Episode 245: Building Product Thinking in Engineering Teams with Matt Watson
Join Melissa Perri as she sits down with Matt Watson, founder and CEO of Full Scale, to delve into the evolving world of product management and software development. In this insightful conversation, Matt shares his journey from developer to CEO, offering lessons on how to blend engineering expertise with product thinking. Discover how Matt encourages a culture of ownership and courage among teams, and how AI is reshaping the roles of engineers and product managers alike.If you're interested in enhancing your product management skills and understanding the importance of clarity, communication, and collaboration in tech teams, this episode is a must-listen. Matt’s insights will resonate with anyone looking to break out of the build trap and focus on delivering real value to customers.Tune in to gain practical strategies for fostering innovation and empowering your team to think beyond the code.You’ll hear us talk about:10:15 - Encouraging Product Thinking in EngineersMatt discusses the importance of engineers understanding the product's broader impact, not just focusing on the technical aspects. He emphasizes the need for engineers to see themselves as part of the product team, contributing to the overall vision and strategy.22:40 - The Role of Clarity and CommunicationIn this segment, Matt highlights the significance of maintaining clarity in software development. He shares how regular communication and one-on-ones are essential for coaching and ensuring everyone understands the vision and scope of projects.35:55 - The Impact of AI on Engineering RolesMatt explores how AI is transforming traditional engineering roles, pushing engineers to adopt more product thinking. He underscores the growing importance of emotional intelligence and teamwork as AI takes on more technical tasks.Episode resources:Matt on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattwatsonkc/Product Driven: https://productdriven.com/Full Scale: https://fullscale.io/about-us/Check out Monday dev: http://monday.com/devCheck our courses: https://productinstitute.com/Timestamps:00:00 Matt's career journey08:07 Giving engineers context and autonomy 15:51 Building psychological safety for courage21:26 Creating ownership through one-on-ones26:31 Redefining roles in the age of AI 30:16 Shifting from order takers to product owners
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Episode 244: Thriving as a Platform Product Manager
What advice can you give for transitioning from end-user product management to platform product management, particularly regarding daily responsibilities and understanding the new role?The podcast discusses the transition to platform product management, emphasizing the importance of understanding internal users and workflows. It advises product managers to learn technical aspects like APIs and DevOps, collaborate with engineering teams, and align platform strategies with commercial goals. The role requires a focus on scalability and internal user experience while maintaining awareness of business objectives, highlighting the growing demand for skilled platform product managers.Episode resources:Check out Monday dev: http://monday.com/devGet a Angel Squad Guest pass: https://go.angelsquad.co/melissaCheck all the podcast episodes here: https://www.produxlabs.com/product-thinkingThis episode was originally aired on December 15th 2023.
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Episode 243: Embracing Visual Collaboration in the Age of AI with Elaina O’Mahoney
In this episode of the Product Thinking Podcast, Melissa Perri sits down with Elaina O'Mahoney, the Chief Product Officer at Mural, to explore the evolving landscape of product operations, the strategic use of AI, and the essential collaboration between product and go-to-market teams. Elaina shares her insights into how organizations can streamline their product operations and effectively integrate AI to enhance user experience without losing the human touch.She also delves into the dynamics of working with go-to-market teams to ensure products are aligned with market needs from the outset. For product leaders looking to enhance their strategic approach and better align with sales and marketing, this episode provides valuable perspectives and practical advice from a seasoned expert in the field.Want to understand how to integrate AI into your products strategically and enhance your product operations? Tune in to hear Elaina's insights on building a collaborative product culture.You'll hear us talk about:06:01 - Visual Collaboration and Decision MakingElaina discusses the transformative role of visual collaboration tools like MURAL in product development. She highlights how these tools enable faster decision-making and efficient iteration by providing a shared visual language across teams.20:57 - Embedding Product with Go-To-Market TeamsElaina explores the benefits of integrating product management with go-to-market strategies. She explains how involving product marketing early in the process leads to a more seamless transition from development to market, reducing friction and accelerating time-to-market.28:27 - Future of Product OperationsElaina shares her vision for the future of product operations, emphasizing the need to streamline tools and processes. She talks about the importance of focusing on outcomes, customer needs, and metrics to avoid the trap of building features without clear purpose.Episode resources:Mural: https://www.mural.co/Elaina on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eomahoney/Check out Monday dev: http://monday.com/devCheck our courses: https://productinstitute.com/Timestamps:00:00 Entering Mural and navigating product leadership10:57 Enabling product creativity and outcome-driven teams16:26 Building strong partnerships with sales and GTM teams24:29 Balancing AI innovation with enterprise needs30:34 Future of product leadership and final reflections
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Episode 242: Why Context Switching Slows You Down
What advice do you have for a situation where multiple product managers are accessing the same developer team, potentially slowing down delivery?Navigating multiple product managers sharing the same development team can lead to inefficiencies and context switching, which negatively impacts productivity. It's crucial to have dedicated developers for specific areas to improve ownership and accountability. The typical ratio of product managers to developers should be reconsidered, and if the workload is too high, hiring more developers may be necessary. Tracking productivity metrics and engaging developers in discussions can help present a case for leadership to make informed decisions about team structure and resource allocation.Episode resources:Check out Monday dev: http://monday.com/devGet a Angel Squad Guest pass: https://go.angelsquad.co/melissaCheck all the podcast episodes here: https://www.produxlabs.com/product-thinking
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Episode 241: Mastering AI Strategy in Enterprise Teams with Maryam Ashoori
In this episode of the Product Thinking Podcast, Dr. Maryam Ashoori joins Melissa Perri to explore the transformative impact of AI on product management. Maryam shares her insights into how AI is reshaping roles within the industry, particularly the evolving relationship between product managers and engineers. With AI increasingly influencing design processes, she discusses the shift from traditional UI building to prompt definition. The conversation also delves into the distinct capabilities of AI agents compared to generative AI, highlighting their potential for reasoning and task automation.Maryam provides valuable guidance for enterprises on adopting AI strategically, emphasizing the importance of focusing on specific problems rather than being swayed by emerging technologies. The episode also touches on the challenges large organizations face in integrating AI tools amidst rapid technological changes.Curious about how AI can redefine your product management approach? Tune in to this episode for a deep dive into AI's role in transforming industry practices and discover actionable insights for leveraging AI within your organization.You’ll hear us talk about:05:45 - The Evolution of Product Management Roles with AIMaryam discusses the increasing integration of AI in product management, emphasizing the shift towards focusing on building the right products, not just any products. She highlights how AI is changing the dynamics between product managers and engineers.14:10 - Designers' New Role in the AI EraThe conversation shifts to how AI is impacting design roles, with designers moving away from traditional UI construction to defining prompts for AI. Maryam explains how this evolution is changing the design landscape.22:30 - Strategic AI Adoption in EnterprisesMaryam shares her insights on how enterprises can successfully adopt AI by starting small with proof of concepts and scaling strategically. She emphasizes focusing on problem-solving rather than being distracted by the latest tech trends.Episode resources:Maryam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mashoori/Watsonx.governance: https://www.ibm.com/products/watsonx-governanceCheck out Monday dev: http://monday.com/devCheck our courses: https://productinstitute.com/Timestamps:00:00 Introduction02:43 Maryam's career journey05:07 AI agents and their role in business07:45 Capabilities and limitations of AI agents16:07 Guardrails and practical use of AI in teams24:21 Creativity, UI standardization, and product strategy28:10 Enterprise AI adoption and building future-ready strategy34:38 Emerging trends and opportunities for product leaders
Successful product management isn’t just about training the product managers who work side by side with developers everyday to build better products. It’s about taking a step back, approaching the systems within organizations as a whole, and leveling up product leadership to improve these systems. This is the Product Thinking Podcast, where Melissa Perri will connect with industry leading experts in the product management space, AND answer your most pressing questions about everything product. Join us each week to level up your skillset and invest in yourself as a product leader.
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