Product Growth Podcast

Sam Kawsarani, the VP of Product at Paramount Commerce with over 15 years of experience, dives into the evolving landscape of product management in the age of AI. He discusses AI's actual impact on daily PM tasks and the necessity of human insight in decision-making. Kawsarani addresses the pros and cons of AI, emphasizing the balance of efficiency and creativity. He also shares valuable tips for aspiring product managers, highlights the importance of mentorship, and reflects on navigating personal and professional challenges.

Ravi Mehta, Co-Founder and CEO of Outpace, previously CPO at Tinder and Director at Meta, shares his expertise on crafting effective product strategies. He emphasizes the importance of visual elements, like wireframes, in aligning stakeholders. The discussion covers balancing strategy with execution, using customer data wisely, and the significance of collaboration across teams. Ravi also introduces the NCT framework for goal-setting and highlights the need for flexibility in product plans, drawing insights from his rich experience in tech.

Stephanie Leue, a seasoned Group Product Manager at Ringier with over 15 years in product management, shares her insights on building high-performing teams. She reveals that only 10-20% of teams reach high performance, emphasizing trust and accountability. Stephanie discusses how emotional intelligence and support create effective teams and introduces her assessment framework using People, Processes, Purpose, and Performance. She also highlights the value of collaboration and the need for innovative approaches in product management.

Meta has one of the most unique Product Growth cultures of any company out there. In today’s episode we break down the function with Andre Nader.Andre spent 9+ years at Meta in Product Growth, and before that he was at Indeed, BuildASign, and Offers.com.In today’s episode, we cover:* How to Break Into Meta | 2:04* Meta's Unique Product Growth Function | 12:20* How Meta (and Facebook) Does Product Growth | 30:10* How to Optimize Your FAANG Compensation | 48:30* The Path to FIRE (in San Francisco) | 1:06:05Brought to you by:* June.so: Customer analytics for product focused teams* Cello: Your all-in-one platform for partner & user referrals* Attio: The next generation CRMHere are the key takeawaysThere were so many things I learned, but here is a summary of my favorites.How to Break Into MetaYou want recruiters to reach out to you. To do so, find out where people who are now in the role you are wanting worked in the past.Recruiters are constantly setting out feelers on LinkedIn, and they like go back to the same companies and teams over time — like Indeed’s growth marketing team, and Capital One’s analytics team.Meta’s Unique Product Growth FunctionEvery product team at Meta has a Product Manager, but only certain teams have a Product Growth Analyst. The Product Growth person’s job is to amplify the growth and success of the product by focusing on a specific metric.They play a hybrid data science/ product management role, and the core characteristic is they do “whatever it takes.”How Meta (fka Facebook) Does Product GrowthUnderstand, Identify, Execute is their core framework. It’s a data-driven, fast-paced approach to growth.But that doesn’t mean they use complex data science metrics. Their goal is to move a key, simple metric. And they’ll make a thousand small optimizations to get there.How to Optimize Your FAANG CompensationIt’s less about optimize and more about understand. Most people lack that basic understanding of how much they are actually getting compensated. And the ‘TC’ they share is usually bogus.But, once you do have a grip on how much you make, it does make sense to optimize your tax strategy with backdoor and mega backdoor Roth IRAs.The Path to FIRE (in San Francisco)With a 50/50 bond-stock portfolio, based on history, a 3% withdrawal rate will never run out of money. Living in San Francisco with one kid, for Andre and his lifestyle the number he needed was $5.6M.Your number may be different based on your expenses, but it might not be as high as you think. It’s worth doing the math.Check out the whole episode for many more details!We have some great podcasts coming from Stephanie Leue, Ravi Mehta, and Sam Kawsarani. I can’t wait to share them with you. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.news.aakashg.com/subscribe

Jason Knight, a tech veteran with over 25 years of product management experience, shares his insights on the complexities of B2B product management. He discusses the myth of agile development in B2B, stressing the need to balance revenue pressures with thoughtful planning. Knight elaborates on building a strong product culture, prioritizing features, and navigating customer feedback. He also highlights the critical relationship between product management and sales, advocating for empathy and collaboration to drive success.

Satyajeet Salgar, a Director of Product Management at Google with over 16 years of experience, shares invaluable insights on product strategy. He discusses the critical elements of effective strategy documents, stressing the importance of adapting strategies over time. Satyajeet emphasizes the role of AI in shaping product innovations and the necessity of using unstructured data for better decision-making. He also offers advice on fostering a culture of product within teams and explores strategic risk-taking through examples from giants like Netflix and Amazon.

Anthony, a leading writer on Product Marketing with extensive experience at FletchPMM, shares invaluable insights on the art of positioning. He describes how clear messaging can elevate a company's homepage and outlines the collaborative nature of product positioning among teams. Anthony discusses the strategic importance of effective frames of reference for new offerings and the pitfalls companies often face as they grow. He advocates for product-led growth strategies that simplify communication to boost customer engagement and conversion.

Kyle Poyar, a leading expert in SaaS pricing, shares his insights on optimizing pricing strategies. He highlights common pitfalls like overly generous free plans and the need for early monetization considerations. Poyar discusses the evolution of pricing models, emphasizing that pricing should grow significantly as companies progress. He also notes the blurred lines between B2B and B2C pricing and suggests learning from both sides. Key strategies for improving free-to-paid conversions and crafting effective pricing pages are explored for anyone involved in pricing decisions.