Lenny's Podcast: Product | Career | Growth

Ben Williams, VP of Product at Snyk, shares his insights from over 20 years in building high-performing growth teams. He discusses how Snyk effectively utilized product-led growth to captivate the developer audience and explores the challenges they faced with self-serve monetization. Ben highlights the importance of community engagement, strategic team alignment, and data-driven decision-making in fostering user adoption. He also provides valuable tips on free vs. paid models and creating cohesive growth strategies that drive substantial engagement.

Lauren Ipsen, Director of Executive Talent at General Catalyst and a seasoned recruiter, shares invaluable insights on hiring senior product leaders. She discusses the importance of building robust networks and understanding candidate profiles for successful placements. Ipsen highlights common mistakes in recruitment and stresses the value of authenticity in resumes. Additionally, she provides career advice for product leaders, encouraging a balance of specialized skills and varied experiences to navigate their career paths effectively.

Sachin Monga, Head of Product at Substack and former Facebook PM, shares insights into the evolving landscape of digital writing. He discusses the transition from large teams at Facebook to Substack’s agile environment. Listeners learn about unique reader-writer features and strategies for turning free subscribers into paying customers. Sachin emphasizes the necessity of adaptability in product management and offers advice for aspiring writers. He also touches on how Substack fosters a creative community and enhances user experiences.

Barbra Gago, founder and CEO of Pando, has an impressive marketing background with roles at Miro, Greenhouse, and CultureAmp. In this conversation, she dives into the art of category creation, explaining her successful rebranding journey at Miro and the lessons learned from a failed attempt at Greenhouse. Barbra discusses the strategic importance of understanding users and aligning brand values, as well as the complexities of rebranding and fostering employee development through innovative tools. Her insights on building opinionated software are particularly engaging.

Fareed Mosavat, Chief Development Officer at Reforge, blends insights from his journey through Pixar, Slack, and Instacart to redefine product management. He highlights the importance of storytelling in product development and offers strategies to earn trust within teams. Fareed discusses the 'manager death spiral' and the four types of product work, emphasizing how understanding these can elevate your leadership potential. His engaging anecdotes and practical advice pave the way for aspiring product leaders to navigate their careers with confidence.

Adriel Frederick, VP of Product Management at Reddit X, shares his wealth of experience from Facebook and Lyft. He highlights the importance of human judgment in product development, arguing that not everything can be solved algorithmically. Adriel discusses how diversity in teams fuels innovation and the necessity of effective onboarding for customer retention. He introduces the concept of 'cannonballs' for product strategies and emphasizes empathy alongside organization as key PM skills. His insights into the future of AI and its implications are thought-provoking and essential for aspiring product leaders.

In this engaging discussion, Janna Bastow, CEO of ProdPad and co-founder of Mind the Product, dives into the world of product management. She critiques traditional timeline-based approaches and unveils her flexible 'Now/Next/Later' framework for roadmaps. Janna shares her journey in building communities, the challenges of hosting conferences, and offers practical tips for effective presentations. Her insights highlight the need for collaboration, psychological safety in teams, and the importance of adaptability in product strategies.

Adam Fishman, a growth and product executive with a rich background at Lyft, Patreon, and Imperfect Foods, shares insights from his extensive career. He discusses the importance of a robust onboarding process in boosting user retention and aligning expectations. Adam introduces his growth PM competency model, outlining key skills for hiring growth leaders and building effective teams. He also reflects on his time at Lyft, highlighting the excitement of its launch and competition with Uber, revealing valuable lessons learned along the way.

Dan Hockenmaier, an expert in marketplace strategy and growth, shares his insights from leadership roles at Thumbtack and Faire. He discusses the importance of constructing growth models based on first principles, with a focus on customer retention as a crucial metric. The conversation dives into the complexities of managing marketplaces, balancing supply and demand, and the evolution of vertical marketplaces. Dan also highlights strategies for startups, emphasizing the significance of understanding customer dynamics to drive sustainable growth.

Kristen Berman, CEO of Irrational Labs, discusses how behavioral science transforms product design for companies like Google and TikTok. She introduces her 3B Framework, explaining how it identifies biases that hinder user engagement. Kristen elaborates on the importance of effective onboarding for customer retention and highlights innovative strategies to combat misinformation on platforms like TikTok. The conversation also touches on the ethical implications of behavioral nudges and the psychology behind user behavior, offering actionable insights for product development.