Recognizing & Owning Failure

16TuesdayAug 2022

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

My guess is as a Product Management Leader, you are likely no stranger to at least one the many personality assessments out there. And while I may be generalizing a bit, these particular traits seem to draw a common thread with many of the talented Product people I have known over the years:

High D … Enterprising … Competitive … Type A … High Expectations … Goal Oriented … Lion … Driven to Succeed

So to so say we don’t particularly like failure would be a gross understatement! But failures happen. So how are we as Product Management Leaders supposed to approach/respond to failure?

Continue reading →

Prioritization, and Backlogs and Calendars … Oh My!

21TuesdayJun 2022

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

In our roles as Product Management leaders, sometimes humor is needed otherwise we might just go crazy! So thank you to the folks at Productboard who posted this recently, I have definitely used a few of them with teammates.

Here are just a few of the memes from the Productboard post … enjoy, and pass the humor along! And check out their full post for more.

Continue reading →

What About Me?!

28SaturdayMay 2022

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

I was listening to a podcast this morning where the speaker defined leadership as ‘taking initiative for the good of others‘. But that doesn’t feel normal. It doesn’t align with the fend for yourself mentality shared my many in my sphere of influence. It doesn’t jive with most of what I’ve experienced in Corporate America over the course of my career. It doesn’t help explain the outcome of one of my positions where I performed above expectations, and yet was still unceremoniously shown the exit door after the close of an acquisition.

Do you see what happened within the short period of my intro? The context of the conversation quickly changed from others with the definition of leadership, to me as an individual. And therein lies much of the problem.

While everything I mentioned above is factual … it is indeed how I feel at times … I have to be intentional to not let it allow me to slip into a mentality of being the victim. I know better, sometimes I just need a reminder. We all do.

Continue reading →

Dreaming in Years … Doing the Impossible

08FridayApr 2022

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

There are times as Product Management leaders when you will be faced with a challenge seemingly too monumental to accomplish … a mountain too big to climb. It’s not a matter of if, but rather when. So how should we approach these types of situations? What is our role/response in an environment where change is a constant, and at times the changes feel overwhelming?

You know, I’ve never even looked at the context of what he was facing at the time … some say it was about extreme poverty, others say it was about achieving peace … but I’ve always been encouraged by this particular quote. And today I will use this as a launch point for another specific example hopefully many of us can latch on to.

Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.

St. Francis of Assisi
Continue reading →

Strategy & Execution – Two Sides to the Same Coin

16WednesdayMar 2022

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

I recently read Stephen Haines’ post titled Agile Killed Product Management, and honestly I wasn’t sure what to make of it. As I comment in my About section, I have been influenced over the years by many Product Management methodologies/frameworks because while they may take different approaches, they all focus on setting a proper foundation for the organization.

Stephen’s books and the Sequent learning approach to Product Management have played a big role in informing my thinking. So has Pragmatic Marketing and the thoughts Steve Johnson has brought to the table … including this article titled You Can’t Have Everything he happened to coincidentally post recently (or perhaps not so coincidentally).

So I tend to pay attention when these authors have something to say. But I was having a hard time wrapping my head around the first article. So what is it Stephen is trying to point out in saying Agile killed Product Management? Was the title merely something to hook readers in? Or was there something deeper to it? My thoughts on exploring the two posts follow, but before proceeding here I highly suggest you go back and read them both.

Continue reading →

And So the Platform Journey Begins – Part 2 of 2

09WednesdayFeb 2022

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

As a conclusion to the last several posts focusing on a Platform Vision session with our company Sales Kickoff event, it’s time to transition from the ‘what’ and ‘why’ portion of the discussion to the ‘where’ and ‘how’. As a reminder, the essence of the exploration stems from a discussion from Simon Sinek:

  • Purpose: Why are we here?
  • Vision: Where are we going?
  • Mission: How will we get there?
  • Values: What’s important along the way?

In my last post, I established a definition for what a platform is, and provided insights regarding the success company’s realize when following a platform based business model (the why). In this post, the focus will be on defining the end-state (or vision), and tease the discussion about how to get there.

Continue reading →

And So the Platform Journey Begins – Part 1 of 2

21FridayJan 2022

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

So in my December post, I was contemplating the best approach for an afternoon Product session in our company’s Sales Kickoff event.  It included an exploration of ideas from Simon Sinek:

  • Purpose: Why are we here?
  • Vision: Where are we going?
  • Mission: How will we get there?
  • Values: What’s important along the way?

My task really will be about bridging the why conversation into the where and how themes above.  But in the December post I mentioned, I first had to answer the question why did I choose the role in the first place?  And the conclusion of the post brought me to the topic that has enthralled me for the past 7 years … being a student of the transformational and disruptive nature of APIs, platforms and newer digital technologies.

Check … there is alignment between the company aspiration and my interests … pursuing a platform-based business model. 

But what does this mean?  Why is it important?  And most importantly, how do we get people excited about the destination while at the same time grounding them in what to sell now?

And so the journey begins.

Continue reading →

SKO, Casting Vision, & Platforms

20MondayDec 2021

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , ,

Our Sales Kickoff event is rapidly approaching, and following the morning sessions where the executives will share company results, company strategy, and more … I was asked to lead off the afternoon Product session.  As I thought through how I would approach the conversation, a series of questions rolled through my head.

What is important to this Sales organization? What would be the best way to tie all of the pieces together? What was it that had me excited about our path forward? And in order to answer those questions, I had to take a step back and answer another question first.  What convinced me to take this role in the first place?

Continue reading →

PM as Presenter (Part 2) – Handling Hostile Audiences: Preparation

20MondaySep 2021

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

The PM as Presenter series were posts I had started on LinkedIn a long time ago. In shutting down the group on LinkedIn, they got lost. Good content, so wanted to make sure it resurfaced. Unfortunately, part 1 in the series is completely lost (dealing with anxiety). Parts 2 & 3 I will make available now. Part 4 was posted back in March 2015. Enjoy.

Continue reading →