The Product Experience

Roni Ben Aharon, CPO and co-founder of Craft.io, shares his expertise in product management, having worked with industry giants like Booking.com and Wix. He discusses the delicate art of sunsetting features, using the retirement of Craft.io’s visual spec tool as a case study. Roni emphasizes the hidden costs of underused features and the importance of user empathy. He warns against hasty decisions and highlights collaboration between teams as crucial for successful transitions. Listeners gain insight into the challenges of managing legacy features and ensuring effective communication during change.

Jo Wickremasinghe, Chief Product & Technology Officer at BPP, shares insights from her unique journey from aeronautical engineering to leading product transformation. She discusses the pivotal role of product managers as change agents in enhancing team success and efficiency. Jo emphasizes the importance of embracing feedback and collaboration, tackling challenges in prototype testing, and navigating regulatory changes. She also highlights the need for dual expertise in product and technology leadership to drive alignment and innovation within organizations.

In this conversation, Dave Killeen, VP of Product at Pendo, shares his favorite AI tools for product managers. He dives into how these tools can boost productivity and improve communication, spotlighting innovations like Super Whisper for converting voice notes to text. Dave also reflects on the evolving role of product leaders amidst the AI boom, emphasizing the need for a balance between technology and human interaction. With tips on time management and storytelling in product development, he underscores the importance of continuous learning in a tech-driven landscape.

Dave Wascha, CPTO and advisor with a rich background at Microsoft, Moonpig, and Zoopla, addresses a crisis in product management he dubs 'The Reckoning.' He discusses the backlash product professionals face and how to reclaim credibility. With insights into the evolution of European product management, he emphasizes the need for empathy and economic awareness. Dave advocates for flexibility and problem-solving in approaching product challenges and explores the shifting roles of leaders, stressing the importance of adaptability in today's market.

In this engaging conversation, Vincent Jong, CPO at Dealfront, shares insights from his experience navigating product leadership during mergers and acquisitions. He emphasizes the importance of product leaders as key stakeholders in M&A processes. Vincent discusses how to spot red flags and the critical need for clear objectives and cultural alignment. He also offers tactical advice on managing integrations, highlighting the significance of adaptability and strategic communication to ensure success amidst complexity.

Trisha Price, CPO at Pendo, shares her insights on establishing a successful product organization, highlighting her experience in guiding teams through growth. She discusses the shift towards an outcome-driven culture and the importance of aligning product teams with customer insights. Trisha emphasizes measuring success with qualitative metrics like NPS and using AI to understand customer sentiment. She also advocates for integrating OKRs to foster innovation and collaboration, showcasing practices that encourage engagement and quick iterations in product development.

Zan Gilani, Principal Product Manager at Duolingo, shares intriguing insights into the AI avatar, Lily, enhancing language learning through conversation practice. He discusses the challenges of creating engaging conversational AI and emphasizes emotional well-being in the learning process. Zan also reveals Duolingo's innovative approach to gamification and user engagement, and how strategic A/B testing has shaped their product evolution. The conversation wraps up with valuable lessons on measuring success in learning products and scaling effectively.

In this conversation on this week's podcast, Adam Warburton, Co-Founder of Rove, shares his journey from being a Chief Product Officer at large firms like Co-op and Travelex, to co-founding his startup, Rove. He discusses the challenges and learnings from transitioning to a startup environment, the importance of prototyping and user feedback, and the balance between being product-led and sales-led.Featured LinksFollow Adam on LinkedIn  Rove  Co-op Marty Cagan's book 'Inspired: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love'Chapters 00:00 Expectation vs. Reality in Happiness05:08 Transitioning from Corporate to Startup Life10:05 The Importance of Prototyping and User Feedback14:58 Navigating Product vs. Sales-Led Strategies20:00 The Value of Co-Founders in Entrepreneurship25:13 Learning from Experience: Shaping Product Practices29:46 Pragmatism Over Theory in Product Management35:08 Coaching and Training: Evolving PerspectivesKey takeawaysHappiness is expectation divided by reality.Transitioning from corporate to startup life brings unexpected challenges.Prototyping and user feedback are crucial in early stages.Navigating product vs. sales led strategies is essential for growth.Co-founders significantly enhance the entrepreneurial experience.Pragmatism often trumps theoretical frameworks in product management.Learning from experience shapes product practices.The importance of being adaptable in product strategies.Building a prototype can lead to significant traction.Coaching should focus on maximizing impact with available resources.Our HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

Yorai Gabriel, author of "The Innovator's Drama," dives into the intriguing interplay of conflict and creativity in product management. He discusses how tensions can arise in diverse teams but can also serve as a springboard for innovation. Gabriel emphasizes the power of effective communication in resolving conflicts and highlights the role of 'graph thinking' to visualize issues. He explains how understanding drama can lead to learning opportunities, ultimately transforming workplace challenges into productive forces for growth.

Shannon Scott, SVP and Global Head of Product at Airwallex, delves into the intricacies of product leadership and career navigation. He emphasizes that product understanding drives better outcomes and that career choices in startups are often reversible. Shannon highlights the importance of hiring for adaptability and experience while valuing diverse perspectives. He discusses the critical role of customer relationships and the need to grasp complex customer needs for successful enterprise products. Mistakes in startups, he argues, can be pivotal learning opportunities.