all innovation projects regardless of their scope, timeline, or organizational location. This standardization enables holistic portfolio visibility and supports informed decision-making about resource reallocation. Data Category 26565_5399bf-b0> Information Required 26565_cf1e95-d9> Portfolio Impact 26565_2a1cca-7c> Financial Metrics 26565_d3061d-62> Investment levels, expected returns, timeline to revenue 26565_348279-53> Enables resource reallocation decisions 26565_faa438-b4> Timeline Progress 26565_44ddd9-95> Current milestones, remaining phases, critical path dependencies 26565_0cc5c9-7f> Supports prioritization and capacity planning 26565_f59095-3f> Confidence Levels 26565_7b4139-07> Technical feasibility, market readiness, competitive positioning 26565_3290dc-af> Guides risk management and pivot decisions 26565_2431ce-f9> The Globally Visible Innovation Pipeline Colin described working with an energy company in Texas that implemented a globally visible innovation pipeline. This system created transparency across all innovation activities, from incremental improvements to strategic disruptions, giving leadership and strategists comprehensive portfolio visibility. The pipeline served multiple critical functions beyond simple project tracking. It helped identify potential overlaps between different teams working on similar challenges, revealed opportunities for synergy and collaboration, and highlighted gaps where strategic priorities lacked adequate innovation support. Most importantly, it provided the information foundation needed for agile decision-making. The globally visible pipeline concept works because it treats all innovation activities as part of a connected system rather than isolated projects. Teams could see how their work related to other initiatives, identify opportunities for collaboration, and understand how their projects contributed to overall strategic objectives. This visibility created natural alignment and reduced the likelihood of conflicting or competing efforts. Leadership gained the ability to make informed decisions about resource allocation, project prioritization, and strategic direction changes. When market conditions shifted or new opportunities emerged, they could quickly assess portfolio implications and make necessary adjustments without lengthy analysis periods that might delay critical pivots. The pipeline approach also improved communication between different organizational levels and functions. Innovation teams understood how their work connected to business strategy, while executives gained insight into operational realities and resource constraints that affected strategic implementation. The Innovation Shelf Strategy One of the most valuable yet underutilized concepts in innovation portfolio management involves creating systematic storage for viable ideas that cannot be pursued immediately. Colin introduced the innovation shelf as a strategic repository that transforms how organizations handle promising concepts that face timing, resource, or market readiness challenges. Concept and Implementation The innovation shelf is a home for concepts that demonstrate genuine potential but cannot receive immediate development resources. Colin explained that these ideas often emerge from solid market insights or technical breakthroughs that face obstacles beyond their inherent quality or feasibility. Several common scenarios lead to shelf placement rather than project termination. Technology readiness issues occur when organizations identify valuable applications for capabilities that remain too expensive, complex, or immature for current implementation. Market timing problems arise when customer segments show insufficient readiness for innovative solutions, even though future adoption seems likely. Capacity constraints represent another frequent reason for shelf placement. Organizations often generate more promising concepts than their available resources can support simultaneously. Rather than abandoning these excess opportunities, the innovation shelf preserves institutional knowledge and maintains option value for future consideration. Colin emphasized that shelf placement should not carry negative connotations for innovation teams. Instead, organizations must position shelving decisions as smart business choices that preserve valuable work while focusing current resources on higher-priority initiatives. This cultural shift prevents teams from pursuing low-probability projects simply to avoid perceived failure. Innovation shelf implementation requires systematic documentation that captures key insights, development progress, and future trigger conditions that might justify project revival. Organizations need clear criteria for shelf placement decisions and regular review processes that evaluate whether shelved concepts deserve renewed attention based on changing circumstances. Resource Optimization and Allocation Every organization faces the challenge of unlimited innovation opportunities competing for limited resources. Resource optimization is one of the most critical aspects of portfolio management, requiring sophisticated approaches to maximize innovation impact while acknowledging capacity constraints. Prioritization Effective resource optimization requires dynamic prioritization systems that can respond to changing market conditions, competitive pressures, and organizational capabilities. These systems must balance current resource commitments with future opportunity evaluation to avoid both underinvestment in promising areas and overcommitment to declining prospects. Colin noted that resource allocation decisions become particularly challenging when innovations require long development timelines. Organizations must make resource commitments based on current market understanding while accepting that circumstances may change significantly before projects reach completion. This uncertainty demands portfolio approaches that build in flexibility and regular reassessment opportunities. Internal vs. External Resource Strategies Modern innovation portfolio management increasingly relies on external partnerships and collaborations to extend organizational capabilities beyond internal resource limitations. Colin explained how organizations can leverage supply chain partners, academic institutions, and other external entities to accelerate innovation while reducing internal capacity requirements. External collaboration strategies offer several advantages for resource-constrained organizations. Partners often bring specialized expertise that would be expensive and time-consuming to develop internally. They may also provide access to research facilities, testing capabilities, or market knowledge that supplement organizational resources effectively. Supply chain partnerships create particularly attractive resource optimization opportunities because supplier motivations align naturally with customer innovation goals. Suppliers have clear incentives to collaborate on innovations that could increase their sales volumes or create new market opportunities for their products and services. These external resource strategies also provide risk mitigation benefits by spreading development costs and technical risks across multiple organizations. When innovations fail to meet expectations, losses are shared rather than absorbed entirely by the lead organization. This risk sharing enables organizations to pursue more ambitious innovation portfolios than their internal resources alone could support. However, external collaboration requires careful management to maintain strategic control and intellectual property protection. Organizations must develop clear partnership frameworks that define roles, responsibilities, and benefit sharing while preserving their ability to capture value from successful innovations. Independent Forecasting Systems Colin identified a flaw in many innovation portfolio management approaches: allowing project teams to evaluate the commercial potential of their own innovations. This practice introduces bias that distorts resource allocation decisions and undermines portfolio optimization efforts. The problem occurs because innovation teams naturally develop emotional attachments to their projects and may lack the market expertise needed for accurate commercial assessment. Engineers might excel at technical development but lack the business knowledge required to distinguish between hundred-million-dollar and billion-dollar opportunities. Colin recommended separating concept development activities from commercial forecasting responsibilities. Independent teams should evaluate market potential across entire innovation portfolios, providing objective assessments that enable better resource allocation decisions. These independent evaluators can develop specialized expertise in market analysis and opportunity assessment. Evaluation Approach 26565_26b81e-6f> Advantages 26565_619cf8-34> Limitations 26565_855dca-fb> Team Self-Assessment 26565_c7ad80-ec> Deep technical knowledge, immediate availability 26565_c0b1dd-fe> Emotional bias, limited market expertise 26565_ba4c1c-e9> Independent Forecasting 26565_136f0b-20> Objective analysis, specialized market knowledge 26565_86b5dd-7c> Distance from technical details, additional resource requirements 26565_226dbd-3a> Hybrid Model 26565_fd4878-b3> Combines technical insight with market objectivity 26565_ed4972-27> Requires coordination, potential for conflicting assessments 26565_213163-e3> Leveraging Collective Intelligence Innovation challenges often require knowledge and expertise that extends far beyond individual teams or even entire organizations. Colin emphasized how collective intelligence approaches can dramatically accelerate innovation timelines while reducing resource requirements and failure rates across innovation portfolios. Breaking Down Innovation Silos Traditional innovation approaches often trap teams in isolation when they encounter technical obstacles or market challenges. Colin observed that most innovation teams, when facing roadblocks, typically consult only their immediate colleagues or nearby team members for solutions. This limited consultation approach wastes valuable time and often fails to identify optimal solutions that exist within the broader organizational network. The silo problem becomes particularly acute in large organizations where expertise often resides in unexpected departments or business units. Teams struggling with specific technical challenges may not realize that other parts of their organization possess relevant knowledge or have solved similar problems in different contexts. Entire organizations should participate in supporting innovation initiatives rather than leaving individual teams to solve complex problems independently. The collective intelligence of internal networks, combined with external partnerships and academic collaborations, often provides breakthrough solutions that isolated teams cannot achieve alone. Colin worked with a client in the chemicals industry that had struggled with a specific chemistry challenge for approximately two years without finding acceptable solutions. The internal team had exhausted their technical approaches and continued investing significant time and resources attempting to solve the problem through incremental experimentation. Despite their expertise and dedication, they remained unable to achieve the breakthrough needed for their innovation project to proceed successfully. Colin suggested the organization reach out to their existing academic partners. An academic expert identified the solution within twenty minutes of reviewing the problem description. The solution involved existing research and established techniques that the internal team had not encountered in their problem-solving efforts. No financial compensation was required – the academic expert simply shared a research paper that contained the necessary methodology. Portfolio Structure and Management Effective innovation portfolio management requires thoughtful organization that reflects the different characteristics, risks, and management approaches needed for various types of innovation projects. Colin outlined a systematic framework for structuring portfolios that enables organizations to balance incremental improvements with strategic breakthroughs. The Three-Tier Portfolio Framework Colin recommended organizing innovation portfolios into three distinct categories that each require different management approaches, resource allocation strategies, and success metrics. This structure helps organizations maintain appropriate balance while applying suitable oversight to each innovation type. Incremental Innovation represents the foundation tier that focuses on improvements to existing products and services for current customer segments. These projects typically offer high predictability with clear market validation and relatively short development timelines. The technical and market risks remain low because organizations build upon established capabilities and proven customer needs. Incremental innovations provide steady revenue growth and operational efficiency improvements that support ongoing business performance. These projects often deliver measurable returns within months rather than years, making them attractive for organizations seeking near-term innovation impact. However, incremental innovation alone cannot protect organizations from market disruption or competitive displacement. Adjacent Innovation occupies the middle tier and involves developing new capabilities for new customer segments or applying existing capabilities to different market applications. These projects carry moderate risk and uncertainty while offering greater potential impact than incremental improvements. Adjacent innovations might require acquiring new technical skills or understanding different customer needs. This category includes efforts to expand into related markets, develop complementary products, or serve adjacent customer segments with modified offerings. The development timelines typically extend longer than incremental projects but remain shorter than radical innovation initiatives. Success rates fall between incremental and radical innovation levels. Radical or Disruptive Innovation forms the highest tier and pursues revolutionary changes that could transform entire industries or create completely new market categories. These projects involve significant uncertainty about technical feasibility, market acceptance, and competitive response. Development timelines often span multiple years with substantial resource requirements. Radical innovations offer the highest potential rewards but also carry the greatest risks of failure. Organizations cannot predict outcomes with confidence, but successful radical innovations can create sustainable competitive advantages and entirely new revenue streams. These projects require patient capital and tolerance for uncertainty. Separating Incremental from Strategic Innovation Colin emphasized the importance of managing incremental innovation separately from more strategic innovation efforts due to their fundamentally different characteristics and requirements. This separation enables organizations to apply appropriate management approaches rather than forcing all innovation types into uniform processes. Incremental innovation benefits from efficiency-focused management that emphasizes speed, cost control, and predictable delivery. These projects can use traditional project management approaches with clear milestones, defined resource requirements, and measurable progress indicators. Success metrics focus on implementation effectiveness and incremental performance improvements. Strategic innovation requires exploratory management approaches that accommodate uncertainty, encourage experimentation, and support learning through failure. These projects need flexible resource allocation, adaptive timelines, and success metrics that value knowledge generation alongside commercial outcomes. The management approach must balance persistence with smart stopping decisions. The separation also helps organizations communicate different expectations to innovation teams and stakeholders. Incremental projects should deliver predictable results within specified timeframes, while strategic projects should generate valuable learning and market insights even when original objectives prove unattainable. Moving Beyond the Golden Ratio Colin challenged the traditional “golden ratio” approach to portfolio allocation that historically recommended specific percentage distributions across innovation categories. Colin argued that modern portfolio allocation decisions must consider industry-specific circumstances, competitive pressures, and disruption threats rather than applying universal percentage formulas. Industries facing rapid disruption require greater allocation to strategic and radical innovation regardless of traditional practices. Organizations in declining markets cannot survive by focusing primarily on incremental improvements to obsolete products or services. The pace of technological change and market disruption demands more dynamic allocation approaches. Conclusion Innovation portfolio management is the missing link that transforms good product managers into strategic leaders who can navigate complex organizational challenges while delivering sustainable competitive advantages. Colin’s framework demonstrates that mastering portfolio thinking involves far more than project coordination—it requires developing strategic foresight, building systematic resource optimization capabilities, and creating agile decision-making systems that respond effectively to accelerating market change. Product managers who embrace these portfolio management principles position themselves as invaluable strategic assets while building the foundational skills that senior leadership roles demand. The path from individual contributor to executive leadership runs directly through portfolio management expertise that balances tactical execution with strategic vision. Organizations need product managers who can champion individual innovations while optimizing entire portfolios, leverage collective intelligence while maintaining strategic focus, and build tomorrow’s capabilities while delivering today’s results. The frameworks, tools, and implementation strategies explored throughout this discussion provide practical roadmaps for developing these capabilities while demonstrating the strategic thinking that accelerates career advancement and organizational success in innovation-driven markets. Useful Links Check out HYPE Innovation  Connect with Colin on LinkedIn  Take a Free Innovation Management Assessment Listen to The Innovation Room Podcast Innovation Quote “Where’s your innovation shelf? Do you have a home for the things you’d like to do when the opportunity arises?” – Colin Nelson Application Questions 1. How could you conduct a systematic audit of your current innovation projects to identify alignment gaps with organizational strategy? 2. How could your team establish an innovation shelf system that captures valuable concepts you cannot pursue immediately? 3. How could you systematically leverage both internal expertise and external partnerships to accelerate innovation problem-solving within your organization? 4. How could you apply the three-tier portfolio framework (incremental, adjacent, radical) to evaluate your current resource allocation patterns? What percentage of your innovation capacity currently focuses on each category, and how might you adjust this allocation based on your industry’s disruption threats and competitive dynamics? 5. How could you create dashboard visibility that enables leadership to make informed portfolio decisions while demonstrating your strategic understanding of innovation management? What common data standards and performance metrics would best support both tactical project management and strategic portfolio optimization within your organizational context? Bio Colin Nelson is the Chief Innovation Consultant at HYPE Innovation, the global leader in online innovation management solutions. He’s a thought leader on innovation management, collective intelligence, online innovation, and open innovation, helping to connect people, ideas, and data. He helps both companies and communities to engage diverse thinking in support of innovation programs, harnessing both the workforce and an organizations entire eco-system. Colin has supported MBA teaching programs at Exeter and Durham Business Schools. His clients have included: Airbus, Fujitsu, Harley-Davidson, NASA, the NBA, the United Nations, and Unilever.  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. Source

Join Steve Johnson, a seasoned product coach and author, as he dives into the evolving world of product management. He emphasizes how AI is revolutionizing the field by handling tactical tasks, freeing product managers to focus on strategy. Steve discusses the importance of understanding customer problems over rushing to solutions and how organizational silos can stifle innovation. He also highlights the vital role of Product Ops in enhancing collaboration and suggests that the key to success lies in embracing a problem-centered approach.

In this engaging conversation with Catherine Connelly, a renowned tech entrepreneur and author, she shares her journey from co-founding MyYearbook to shaping The Meet Group. Catherine discusses the crucial elements for fostering a culture of innovation, emphasizing psychological safety and the importance of learning from failures. She highlights the need for risk-free experimentation to encourage creativity and how integrating customer feedback can spark breakthrough ideas. With actionable strategies, Catherine inspires product leaders to embrace a mindset of continuous iteration.

How product leaders can stay as focused as a bee Watch on YouTube TLDR In today’s distraction-filled world, product managers and leaders struggle to maintain focus. In my recent podcast interview with Jones Loflin, author of Focused as a Bee, we explored how the honeybee’s remarkable focus and intentionality can teach us valuable productivity lessons. Jones shared six “permissions” that form a framework for improving focus, along with practical strategies for managing distractions and creating environments conducive to deep work. This article unpacks these concepts specifically for product leaders looking to enhance their productivity and effectiveness. Key Topics Lessons from honeybees for product managers The difference between being “busy” versus being “focused” The six permissions to focus: Prioritize, Plan, Be Unavailable, Recharge, Change, and Be Consistent Practical strategies for managing both internal and external distractions Creating triggers and environments that support focused work Applying focus techniques with limited schedule control Using focus to drive product innovation and change management Introduction Have you ever reached the end of your workday and wondered, “What did I even accomplish today?” With endless emails, notifications, and distractions pulling us in every direction, staying focused feels harder than ever. But what if we could take a lesson from one of nature’s most efficient workers—the honeybee—to regain control of our attention and productivity?   That’s exactly what today’s guest, Jones Loflin, will share with us—practical tips and mindset hacks for improving our focus.   Jones is a successful speaker and the author of several books including his latest, Focused As A Bee, as well as Always Growing, Juggling Elephants, and Getting To It. He also worked as a senior trainer on the best-selling book, Who Moved My Cheese? Jones has 30 years of experience, growing confident leadership, implementing change and improving productivity with simple, no-fluff solutions. Focused as a Bee The statistics are sobering: 79% of professionals find it impossible to focus for more than an hour, with 59% unable to maintain focus for even 30 minutes. Our thoughts typically shift to something else after just three minutes. Most of us have heard the phrase “busy as a bee,” but Jones challenged this common expression. Being busy implies activity but not necessarily accomplishment. Through his experience as a beekeeper, Jones observed that bees are actually “focused as a bee” — intentionally directing their time and energy toward what’s most important at every moment. This distinction is critical for product leaders. In our world of constant demands and shifting priorities, we can easily fall into the trap of being perpetually busy without achieving meaningful outcomes. The honeybee, however, demonstrates an unwavering commitment to what matters most for the colony’s survival and success. Jones’s journey into beekeeping began when he and his daughter received a hive as a gift. Their first colony died after a year because they weren’t good beekeepers yet. This experience taught them an important lesson: Bees have a mind of their own and remain laser-focused on what they want to accomplish. While humans can assist them, we can’t change their fundamental nature. For product leaders, this serves as a reminder that success requires more than just activity. It demands intentional focus on outcomes that drive value for customers and the organization. Just as a bee’s focus is often a matter of colony life and death, our ability to focus on what truly matters can determine the success or failure of our products and teams. The book Focused as a Bee takes the form of a business parable about two individuals: one struggling with focus and another who has learned focus principles through beekeeping. Through their story, Jones introduces six key permissions that can help anyone, especially busy product leaders, improve their focus and productivity. Permission to Focus The first step of Jones’s framework is giving yourself permission to focus. This might sound obvious, but Jones’s pointed out that most of us naturally give ourselves permission to be distracted without realizing it. We respond to every notification, allow frequent interruptions, and rarely create conditions that support deep concentration. For product leaders, intentional focus requires acknowledging that it doesn’t come naturally in our distraction-filled environments. It demands conscious effort and deliberate actions. Without this fundamental permission, we end up with those days where we ask ourselves, “Where did the time go?” or “What did I actually accomplish?” Under the overarching permission to focus, there are six other permissions that we can must give ourselves in order to stay focused. 1. Permission to Prioritize The first permission involves determining what’s most important based on your desired outcomes. Jones shared an interesting historical perspective: the word “priority” was originally singular, not plural. It was only during the industrial revolution that we began using the term “priorities,” suggesting we could focus on multiple important things simultaneously. For product managers, prioritization is familiar territory. However, Jones emphasized that effective prioritization requires asking: What outcomes do we want to achieve? What will get us closer to our goals? What deserves our time and attention right now? This permission is as much about saying “no” as it is about saying “yes.” By clearly identifying what deserves your focus, you create boundaries around your time and energy. This is especially relevant in product management, where competing demands from stakeholders, customers, and technical teams can easily fragment your attention. 2. Permission to Plan The second permission involves investing time to plan your day, week, or month. Jones compared this to how honeybees prepare before swarming to a new location. Days before leaving, worker bees begin gorging on honey, ensuring they’re ready to depart without delay. For product leaders, planning goes beyond creating simple to-do lists. Jones cautioned against stopping at list-making, which he called “scary” when done in isolation. Effective planning includes: Planning Element 26378_aed0a2-ec> Application for Product Leaders 26378_c7d850-7f> Time estimation 26378_78e0e9-e4> Calculate how long tasks will realistically take 26378_660348-3f> Optimal timing 26378_951892-fe> Schedule high-focus work during your peak mental energy hours 26378_1818aa-3b> Time blocking 26378_9e3552-26> Reserve dedicated chunks of time for specific types of work 26378_f313e0-e9> Location planning 26378_a5fa31-76> Identify the optimal environment for different types of work 26378_62f248-ea> Even if your day is only 70% planned and you complete just half of those planned activities, that’s still better than having no plan and simply reacting to whatever seems urgent in the moment. Jones acknowledged that most product professionals have limited control over their schedules, but planning can still help you optimize your time. If you only have control over 10% of your day, use that 10% more intentionally. 3. Permission to Be Unavailable The third permission—being unavailable—may be the most challenging for product managers who pride themselves on their accessibility. Jones explained that we need to be unavailable to three key sources of distraction: First, we must be unavailable to our inner thoughts. Product leaders often juggle numerous responsibilities, and our minds frequently interrupt our focus with unrelated tasks and concerns. Jones described how undone tasks roll around in our heads, making it difficult to concentrate. Having a solid plan (from permission two) helps minimize these mental interruptions. Jones also discussed the “inner critic”—that internal voice questioning our abilities or decisions. Rather than fighting this voice, he suggested making friends with it. He named his inner critic “Frank,” after a lovable but crusty farmer who would question his home improvement projects. By acknowledging this voice with humor and understanding it’s trying to protect us, we can move past its interruptions more easily. Second, we need to be unavailable to external distractions. For product leaders, these come in many forms: email notifications, Slack messages, open office environments, or even unfinished projects visible from our workspace. Jones suggested these practical strategies: Move to a different environment when deep focus is required Use headphones to block out noise Disable notifications during focus periods Clear visual distractions from your workspace Third, and perhaps most relevant for product leaders, is being unavailable to the expectations of others. How often do we struggle to focus because we’re uncertain what stakeholders really want? Clarifying expectations upfront—understanding precisely what success looks like—creates mental space for focused execution. For product managers, this might mean asking more detailed questions during requirement gathering or having explicit discussions about acceptance criteria before starting work. 4. Permission to Recharge The fourth permission recognizes that focus requires energy—mental, physical, and emotional. Jones shared that in a healthy hive, bees take about 40 naps per day. Even more surprising, foraging bees—those with the most demanding work—take up to 50 naps daily. These aren’t long breaks, but brief moments to recharge before the next focused effort. For product leaders, this translates to strategic pauses throughout the day. Jones cautioned against the common practice of scheduling back-to-back meetings without breaks. By the third consecutive meeting, our focus and effectiveness significantly diminish. Instead, he recommended: Taking short breaks between major tasks or meetings Using transitions to capture thoughts from the previous activity Consciously “resetting” before moving to the next priority Recognizing when pushing through fatigue becomes counterproductive For product managers specifically, these strategic recharge moments can be particularly valuable when switching between different modes of work—moving from a customer interview to a technical discussion, or from data analysis to creative brainstorming. 5. Permission to Change The fifth permission involves being willing to change your approach when current methods aren’t working. Jones described how bees immediately adapt their behavior when their environment changes, such as when a hive is split. They don’t waste time continuing with ineffective behaviors. For product leaders, this means regularly assessing: What’s not working in your current focus approach? What processes or habits need adjustment? Which environments or times of day are proving unproductive? How might you reorganize your schedule to align with your energy patterns? Jones shared a personal example of adjusting his schedule to take advantage of beautiful afternoon weather for outdoor tasks, which required changing his morning routine. This willingness to adapt, rather than rigidly sticking to established patterns, enables more effective focus and greater productivity. 6. Permission to Be Consistent The final permission emphasizes the power of consistency. Jones observed that honeybees exhibit remarkable consistency in their behaviors—emerging from the hive when temperatures reach 55-60 degrees and maintaining consistent roles and activities within the colony. This consistency, over time, yields the results they need for survival and success. For product leaders, consistency means establishing reliable routines and triggers that signal to your brain it’s time to focus. Jones shared a personal example of using scent as a focus trigger. He keeps a specific candle in his office and simply removes the lid (without lighting it) when it’s time for deep work. Through conditioning, that scent now signals to his brain that it’s time to concentrate. Product managers can create their own focus triggers: A specific location designated for certain types of work Background music or sounds that signal focus time Physical objects that represent the transition to focused work Consistent routines before important thinking sessions Environmental cues that train your brain to enter flow state more quickly Practical Strategies for Managing Interruptions Beyond the six permissions, Jones offered tactical advice for handling the interruptions that inevitably punctuate a product manager’s day. One simple but effective technique is verbally stating your intention before starting a task. Simply saying aloud, “I’m going to LinkedIn to look up this specific person’s profile” helps your brain stay on track and resist tangential distractions. Jones suggested celebrating when you complete your intended action without getting sidetracked, reinforcing the positive behavior. Create Friction for Distractions Drawing from James Clear’s Atomic Habits, Jones recommended making the right things easier and creating friction for distractions. This might include: Moving your phone to another room during focus sessions Closing unnecessary browser tabs Using website blockers during designated focus time Setting up your workspace to minimize visual distractions Creating physical distance from potential interruptions Interruption Filters Particularly useful for product leaders working in busy environments is Jones’s concept of “interruption filters.” Before beginning focused work, explicitly decide which conditions justify an interruption. Write these down rather than keeping them in your head: What types of messages warrant immediate attention? Which team members can interrupt during focus time? What level of urgency justifies breaking your concentration? By defining these boundaries in advance, you train your brain to filter out less important interruptions and maintain focus on high-value work. Conclusion In today’s hyper-distracted world, the ability to focus has become a rare and valuable skill for product leaders. Through the wisdom of honeybees and Jones Loflin’s six permissions framework, we can develop practices that help us direct our attention to what truly matters. By giving ourselves permission to focus, prioritize, plan, be unavailable, recharge, and be consistent, we create the conditions for meaningful productivity rather than mere busyness. As product leaders, our effectiveness depends on our ability to balance competing demands while maintaining focus on strategic priorities. The honeybee—with its unwavering commitment to what matters most for the colony—offers an inspiring model. By applying these focus principles in our daily work, we can not only enhance our personal productivity but also lead our teams more effectively, drive innovation more consistently, and create products that truly matter to our customers. Useful Links Check out Focused As A Bee Connect with Jones on LinkedIn Visit Jones’s website Innovation Quote “Go as far as you can see; when you get there, you can see farther.” – Zig Ziglar Application Questions How could you apply the “permission to prioritize” concept to your current product roadmap? What items might you need to remove or defer to maintain better focus on your highest-value initiatives? Think about your personal work environment. What specific distractions most frequently interrupt your focus, and how could you apply the “permission to be unavailable” to create better boundaries around these interruptions? How could your team implement the concept of strategic “recharging” during your sprint or development cycles? What might dedicated focus and recharge periods look like within your existing process? Consider your most recent product initiative that faced challenges. How could applying the “believable first step” approach have changed the outcome? What would that first step have looked like? How could you create consistent focus triggers or environments for different types of product management work (user research, story writing, stakeholder management)? What environmental cues might help you and your team transition more effectively between these different modes? Bio Jones Loflin is a keynote speaker, coach, and author who helps individuals and organizations struggling with too much to do. With three decades of experience, he offers simple yet powerful strategies for focus, time management, and change. His books include Juggling Elephants and Always Growing. His latest release, Focused As a Bee, offers fresh insights on how to maintain focus in a world where we are constantly being distracted.  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. Source

How LEGO built a passionate community that drives product growth Watch on YouTube TLDR Community-driven product development transformed LEGO from near-bankruptcy to industry leadership by engaging adult fans and positioning LEGO as a creative medium. This approach creates authentic relationships with customers who become collaborators, advocates, and co-creators for your products, ultimately driving innovation and business results. Key Topics Relational not transactional: Build genuine relationships where “everybody goes home happy” rather than viewing community as free marketing or support Four-part framework to build a community: Find the right people, identify the right timing, define clear outcomes, and design engaging activities The “Octopus Theory”: Community engagement delivers multiple simultaneous benefits including better product decisions, advocacy, team motivation, and competitive differentiation Ecosystem thinking: Communities influence broader audiences beyond direct participants Executive champions: Senior-level support is crucial for sustainable community initiatives Power of direct interaction: Engineers and product teams respond to feedback when hearing directly from customers Shared purpose: Rally around something bigger than either individual benefits or company goals Introduction Today we are talking about building passionate communities that drive product growth. How can you create authentic, engaged communities that transform your product’s trajectory? We’re talking about turning fans into collaborators, advocates, and even co-creators. As a product manager, you need to know how to build something customers don’t just use—but love. This discussion will explore the steps to tap into the power of community, learning from successful examples at LEGO and Apple.  Our guide to make all this happen is Jake McKee—the original LEGO Community Guy. He didn’t just grow a community—he helped change the culture of one of the world’s most iconic brands, reviving a rapidly declining company. Today, he advises organizations on how to build loyal communities that fuel innovation and drive business results.  This discussion will help you avoid disaster and instead deliver sustained growth. The LEGO Turnaround Story: A Community-Driven Renaissance When Jake McKee joined LEGO in the early 2000s, the iconic brand was heading toward a financial cliff. By 2003, the company was nearing bankruptcy – a fact that many people today don’t fully appreciate. The problem stemmed from a fundamental misunderstanding of what made LEGO special. In an attempt to stay relevant in a world where children had less free time for play, LEGO had simplified their products – replacing multiple bricks with larger, single-piece components that reduced building time. As Jake explained, this strategy backfired spectacularly. The simplified products lost the core appeal of LEGO– the ability to build and rebuild with flexible components. The result was “the world’s worst toy” – not good as a traditional toy and not good as a LEGO product. Jake joined LEGO Direct, a division tasked with centralizing all direct-to-consumer efforts, including: Catalog sales Early online presence Exclusive kits development Adult fan engagement What’s particularly interesting is that Jake took on a dual role – performing his official job as a senior web producer while simultaneously building relationships with adult LEGO fans, a group the company had completely ignored for decades. Initially, this community work gained little traction within LEGO. But when the financial crisis hit and marketing budgets were slashed, Jake’s “free marketing” approach through community engagement suddenly became attractive to colleagues who had previously dismissed it. Key Phases of LEGO’s Community-Driven Turnaround Phase 26404_e8abee-5a> Challenge 26404_5e6e03-6c> Community Solution 26404_7b98e8-41> Result 26404_b054b5-71> Pre-crisis 26404_ee9cb8-2a> Declining sales 26404_ad31f7-08> Identifying adult fans as untapped market 26404_52f463-39> Early exclusive kits for adults 26404_1b8bed-2b> Financial crisis (2003) 26404_b024ed-56> Near bankruptcy 26404_314e65-fb> Leveraging fan enthusiasm for marketing 26404_229473-04> Opening company to external collaboration 26404_3ef6c7-30> Recovery 26404_c5a9ba-e3> Rebuilding brand relevance 26404_702d00-28> Co-creating with adult fans (Mindstorms 2.0) 26404_acdccb-3e> Featured on Wired magazine cover 26404_d58ca2-53> Long-term growth 26404_e80d81-78> Sustaining innovation 26404_bc1828-99> Establishing LEGO as a creative medium 26404_4ccd46-47> Adult fans now represent 45% of business 26404_ebc9d3-b2> This transformation didn’t happen overnight. Jake spent years building relationships and gradually shifting the company’s perspective. The breakthrough moment came with the Mindstorms 2.0 (NXT) project, where LEGO brought in adult fans to help design the product – a radical departure from their previous closed development approach. Beyond Demographics: The Ecosystem Approach to Community Building One of the most valuable insights from my conversation with Jake was his emphasis on thinking beyond demographic segments. Rather than simply targeting adult LEGO fans as a market, he positioned LEGO as a creative medium – a perspective that opened possibilities across multiple audience segments. This ecosystem approach created several new marketing avenues: Adult enthusiasts build impressive displays at public venues Parents and grandparents see these creations and recognize LEGO’s creative potential They purchase LEGO as a creative medium rather than a disposable toy Educators incorporate LEGO into classrooms as a learning tool These expanded uses inspire new product ideas and innovations Jake emphasized that community building isn’t just about catering to your most passionate fans – it’s about understanding how their enthusiasm can influence the broader ecosystem around your product. When an adult brings a LEGO model to work, they’re not just expressing their personal interest; they’re demonstrating the product’s creative potential to new audiences. This perspective shift from “LEGO as toy” to “LEGO as creative medium” allowed the company to sell products across age groups while maintaining brand consistency. Jake’s Apple Experience: Building a Global Support Community Jake managed Apple’s Global Support Community – a platform that handled tens of thousands of technical support questions monthly across multiple languages. Apple Community Component 26404_933753-e3> Function 26404_8be2bf-02> 200+ Volunteer Super Users 26404_d1add5-7e> Answered significant percentage of community questions 26404_90e953-7a> Internal Support Team 26404_0fe625-4e> Validated community responses and addressed complex issues 26404_0cb8c8-82> Community Moderators 26404_dba3d7-1a> Maintained community standards and facilitated discussions 26404_67ee7f-1b> Regular Users 26404_70b0f8-8d> Asked questions and occasionally provided answers 26404_e2da82-bd> Unlike his LEGO role, which focused on co-creation and product development, Jake’s Apple work centered on peer-to-peer support – demonstrating how community strategies can be adapted to different business objectives. The multi-tiered approach he managed included approximately 200 volunteers who provided a substantial portion of support answers, supplemented by internal teams that validated responses and addressed more complex issues. This structure illustrates a different but equally valuable community model for product managers to consider. While product development communities like those at Lego might involve smaller numbers of highly engaged participants, support communities scale to handle larger volumes of interactions with varying engagement levels. Jake explained that the key to successful support communities lies in creating an ecosystem where: Questions receive prompt, accurate answers Super users feel valued and recognized for their contributions Internal teams maintain quality control without stifling community participation Knowledge flows efficiently between all participants The Apple experience demonstrates how community-driven approaches can extend beyond product development into other aspects of the customer journey. Communities can support various organizational goals throughout the product lifecycle, from initial concept through ongoing support and retention. The Four-Part Framework for Building Product Development Communities Based on Jake’s experience with LEGO and subsequent work with other companies, he developed a four-part framework for community-driven product development. This practical approach can help product managers integrate customer voices throughout the development process. Two Levels of Community A community may consist of two different levels, and a particular product could be associated with either or both. Customer voices for product development: a small community, perhaps 5 to 50 people, that works side-by-side with the product team A space to maintain interest after product launch: hundreds or thousands of users who are passionate about the product and participate in activities or programs together 1. Finding the Right People The first step is identifying community members whose voices will resonate with the broader customer base. When you announce that you developed a product with community input, other customers should react with: “I’m jealous they were involved, but I understand why they were chosen and believe they represented my interests.” Selecting the right representatives builds credibility with your wider community and ensures the feedback you receive reflects diverse user needs. 2. Identifying the Right Timing Community involvement should be strategically timed throughout your product development cycle. This could mean increasing the size of the community as you near completion, or you could stick with the same community throughout. The timing and size of community involvement depends on several factors: Project secrecy requirements Technical complexity Development timeline Available resources Some community members might participate throughout the entire process, while others join for specific stages. The key is designing intentional touchpoints rather than random engagement. 3. Defining the Right Outcomes Before engaging your community, clearly define what you hope to achieve. Are you looking for: Fresh ideas and perspectives? Validation of existing concepts? Identification of potential issues? Specific feedback on particular features? Testing in real-world scenarios? Community engagement isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. Your outcomes should align with specific business needs and development challenges. 4. Designing the Right Activities The final component involves creating structured activities that are enjoyable and productive for all participants. This requires: Formal program design (not ad-hoc interactions) Consistent engagement (not disappearing for weeks) Relationship-building opportunities Meaningful contribution channels Community-driven product development differs fundamentally from traditional research studies. Rather than one-off surveys, it builds ongoing relationships that allow for deeper insights, more honest feedback, and collaborative problem-solving. The “Octopus Theory”: Eight Benefits of Community-Driven Development Jake described what he calls the “Octopus Theory” – the idea that effective community engagement delivers multiple benefits or “tentacles” simultaneously. When you bring passionate customers into your development process, you gain significant advantages including: Great Feedback Leading to Better Product Decisions: Direct customer input improves feature prioritization and design choices Deeper Relationships: Ongoing engagement creates comfort with giving and receiving challenging feedback Real-Time Marketing Insights: Product marketers can observe what features generate excitement before launch Built-In Launch Advocacy: Community participants become day-one advocates when products reach market Team Motivation: External enthusiasm reinvigorates internal teams facing development fatigue Jake shared a personal example of team motivation: When he shows a detailed scale model he’s built to family members, they express polite interest without truly understanding the achievement. But when he shows the same model to fellow scale modelers, their specific, knowledgeable enthusiasm is deeply motivating. Product teams experience renewed energy when interacting with passionate customers who truly appreciate their work’s complexity and impact. Common Mistakes in Building Product Communities Despite the clear benefits, many organizations struggle to build effective product communities. Jake identified several common pitfalls that product managers should avoid: Transactional vs. Relational Mindsets The most fundamental mistake is approaching community as a transaction rather than a relationship. Many companies view communities primarily as cost-saving mechanisms: “If we have a community, users will support each other and we can hire fewer support professionals” “If we have a community, they’ll do marketing for us and we can reduce our advertising budget” While communities can deliver these benefits, starting with a transactional mindset undermines the relationship-building necessary for sustainable engagement. As Jake put it, his mantra for over 20 years has been “everybody goes home happy” – ensuring both the company and community members get value from the relationship. Missing the Shared Purpose Successful communities rally around purposes larger than either individual benefits or company goals. Without a compelling shared purpose, engagement feels hollow and manipulative. At LEGO, Jake faced initial skepticism from adult fans who assumed he “just wanted to sell them things” or get them to “work for free.” His solution was to start by asking what they needed from the company and delivering on those needs first. Only after establishing trust did he request their help with company priorities. The LEGO community’s purpose is to drive the idea that “LEGO is as a creative medium.” Jake’s responsibility is to fulfill this purpose by making and selling amazing products. LEGO sales support the community’s shared purpose and create value for both the company and customers. Selecting the Wrong Community Managers Not everyone is equipped to build effective customer communities. While you might assume extroverts make the best community managers, Jake noted that many successful community professionals (including himself) are actually introverts who have learned to play extroverted roles. What matters most is: Genuine passion for both the product and the community Understanding of social dynamics Commitment to relationship building Ability to serve as an effective “party host” Lacking Executive Champions Community initiatives often stall without senior-level support. Jake emphasized the need for executive champions who understand the long-term value of community engagement and can provide necessary resources and political backing. Conclusion Building passionate product communities has evolved from a nice-to-have into a genuine competitive advantage. The transformation at LEGO demonstrates how powerful this approach can be – taking the company from near-bankruptcy to industry leadership by reimagining its relationship with customers. What began as a small initiative to engage adult fans eventually reshaped the entire business model and product philosophy. For product managers looking to drive sustainable growth, the community-driven approach offers a pathway to deeper customer insights, more effective advocacy, and products people don’t just use but truly love. By applying the frameworks and principles Jake outlined, product managers can harness the transformative power of passionate community engagement – turning their most enthusiastic users into partners in innovation and growth. Useful Links Visit Jake’s website Listen to episode 391: Product VP of Wyze uses community for product innovation and you can too – with Steve McIrvin Innovation Quote “Somewhere someone is practicing and when you meet them they will beat you.” – Michael Jordan Application Questions Community Assessment: How could you identify the passionate users in your current customer base who might form the foundation of a product community? What signals or behaviors would indicate they’re potential community contributors rather than just satisfied customers? Relational Approach: How could your team shift from transactional interactions with customers to building more relational connections? What specific activities or touchpoints could you redesign to emphasize relationship-building rather than just extracting value? Community-Driven Innovation: Where in your current product development process could you integrate community voices? Which stages would benefit most from external perspectives, and how might you structure these engagements to get meaningful feedback while protecting confidential information? Shared Purpose Development: What larger purpose could unite your company and customers beyond the product itself? How could you articulate this shared purpose in a way that resonates with both internal teams and external community members? Executive Alignment: How could you build support for community initiatives among your leadership team? What metrics or success stories would demonstrate the value of community engagement to executives who might be skeptical about the return on investment? Bio Hi! I’m Jake McKee, the original Community Guy. Going all the way back to 1996, I’ve played an instrumental role in building online communities for some of the world’s most successful and recognizable brands, including LEGO, Apple, Southwest Airlines, Canon, and H&R Block.  I consult with organizations of all sizes to help solve community and business challenges of all kinds. I’ve co-authored books on social media and community strategy, and spoken to and run workshops for audiences of business professionals countless times. I created CX 5essions, a community project that connects senior-level online professionals every month for conversation, connection, and camaraderie. As if that’s not enough community nerdery, I also created a web comic about community management, Confessions of a Community Manager.  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. 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Sustainable product management drives business success Watch on YouTube TLDR Sustainable product management integrates environmental considerations into the entire product lifecycle, creating value for businesses, customers, and the planet. Kaila Byrzgalski’s experience at Steelcase demonstrates how a dedicated sustainability role can bridge the gap between corporate environmental goals and product innovation. By approaching sustainability as a core business strategy rather than a separate initiative, product managers can discover opportunities to reduce costs, attract environmentally conscious customers, and build more resilient products. Key Topics Cross-functional integration is essential – sustainability connects portfolio management, marketing, design, and operations Three layers of sustainability exist in organizations: corporate reporting, product stories, and detailed product data Lifecycle assessments help identify environmental hotspots and improvement opportunities in products Sustainable materials innovation can simultaneously reduce costs and environmental impact Business benefits include cost optimization, market expansion, and strengthened customer relationships Getting started requires overcoming analysis paralysis by taking small, meaningful steps Every role can be a sustainability role, with product managers uniquely positioned to drive meaningful change Introduction We’re diving deep into a topic that scarcely existed a decade ago: sustainable product management. Sustainability is no longer a buzzword—it’s a core strategy for product leaders like Kaila Bryzgalski at Steelcase. If you’ve ever wondered how sustainability improves product innovation and business success, this discussion is for you. You’ll gain insights into real-world practices from Kaila, a leader who’s created her role from scratch, making a tangible impact at Steelcase. Together, we’ll learn why sustainability is not only vital but also how to integrate it into product strategy.   Creating a Sustainable Product Management Role Steelcase has approached sustainability as part of its corporate DNA for over 100 years. The company has long valued “people and planet” alongside profit. This foundation made it possible for Kaila to create a specialized role focused on product sustainability marketing. The company employs what Kaila called a hub-and-spoke sustainability model: The Hub: A central sustainability team of subject matter experts The Spokes: Specialized sustainability roles in different departments: Marketing Operations Supply management Design Understanding a Portfolio Manager for Product Sustainability Role The portfolio manager for product sustainability position at Steelcase sits at the intersection of multiple departments. This cross-functional role connects brand communications, marketing, portfolio management, and product development with the sustainability hub and corporate ESG impact team. Kaila described managing what she called “the layers of sustainability”: Sustainability Layer 26379_4411fa-72> Description 26379_7ad830-0b> Example 26379_09a3b8-60> Highest Level 26379_40afc0-4b> Corporate impact reporting and stakeholder communications 26379_0b392b-25> Annual sustainability reports, investor communications 26379_840799-c7> Middle Level 26379_0fe42c-fe> Product-specific sustainability stories 26379_65a9e3-ba> Marketing materials highlighting sustainable features 26379_0602d0-cc> Foundational Level 26379_cc6bcc-51> Detailed product data and metrics 26379_535bcb-a1> Lifecycle assessments, environmental product declarations 26379_c78e54-29> As a portfolio manager for product sustainability, Kaila manages both: The green product portfolio (products with differentiated sustainability features like the carbon neutral product line) Sustainability attributes for Steelcase’s broader catalog of 500+ global products For product managers looking to enhance their sustainability skills, understanding this layered approach helps create a comprehensive strategy rather than isolated initiatives. How to Create a Similar Role in Your Organization If you’re interested in creating a similar sustainable product management position in your company, Kaila identified three key factors that enabled the role at Steelcase: Company values aligned with sustainability (research and insight-focused culture) Leadership support for the position Customer demand creating market pull for sustainable products Practical Steps for Creating a Sustainability Role For product managers looking to establish a similar role, Kaila recommended these actionable steps: 1. Research your company’s impact report and materiality assessment Consider using AI tools to help summarize lengthy reports Look for mentions of product design or sustainability in the materiality spectrum 2. Gather evidence of customer demand Collect data points from sales teams about customer requests Research market trends in sustainability for your product category 3. Make a business case to leadership Present findings on company values and customer demand Show how a dedicated sustainability role could address both Creating a sustainability-focused product role has become easier over the past five years as more customers prioritize environmental attributes. The role has gone through what Kaila described as a “storming, forming, norming” evolution, becoming increasingly integrated into standard product development processes. Practical Steps for Improving Sustainability in Product Management One of the most valuable aspects of Kaila’s role is her collaboration with other product managers to integrate sustainability into their work. She described her function as that of a guide or consultant, helping product teams understand environmental considerations alongside traditional product attributes like quality and durability. For product managers looking to improve sustainability in their own products, Kaila shared three key action items: 1. Study Your Company’s Impact Report Use Ctrl+F to quickly find mentions of product design and sustainability Understand what sustainability aspects matter most to your organization Identify how product development connects to broader company sustainability goals 2. Learn About Lifecycle Assessments (LCA) Determine if your products already have lifecycle assessments If not, find assessments for similar products or categories Identify environmental “hotspots” in your product lifecycle Use this data to guide material selection and design decisions 3. Know Your Sustainability-Conscious Customers Research which customer segments value sustainability Understand what specific environmental attributes matter to them Target these segments with appropriate sustainability messaging By incorporating these practices, product managers can make sustainability a core consideration in product development rather than an afterthought or add-on feature. Practical Examples of Sustainable Product Innovation To illustrate how sustainable product management works in practice, Kaila shared a case study from Steelcase’s Sustainable Materials Summit. This event brought together cross-functional teams including quality, safety, engineering, and marketing professionals to address environmental hotspots in their products. The summit focused on sustainability in material selection, one of the most impactful areas for environmental product design. Participants developed several innovative solutions: Innovation Approach 26379_67353a-ba> Specific Example 26379_fc5b66-e0> Business Benefit 26379_681acf-24> Alternative materials 26379_897e9a-d2> Exploring eco-friendly foam alternatives 26379_a6c1eb-cc> Reduced environmental impact 26379_1a0a56-52> Increased recycled content 26379_22b886-15> Higher recycled polypropylene in task seating 26379_f1787e-35> Lower carbon footprint 26379_4e9b04-f1> Supply chain optimization 26379_c0a148-3f> Consolidating tabletop sizes 26379_69724b-45> Reduced waste and manufacturing costs 26379_3b5556-48> These examples demonstrate three core approaches to sustainable product development: Eliminating materials where possible Using less material through design optimization Finding alternative materials with lower environmental impact What makes these approaches particularly valuable is that they often result in both environmental benefits and business advantages, creating a win-win for sustainability and profitability. The Business Case for Sustainability A common misconception about sustainable product management is that it always increases costs. Kaila explained that sustainability and business success are “truly symbiotic” rather than at odds. Many sustainability initiatives actually reduce costs through: Manufacturing optimization that eliminates waste Consolidation of product lines reducing inventory and complexity Packaging optimization saving materials and shipping costs Product managers sometimes miss opportunities by failing to communicate the sustainability benefits of cost-saving measures they’ve already implemented. This highlights the importance of connecting product development and marketing to tell a complete sustainability story. The business value extends beyond direct cost savings. Sustainability literally means “enduring into the future”—exactly what most businesses want. By helping customers understand the value of durable, sustainable products, companies build stronger brands and customer relationships. Implementing Sustainability at the Product Level At Steelcase, sustainability has become increasingly integrated into standard product development processes. They’ve added a “sustainability intention” section to their product charters, requiring product managers to consider environmental impacts even if sustainability isn’t a primary focus for a particular product. This systematic approach ensures that: Product managers consciously evaluate sustainability for every product Teams conduct competitive research on sustainability features in similar products Sustainability considerations carry through the entire product development lifecycle Even when a product team decides that their target customers don’t prioritize sustainability, the process still creates awareness and may identify opportunity areas for future improvements. Getting Started with Sustainability in Product Management For product managers interested in enhancing sustainability but unsure where to begin, Kaila shared a quote from Theodore Roosevelt: “Nothing worth having comes easy.” She acknowledged that sustainability can be “wild and wicked” with many complex considerations, leading many to experience analysis paralysis. To overcome this, she offered several practical approaches: Reframing Sustainability for Skeptics If you encounter resistance within your organization, try these alternative framings: Business endurance: Positioning sustainability as ensuring the company’s long-term viability Cost optimization: Highlighting waste reduction and efficiency improvements Market expansion: Identifying new customer segments attracted by sustainable offerings Value Chain Collaboration One of the most valuable approaches is to look beyond your own company: Connect with suppliers about their sustainability initiatives Learn from customers about their environmental priorities Form partnerships that strengthen relationships throughout the value chain The key message here is to start somewhere rather than waiting for perfect information or conditions. By taking even small steps toward sustainable product management, you create momentum that can lead to more significant changes over time. Conclusion The conversation with Kaila reinforced the importance of the triple bottom line approach to product management—balancing people, planet, and profit. All three elements are necessary for long-term business success. Without profits, companies can’t take care of employees or customers. Without considering people, there are no employees or customers to serve. And without respecting planetary boundaries, companies face increasing risks and missed opportunities. Increasingly, sustainability is a business imperative. By integrating sustainability into product strategy, you can: Create products that meet evolving customer expectations Identify cost-saving opportunities through more efficient designs Build more resilient products and business models Appeal to growing segments of environmentally conscious consumers Product managers have a unique opportunity to influence both what products are made and how they’re created, placing them at the center of corporate sustainability efforts. While creating truly sustainable products takes work, the benefits for your customers, your company, and your career make it well worth the effort. Useful Links Check out examples of Steelcase’s sustainable products Connect with Kaila on LinkedIn Innovation Quote “Nothing worth having, comes easy.” – Teddy Roosevelt Application Questions How could you assess the current state of sustainability in your product portfolio? Consider what environmental product declarations or lifecycle assessments might reveal about your products’ environmental hotspots and improvement opportunities. How could your team integrate sustainability considerations into your existing product development process? What specific checkpoints or documentation (like Steelcase’s sustainability intentions in product charters) might you add to ensure environmental impacts are considered? What sustainability stories might already exist within your product development work that haven’t been communicated to marketing? How could you better connect cost-saving measures with their environmental benefits? How could you identify which customer segments in your market most value sustainability features? What research methods would help you understand their specific environmental priorities? If you were to organize a sustainable materials summit like Steelcase did, which cross-functional teams would you invite, and what specific sustainability challenges would you focus on solving? Bio With background experience ranging from product management, customer service management, marketing to supply chain, the common thread for Kaila has been the belief that better business is a sustainable business. She is responsible for the development and implementation of product sustainability marketing cross-category and globally at Steelcase; most recently leading the strategy to expand Circular by Steelcase capabilities in the Americas. Her education includes an MBA with a concentration in sustainable business from the University of Colorado and B.S. in Natural Resources and Environmental Science from Purdue University.   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. 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The most important takeaways from past episodes of Product Mastery Now TLDR Product innovation requires deliberate approaches to teamwork, problem-solving, and customer understanding. John Spero, former senior R&D manager and current innovation professor, highlighted frameworks and methodologies that help product teams work effectively together. These include using tools like DISC assessments to build stronger teams, applying Design Thinking approaches to understand customer needs, and using creative problem-solving techniques to tackle innovation challenges systematically. Key Topics Building innovation cultures and effective product teams Using DISC assessments to improve team dynamics and productivity Applying Design Thinking frameworks to solve complex problems Voice of the Customer methodologies for deeper customer insights Divergent and convergent thinking techniques for innovation Tackling the “fuzzy front end” of product development Facilitation tools like Six Thinking Hats and Phoenix Checklist Best practices for prototype development and testing Professional development paths for product managers Introduction In this episode, our guest is highlighting some takeaways from previous episodes of Product Mastery Now and sharing how they connect with his work today, teaching innovation. With us is John Spero. John has had a long and successful career in product development and management and related roles, including being a senior R&D Manager at Praxair and then Lean Specialist as well as an Agile Coach for the same organization, including after the acquisition by Linde, the global industrial gases company based in Ireland. Now he teaches at Daemen University in their Leadership & Innovation program, focusing on critical thinking, decision making, and problem-solving skills for complex innovation situations. John and I met through the Product Development and Management Association (PDMA), and he invited me to help onboard product managers at Praxair. John assigns podcast episodes, including Product Mastery Now, to his students, and recently he suggested that we discuss key takeaways from these episodes. Let’s see what he has found that is essential for innovators to know.  Building Culture and Teams for Innovation Success Creating successful products starts with having the right innovation culture and effective teams. John explained that before students can create valuable products, they need to understand how to foster an innovation culture within their organizations. This means creating an environment where creative thinking is encouraged, risk-taking is supported, and learning from failure is valued. He referenced 493: Perfecting Product Culture and Teams, noting that many students come into his program with academic research experience but struggle to transfer that knowledge into actual product development. The bridge between research and product creation requires a supportive team culture. What Makes an Effective Innovation Team? John has found that the most successful innovation teams share several key characteristics: Complementary skills that cover different aspects of product development Understanding of behavioral styles and work preferences Clear communication about how team members prefer to work Mutual respect for different approaches to problem-solving John shared how he uses DISC assessments in his teaching and previous corporate work to help team members understand each other’s work styles. This behavioral assessment tool identifies four primary work styles, each with different strengths in the innovation process. DISC Style 26332_5fa871-cf> Common Traits 26332_c330ae-5c> Innovation Strengths 26332_dcc5a6-9d> Dominance (D) 26332_4c3799-5b> Direct, action-oriented 26332_a22716-e0> Driving projects forward, making decisions 26332_98b8c3-62> Influence (I) 26332_47f1b0-ac> Outgoing, enthusiastic 26332_72185d-5f> Generating ideas, building connections 26332_3ba3c7-29> Steadiness (S) 26332_a19f6d-ef> Supportive, team-oriented 26332_9435fd-00> Maintaining harmony, following through 26332_de0f02-ac> Conscientiousness (C) 26332_ab1bc1-d0> Analytical, detail-focused 26332_e3eb8d-cc> Ensuring quality, attention to details 26332_76595a-a8> Tension often emerges between team members with different styles. For example, sales professionals (typically high in D and I traits) might grow frustrated with engineers (often high in C traits) for what they perceive as moving too slowly. By understanding these different work preferences, teams can appreciate that engineers’ thoroughness is actually ensuring quality rather than causing unnecessary delays. This understanding of team dynamics creates a foundation for effective innovation. When team members recognize and value their different approaches, they can collaborate more effectively to solve customer problems. Design Thinking Approaches for Effective Innovation John highlighted the importance of Design Thinking as a structured framework for product innovation. Tom Granzow has a four-phase Design Thinking approach (480: Putting Design Thinking into practical action – with Tom Granzow). When John teaches Design Thinking, he extends the framework into a six-step process that works well in academic settings. This expanded approach gives students a clearer roadmap through the often messy innovation journey. Design Thinking isn’t a linear process. It’s intentionally messy and iterative, allowing teams to jump back and forth between phases as they incorporate new data and feedback. This flexibility is important for product innovation because the path to understanding customer needs is rarely straightforward. What makes this framework particularly effective is how it encourages teams to stay open to new insights throughout the process. When teaching Design Thinking to his students, John helps them understand that the framework serves as a guide rather than a rigid set of steps. This approach helps product teams remain adaptable while still maintaining a structured approach to innovation. Voice of the Customer: Mastering the Art of Problem Discovery Effective product innovation begins with truly understanding the customer’s problem, through Voice of the Customer (VOC) research (477: Three-step VOC system – with Andrea Ruttenberg, PhD). The Depth of Customer Interviews Creating effective customer interview questions is just the beginning. The real value comes from analyzing the responses properly. John teaches his students to look beyond the obvious answers and find deeper insights that might not be immediately apparent. VOC Challenge 26332_9e32a6-71> How to Address It 26332_b06af4-76> Asking the right questions 26332_fa412d-9f> Focus on problems, not solutions; ask about specific experiences 26332_9511d1-25> The curse of knowledge 26332_a5fbe5-31> Turn off your expertise; listen without imposing your understanding 26332_0e997b-f6> Analyzing responses 26332_bb58b1-7b> Look for patterns across multiple interviews; have others analyze your interviews 26332_34d022-85> Personal bias 26332_7893a9-6d> Depersonalize the process; focus on customer needs, not your vision 26332_30e2ae-f0> John referenced the seminal Voice of the Customer paper by Abby Griffin and John Hauser from 1993, which laid the groundwork for many modern customer discovery methodologies. Avoiding the Curse of Knowledge One of the most challenging aspects of customer discovery is what John called “the curse of knowledge.” This happens when product teams have so much expertise in their field that they can’t see problems from a beginner’s perspective.  Good Design Thinking practices minimize the team members’ personal desires and wishes. For more on this, see 483: Nailing the customer experience to improve product value – with Jason Friedman. John talked about how he uses classroom exercises to help students overcome this challenge. He has them develop solutions for problems in innovation and leadership, then forces them to “turn off” their own knowledge and focus solely on what the customer experiences. The “aha moment” comes when students realize that even though they’re knowledgeable about a topic, their product will only succeed if it addresses the customer’s actual experience of the problem, not their expert understanding of it. Effective innovation requires setting aside your expertise long enough to truly empathize with and understand your customers’ experiences. Divergent and Convergent Thinking: The Rhythm of Innovation We discussed the powerful combination of divergent and convergent thinking in the innovation process. This approach to problem-solving has deep roots in creative thinking methodologies, particularly the Osborn Parnes Creative Problem Solving process. Understanding the Dual Process Effective innovation follows a rhythm of opening up possibilities (divergent thinking) and then narrowing down to practical solutions (convergent thinking). This pattern repeats throughout the product development journey. Phase 26332_597417-8c> Divergent Thinking 26332_d51afb-7c> Convergent Thinking 26332_f0b1db-bf> Problem Definition 26332_274e47-9e> “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could solve…?” 26332_b00625-ea> Selecting the most impactful problem to solve 26332_b1d6e3-a2> Customer Research 26332_3c48b3-ee> Generating many possible interview questions 26332_52f0c7-f1> Choosing the most revealing questions to ask 26332_e032b1-2a> Solution Development 26332_b067da-94> Brainstorming many possible solutions 26332_a3534a-46> Evaluating solutions against criteria 26332_be3d8c-82> Prototyping & Testing 26332_661422-5b> Exploring different ways users interact with prototype 26332_28cdbc-60> Deciding what the product should be 26332_4a5ca2-dd> John detailed how this dual process works in practice. In the early stages, teams use invitational language like “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could solve this problem?” or “In what ways might we approach this challenge?” This open phrasing encourages broad thinking without limiting possibilities. The Language of Creative Problem Solving John pays attention to the language used during innovation sessions. He explained that phrases like “How might we…” create mental space for exploring options without judgment. This invitational language is fundamental to the Creative Problem Solving methodology. The real power comes from alternating between these two modes of thinking throughout the product development journey: Expand possibilities through divergent thinking (generate many options) Narrow focus through convergent thinking (select the best options) Repeat this pattern at each stage of development John referenced 522: Stop the stupid using proactive problem solving – with Doug Hall on breaking free from reactive problem solving. Defining problems effectively is challenging, but getting ahead of problems is even more difficult. This proactive approach to problem-solving requires both creative exploration and disciplined evaluation—the essence of divergent and convergent thinking. This approach isn’t just theoretical. John explained how these techniques were applied in his corporate work at Praxair and Linde, helping teams tackle complex engineering and product challenges more effectively by balancing creative exploration with practical decision-making. Tackling the “Fuzzy Front End” of Innovation John shared his team’s approach to reducing uncertainty in the early stages of product development—what innovation professionals often call the “fuzzy front end.” Accelerating Innovation Decision-Making John’s team at Praxair adopted an approach for solving complex problems similar to the two-hour Design Spring (499: How to implement a 2-hour design sprint to solve complex problems – with Teresa Cain). They faced a common challenge in product development: how to quickly determine if an idea deserved further investment without spending months in preliminary investigation. Their solution was to bring together a diverse team to “declutter the fuzziness” in a single day or two, rather than having one person spend weeks or months investigating. This approach allowed them to: Quickly gather all available knowledge about customer needs Assess technical feasibility from multiple perspectives Evaluate business potential with input from various stakeholders Make faster decisions about whether to move ideas into the formal Stage-Gate process This accelerated approach delivered significant value by reducing the time to make go/no-go decisions. Teams could either advance promising ideas more quickly or fail fast on concepts that wouldn’t work, freeing up resources for more promising opportunities. Traditional Approach 26332_ff6e8a-f3> Accelerated Approach 26332_0b205f-e5> One person investigating an idea 26332_c0b93b-13> Cross-functional team evaluating together 26332_0a9f26-23> 1-2 months of preliminary work 26332_707fc4-40> 1-2 days of intensive collaboration 26332_aa00a6-ff> Sequential information gathering 26332_de0a31-00> Parallel processing of information 26332_b55812-0b> Slow entry into Stage-Gate process 26332_2c3ee6-e1> Rapid movement into Stage-Gate evaluation 26332_a2503b-c8> The approach aligns with lean innovation principles: Gather just enough information to make an informed decision, test assumptions quickly, and don’t waste resources on extended analysis when a faster process can achieve similar results. For product managers facing pressure to innovate more quickly, this compressed fuzzy front end approach offers a practical solution to balance thoroughness with speed. By gathering the right people in a focused session, teams can achieve in days what might otherwise take months. Facilitation Tools for Better Innovation John highlighted several facilitation tools that product teams can use to improve their innovation process. These structured approaches help teams think more effectively and overcome common biases in problem-solving. The Phoenix Checklist: A Declassified Problem-Solving Tool One resource John mentioned was the Phoenix Checklist, a problem-solving tool originally developed by the CIA and declassified in the 1990s. This comprehensive list of questions helps teams thoroughly define problems and develop solution plans. Problem Definition Questions 26332_8387ba-93> Solution Planning Questions 26332_5d96ac-a2> What is the real problem we’re trying to solve? 26332_92b310-7a> How can we test this solution? 26332_d2010f-ff> Why does this problem need solving? 26332_b65760-08> What resources will we need? 26332_5ca745-af> Can we look at this problem differently? 26332_f1adf4-cf> How will we know if we’ve succeeded? 26332_b7764a-d7> Experienced product managers would recognize many of these questions as ones they already use intuitively. The structured format, however, ensures that teams don’t miss critical aspects of problem definition or solution planning. Six Thinking Hats: Different Perspectives for Better Decisions Another facilitation tool John mentioned was Edward de Bono’s Six Thinking Hats. This method helps teams look at problems and decisions from multiple perspectives by having everyone adopt the same thinking mode simultaneously. Thinking Hat 26332_55ecf8-03> Focus Area 26332_20c37d-a9> White Hat 26332_6e9fef-79> Facts and information 26332_ff790e-35> Red Hat 26332_965d06-63> Emotions and feelings 26332_2b5636-cf> Black Hat 26332_8e526f-7d> Risks and potential problems 26332_56d0fd-40> Yellow Hat 26332_b5b29c-f9> Benefits and positive aspects 26332_a10cb0-f5> Green Hat 26332_9c4e53-5e> Creative ideas and alternatives 26332_0efad1-94> Blue Hat 26332_2056fd-0a> Process management and overview 26332_4af90f-ea> John prefers to have everyone adopt the same “hat” or thinking role simultaneously, rather than assigning different perspectives to different team members. This helps prevent people from becoming entrenched in one perspective and creates a safer space for various types of thinking. By incorporating these facilitation tools into the product development process, teams can overcome biases, explore problems more thoroughly, and arrive at better solutions. For product managers looking to improve their team’s innovation capabilities, these structured approaches offer practical, immediately applicable techniques. Prototype Development Best Practices We discussed John’s approach to prototyping—the process of creating early versions of products to test with customers (458: Selecting, planning, and prototyping product features – with Matt Genovese and 509: Prototyping mastery for product managers – with Matthew Wettergreen, PhD). The Art of Minimum Viable Prototypes John observed that many innovators, especially students new to product development, struggle with creating appropriately minimal prototypes. The tendency is to build too much functionality too early, wasting time and resources on features that might not deliver value. Common Prototyping Mistakes 26332_5e2d91-5d> Best Practices 26332_8b524d-8a> Building too many features 26332_de695c-7c> Focus on the core value proposition only 26332_bfeeaf-3f> Perfecting the prototype 26332_3705b6-5e> Create just enough to test the core concept 26332_3c2d0f-92> Delayed testing with users 26332_47d059-6f> Test with users as early as possible 26332_e13d1e-cf> Becoming attached to initial ideas 26332_013898-51> Be willing to pivot or abandon based on feedback 26332_bdf80b-42> To illustrate the power of simplicity in prototyping, John shared a historical example: Microsoft Word in 1987. The original product came on two 5.25-inch floppy disks and offered just the essential text editing capabilities—type, format with a few fonts, underline, and bold text. It was, by today’s standards, incredibly basic. Yet even this minimal version was sufficient to test the core value proposition. John pointed out that what we consider essential functionality today was built incrementally over decades, not delivered all at once in the first version. Pretotyping: Fake It Before You Make It John highlighted Alberto Savoia’s concept of “pretotyping”—creating even simpler simulations of product ideas to test market interest before building actual prototypes. This approach focuses on quickly validating whether people would use a product concept before investing in development. The core principle is “fake it before you make it”: Create the simplest possible simulation of your product idea Test it with potential users to see if there’s genuine interest If people use it, proceed to more developed prototypes If people ignore it or lose interest quickly, move on to other ideas John shared how he encourages students to test their concepts with classmates, friends, and family first. For example, one student with a sustainable clothing concept was advised to test it with friends before investing time in more elaborate prototypes. If the idea doesn’t resonate with their immediate circle, it’s unlikely to work at a larger scale. This “fail fast” approach to prototyping aligns perfectly with lean innovation principles. By recognizing that most new product ideas will fail, teams can use rapid prototyping to discover which ideas have promise without wasting resources on elaborate development for concepts that won’t succeed in the market. Teaching Innovation in Graduate Programs John shared how he structures his graduate-level innovation course to help students develop practical skills they can apply in their organizations. The innovation course at Daemen University is part of a Leadership and Innovation graduate program that attracts professionals from diverse backgrounds—healthcare, higher education, industry, and nonprofits. Rather than focusing solely on theoretical concepts, John helps students understand how to apply innovation frameworks in their specific organizational contexts. Course Element 26332_7308f1-33> Learning Approach 26332_088d48-78> Shared class example 26332_a6d976-ec> Five-week collaborative project applying innovation frameworks 26332_b4b06e-cb> Digital collaboration 26332_e47ebc-b7> Daily standups via Zoom when not in class 26332_bca2f8-04> Visual documentation 26332_180803-c6> Using tools like Mural to make work visible to all team members 26332_26745e-f1> Adaptive teaching 26332_75b76f-da> First four weeks structured, then adapting based on student needs 26332_ca2d12-c5> John structures the first four weeks of his course rigorously, setting a solid foundation of innovation principles. Then, as he observes how students are progressing, he adapts the curriculum to address their specific challenges. This mirrors how product teams should approach innovation—starting with a framework but remaining adaptable as new information emerges. Creating “Aha Moments” About Innovation One of John’s primary goals is to help students experience breakthrough moments when they truly grasp how product development works. These “aha moments” typically occur about 3-4 weeks into the course, when students begin to understand how to use customer feedback to develop viable products. John brings a cardboard box into the classroom and asks students to consider how ubiquitous this innovation is—appearing in countless forms across the world—and how different our lives would be without it. This helps students recognize that innovation isn’t always about dramatic technological breakthroughs; sometimes it’s about simple solutions that solve widespread problems effectively. This teaching approach offers valuable lessons for product leaders. By focusing on the fundamentals while remaining adaptable, and by recognizing innovation in everyday objects, professionals can develop a more nuanced understanding of what makes products successful. Conclusion Innovation is never a straight line from problem to solution. As John Spero shared through Robert Quinn’s quote about “building the bridge as you walk on it,” effective product managers must balance structure with adaptability. The frameworks and tools he discussed—from design thinking and divergent-convergent problem solving to facilitation techniques like Six Thinking Hats—provide practical resources that can immediately improve how product teams innovate together. Perhaps most importantly, John’s journey reminds us that innovation requires continuous learning. Even after 15 years as an R&D leader, he found tremendous value in comprehensive product management training. For product managers looking to enhance their capabilities, his advice is clear: understand the entire product development landscape, not just your specialty; learn practical frameworks; master facilitation tools; and don’t overlook leadership development. By approaching innovation as a continuous learning journey rather than a destination, you’ll be better equipped to create products that truly solve customer problems. Useful Links Connect with John on LinkedIn Learn more about Daeman University’s Leadership and Innovation program Read about the Phoenix Checklist Innovation Quote “Build the bridge as you walk on it.” – Robert Quinn Application Questions How could your team implement the divergent-convergent thinking approach in your next innovation challenge? What specific areas of your product development process would benefit most from deliberately separating idea generation from evaluation? How might your understanding of team members’ work styles and preferences (like DISC profiles) improve collaboration on your current product initiatives? What tensions exist between different work styles on your team, and how could you address them? How could you apply the “fuzzy front end” acceleration technique to reduce uncertainty in the early stages of your next product concept? What would a 1-2 day intensive session look like for your team, and who would need to be involved? In what ways could your prototyping process be simplified to test core concepts more quickly? What are you currently over-building in your prototypes that could be eliminated without compromising your ability to validate key assumptions? How might you incorporate facilitation tools like Six Thinking Hats or the Phoenix Checklist into your next product decision meeting? Which specific product challenges would benefit most from these structured approaches to thinking? Bio John Spero has had a long and successful career in product development and management and related roles, including being a senior R&D Manager at Praxair and then Lean Specialist as well as an Agile Coach for the same organization, including after the acquisition by Linde, the global industrial gases company based in Ireland. Now he is an adjunct professor at Daemen University in their Leadership & Innovation program, focusing on critical thinking, decision making, and problem-solving skills for complex innovation situations. 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. Source

Use the Press Release FAQ Framework to make better product management decisions Watch on YouTube TLDR The Amazon PRFAQ framework is a powerful product strategy tool that helps teams “work backwards” from customer needs to create successful products. Unlike traditional approaches that start with solutions, this method begins by envisioning the finished product as if it already exists, forcing teams to clarify their vision, validate assumptions, and make better decisions before investing significant resources. Key Topics: The PRFAQ is a strategic document with three parts: press release (1 page), customer FAQs (1 page), and internal FAQs (4 pages) The framework’s value comes from the discovery, debate, and decision process it creates Review sessions involve multiple stakeholders reading and critiquing the document Common mistakes include treating it as a marketing tool or including too many implementation details Benefits include stronger stakeholder alignment, better execution, and clearer distinction between facts and assumptions The approach is suitable for innovators beyond Amazon, including product managers, founders, and executives Introduction How can you transform your product innovation with Amazon’s revolutionary PRFAQ Framework – a proven approach not just at Amazon, but adopted by many organizations, resulting in successful product development and launches. That is what we’ll discover together in this episode.  You’ll learn how to implement this “work backwards” approach in your organization, how to craft compelling press releases that define customer value from day one, and practical techniques to anticipate and address the tough questions that can make or break your product.  Our guest today is Marcelo Calbucci, author of The PRFAQ Framework and an experienced product and technology leader. With over 25 years of experience, Marcelo has founded multiple startups, after getting the entrepreneurs itch, building on the experience he gained while working as a development manager at Microsoft. He has served as CTO at various companies, and developed the PRFAQ Framework based on his firsthand experience at Amazon. His deep expertise in product development and innovation makes him the perfect guide to help you apply and adapt Amazon’s innovation approach for your work.  Use what Marcelo shares today to improve how you conceptualize, develop, and launch products that customers want and love.  Amazon’s PRFAQ Framework: Transforming Product Innovation Through Working Backwards The “working backwards” methodology, centered around the PRFAQ framework, offers a structured way to conceptualize, develop, and launch products that customers genuinely love. This approach isn’t just limited to Amazon – many organizations have adopted it with impressive results. Marcelo developed this framework based on his firsthand experience at Amazon, building on knowledge gained as a development manager at Microsoft and through founding multiple startups. His deep expertise in product development makes him the perfect guide to help product managers adapt Amazon’s innovation approach to their own work. Understanding the PRFAQ Framework PRFAQ stands for Press Release and Frequently Asked Questions. It’s a strategic document consisting of three main components: Section 26283_5745af-90> Length 26283_0d671c-29> Purpose 26283_2b5061-52> Press Release 26283_d64720-20> 1 page 26283_bed865-dc> Paints a vision of the future as if your product already exists 26283_7f3da5-b0> Customer FAQs 26283_b15486-e8> 1 page 26283_5c577d-73> Addresses questions customers would ask about the product 26283_b2c1c4-34> Internal FAQs 26283_ca0b81-c9> 4 pages 26283_8ea639-c0> Explores feasibility, viability, customer problems, solutions, and go-to-market strategy 26283_d38fa3-0e> The press release portion helps you create an aspirational vision of your product’s future. You write it as if your product has already launched, describing what it does and the value it provides to customers. This forces you to think from the customer’s perspective from day one. The customer FAQ section anticipates questions that potential users might have. These typically include practical considerations like pricing, data migration, and getting started with the product. The internal FAQ section, which is the most substantial part, addresses deeper questions about feasibility, market opportunity, and business strategy. This is where you explore whether your product idea is viable and worth pursuing. What the PRFAQ Is Not The PRFAQ framework should not include: Tactical execution details Feature specifications Wireframes Branding elements Technical architecture These elements come later in the product development process, after you’ve decided the opportunity is worth pursuing. The PRFAQ is focused exclusively on vision and strategy, helping you determine if the product idea deserves your team’s time and resources. By keeping the framework focused on strategic elements rather than implementation details, you can make better decisions about which opportunities to pursue before investing significant resources in development. The Value of the PRFAQ Process The PRFAQ document itself is useful, but Marcelo explained that its real value comes from the process of creating it. This process consists of three key phases that help teams discover, debate, and decide on the right product strategy. Discovery, Debate, and Decision The PRFAQ framework creates a structured approach to product innovation: Discovery: Identify what you know (facts) and don’t know (assumptions) Debate: Get input from various stakeholders to strengthen the concept Decision: Build conviction to move forward or not with the opportunity The PRFAQ is what you do “before day one” – before you start planning, developing roadmaps, designing user experiences, or building proof of concepts. The goal is to answer one fundamental question: Should we pursue this opportunity? Forcing Critical Questions One of the framework’s greatest strengths is that it forces teams to answer hard questions about customers and problems before committing resources to development: Critical Questions 26283_8f50c4-52> Why They Matter 26283_e8a140-8c> Who is the customer? 26283_876c5a-7a> Ensures you’re targeting the right audience 26283_08b34e-28> What problem are we solving? 26283_b1135e-a8> Confirms you’re addressing a real need 26283_cf421e-e0> How are they solving it today? 26283_92ec44-04> Identifies competitors and alternatives 26283_0af8b1-2d> Is the problem growing or shrinking? 26283_0ebdad-29> Determines future market potential 26283_ebaa7f-ab> Is it urgent? 26283_3d8091-80> Affects adoption rate and pricing power 26283_99e788-2a> Do they have a satisfactory solution already? 26283_d1b61b-14> Indicates how difficult displacement will be 26283_07dd64-4c> By addressing these questions early in the process, teams can identify what they know with certainty and what assumptions need validation. Writing a coherent PRFAQ requires either facts or assumptions – and identifying assumptions is the first step toward turning them into facts through market research. Distinguishing Facts from Assumptions A well-crafted PRFAQ clearly distinguishes between: Facts about customers – Their problems, existing solutions, and market conditions Assumptions about your solution – How it will deliver value and differentiate from alternatives Marcelo pointed out that many product failures stem from treating assumptions as facts. The PRFAQ process helps teams recognize what they don’t know, creating opportunities to validate assumptions before making significant investments. When you identify gaps in your knowledge through this process, you can develop targeted research to fill those gaps, significantly improving your chances of creating a product customers actually want. The PRFAQ Review Process At Amazon, the PRFAQ isn’t just written – it’s reviewed, debated, and improved through a structured process. Review Session Structure The PRFAQ review follows a specific format designed to generate productive feedback: Led by a “single threaded leader” responsible for the document Small groups of 2-6 people per session First 20 minutes: Everyone reads the document Next 40 minutes: Questions and feedback This structure might seem awkward at first – Marcelo admitted it felt strange during his first weeks at Amazon – but it offers distinct advantages over traditional review methods. The Power of Reading During Meetings Having everyone read the document during the meeting offers several benefits: Allows people to read at their own pace Provides time to highlight unclear points Enables reviewers to revisit sections for better understanding Ensures everyone has actually read the document before providing feedback During the discussion portion, reviewers typically ask for clarifications or point out potential issues with the concept. This feedback strengthens the PRFAQ and helps you identify blind spots in the strategy. Recommended Review Sequence Marcelo suggested a specific order for conducting PRFAQ reviews: Start with other product managers who are comfortable with ambiguity Expand to other departments with relevant expertise Include executives and key stakeholders This progression helps refine the concept gradually before it faces more rigorous scrutiny from decision-makers. Typical PRFAQ Cadence At Amazon, product managers are deeply immersed in this process: A typical product manager reads 1-2 PRFAQs per week They lead creation of one PRFAQ every 6-12 months Most reviews involve stakeholders with direct interest in the product This regular exposure to others’ PRFAQs provides learning opportunities, helping product managers understand what kinds of questions they should anticipate when developing their own documents. After gathering feedback, Marcelo recommended waiting a day before making edits. This pause allows the product manager to digest comments, think through implications, and make thoughtful improvements rather than reactive changes. The review process creates alignment and buy-in across teams, ensuring that if the project moves forward, everyone understands the vision and feels ownership in its success. Practical Applications of the PRFAQ The PRFAQ framework isn’t just for large companies like Amazon. Marcelo shared how he’s applied this approach to his own projects, demonstrating its versatility across different contexts. Case Study: Using PRFAQ for a Book Project Marcelo explained how he used the PRFAQ framework to prepare for writing for his own book, The PRFAQ Framework. By treating the book as a product, he gained valuable insights: Initially planned to write “PRFAQ for Founders” as his working title Through the PRFAQ process, discovered the target audience was too narrow Market research revealed 20 times more product managers than founders Expanded focus to “innovators” regardless of title This shift in target audience wouldn’t have happened without the structured thinking the PRFAQ framework enforced. By questioning his assumptions about who would benefit from his book, Marcelo made a strategic pivot that significantly expanded his potential readership. Market Research Through PRFAQ Another valuable application Marcelo described was using the framework for competitive analysis: Identifying what solutions already exist in the market Understanding how customers are currently solving their problems Finding gaps and opportunities for differentiation For his book project, this meant researching other product strategy frameworks (like OKRs and Business Model Canvas) to ensure he was offering something unique and valuable. Simply providing a PRFAQ template wouldn’t be sufficient – just as explaining OKRs without implementation guidance wouldn’t be helpful. This insight led him to focus on the method behind creating and using the PRFAQ, not just the document structure. By applying the framework to his own project, Marcelo demonstrated how it helps innovators validate their ideas before investing significant time and resources. This practical example shows how product managers in any organization can benefit from this strategic thinking approach. Common Mistakes to Avoid Marcelo identified several common mistakes that can undermine the PRFAQ framework’s effectiveness. Understanding these pitfalls can help product teams implement the approach more successfully. Treating the PRFAQ as a Marketing Tool The most common mistake Marcelo has seen is treating the PRFAQ as a marketing document rather than a product strategy tool. The PRFAQ is not what you create a month before launch It’s not a substitute for launch marketing materials Marketing teams have better tools for launch preparation Using the PRFAQ only at launch time misses the entire point of the framework, which is to validate ideas before significant resources are invested in development. Treating the PRFAQ as a Roadmap Another common mistake is packing the PRFAQ with excessive plans and details about execution: What to Avoid 26283_45b43a-10> Why It’s Problematic 26283_82dbad-fd> Detailed wireframes 26283_45d19a-cc> Suggests design decisions are already made 26283_3dda8b-c6> Feature lists 26283_63cd5e-80> Shifts focus to solutions before problems are validated 26283_475453-f2> Technical architecture 26283_fa2403-72> Implies technical approach is predetermined 26283_b19b8e-e9> Roadmap details 26283_479a9a-5b> Assumes timeline before strategy is approved 26283_15c0fb-c1> Proof of concepts 26283_ef4ad1-e3> Represents significant investment before validation 26283_64e7c8-60> If you’ve already done all this work, you’re halfway committed to this project, but the PRFAQ is supposed to help you decide whether to invest in development, not document decisions you’ve already made. Not Distinguishing Facts from Assumptions Another mistake is failing to differentiate between: Facts: Information about customers and their problems that is supported by evidence Assumptions: Hypotheses about your solution and its potential impact Many PRFAQs present assumptions as facts, which can lead to flawed decision-making. Statements like “most users will love this feature” without supporting data would never be acceptable in an Amazon PRFAQ review. Instead, assumptions should be clearly labeled: “We assume that most users would prefer this approach.” This clarity helps teams identify what needs to be validated before proceeding. Not Right-Sizing the Effort Marcelo suggested that a PRFAQ should take about 1-2 weeks to develop (after you’ve done a few of them), not months. This timeframe: Is substantial enough to think through the strategy Isn’t so lengthy that it becomes a project in itself Allows you to decide whether to invest 3-9 months in development The PRFAQ is meant to be a strategic tool that helps you make good decisions quickly, not an exhaustive planning document that delays action. By avoiding these common mistakes, product teams can use the PRFAQ framework as intended – as a focused strategic exercise that helps determine which opportunities are worth pursuing. Key Benefits of the PRFAQ Approach The PRFAQ framework offers substantial benefits that extend beyond product planning. Marcelo highlighted several advantages that make this approach valuable for organizations of all sizes. Stakeholder Buy-in Through Participation One of the most significant benefits is how the PRFAQ process creates natural buy-in across the organization: Team members feel part of the decision process Energy and commitment to approved projects increases dramatically Avoids the “throwing over the wall” problem many organizations face Traditional approaches where product teams develop plans in isolation and then try to “sell” them to other departments often create resistance. Marcelo contrasted this with the PRFAQ approach, where stakeholders participate in shaping the strategy from the beginning. This collaborative process transforms how teams engage with new initiatives. Instead of being told what to execute, they help decide what’s worth pursuing in the first place. Better Alignment During Execution The PRFAQ creates remarkable alignment when implementation begins: Team members share a common understanding of strategy Less need for constant checking and clarification Fewer misunderstandings about vision and goals Marcelo identified this alignment as critical to execution success. When everyone has participated in early strategic discussions, they understand not just what they’re building, but why they’re building it. This shared context prevents the confusion that often plagues product development projects. As Marcelo noted, “the biggest problem with most product projects is a lack of strategy, not a bad strategy.” Conclusion The Amazon PRFAQ framework offers product teams a powerful way to validate ideas before investing significant resources in development. By writing a press release and FAQs for a product that doesn’t yet exist, teams are forced to clarify their vision, understand customer problems, and make better strategic decisions. As Marcelo demonstrated through his own experience applying the framework to his book project, this approach works for organizations of all sizes and can transform how teams approach innovation. While implementing the PRFAQ process requires some cultural adaptation, the benefits far outweigh the initial awkwardness. Teams gain stronger alignment, better decision-making capabilities, and a clearer distinction between facts and assumptions. By focusing on strategy before execution, organizations can avoid building products nobody wants and instead create solutions that truly solve customer problems. Whether you’re a product manager, founder, or innovator within your organization, the PRFAQ approach provides a structured path to more successful product development. Useful Links Check out The PRFAQ Framework Connect with Marcelo on LinkedIn Innovation Quote “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.” – attributed to Henry Ford Application Questions How could you adapt the PRFAQ review process to fit your organization’s current meeting culture? What specific changes would you need to make to ensure stakeholders engage meaningfully with the document? How could your team better distinguish between facts and assumptions in your current product planning process? Where do you see assumptions being treated as facts, and what steps could you take to validate these assumptions? How might you implement the PRFAQ approach for an existing product that needs significant improvement? What would be different compared to using it for a completely new product? How could you use the PRFAQ framework to evaluate multiple competing opportunities? What additional criteria might you add to help prioritize between several promising PRFAQs? How could you measure the effectiveness of implementing the PRFAQ process in your organization? What indicators would show that it’s improving your product development outcomes? Bio Marcelo Calbucci is an entrepreneur, innovator, and technologist. He’s been building software products for over thirty years, having sold his first software at age fourteen. He has worked at Microsoft (Exchange Server & Bing) and Amazon (People eXperience & Technology), leading software engineering, product, data science, and UX. He has founded six startups in Seattle and London and launched a dozen tech projects. He’s the inventor of eleven patents. Marcelo has been a community builder in Seattle, organizing dozens of meetups, events, and conferences, and he has written over one thousand blog posts and articles on his web-site and other tech publications. Outside of tech and startups, Marcelo loves to cook elaborate meals for friends, run marathons (eight and counting), and travel with his wife and kids. 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. Source