Product Thinking

In this episode of Product Thinking, Bethany Lyons, Chief Product Officer at KAWA Analytics, joins Melissa Perri to unveil the role of a data-driven product manager in early-stage startups. They explore the world of operational intelligence, the importance of identifying high-demand customers, and the balance between pioneering and optimization in startups. Bethany also touches on the crucial aspects of seamless onboarding during early-stage product development and highlights the significance of choosing the right customers when scaling.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Jag Duggal, Chief Product Officer at Nubank, joins Melissa Perri to unravel the process of building a strong global product management team in a fast-growing business. They also dive into the importance of customer obsession, challenges in talent acquisition, and the power of documented principles in scaling businesses.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Bryan House, Chief Experience Officer at Elastic Path, joins Melissa Perri to explore the close collaboration between product and customer success in building a customer-centric organization.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Tom Eisenmann, Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, joins Melissa Perri to dive into "Why Startups Fail," his transformative book. Specifically, they dive into the inspiration of the book, six unique types of startup failures and how to avoid them, as well as strategies for hiring your first product manager.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Chris Andrews, Chief Operating Officer and Head of Product at Rendered.AI, joins Melissa Perri to unveil the challenges and strategies involved in building products in new markets, as well as the unique aspects of product management in these markets. They discuss how product managers can introduce new market opportunities, the role of product management in new markets versus saturated ones, securing success in early-stage ventures, and navigating innovation in larger organizations.

In this Dear Melissa segment, Melissa Perri answers subscribers’ questions about platform product management, including the challenges of re-platforming products at the enterprise level; the fundamental differences between end-user product management and technical product management; and the significance of product discovery in platform teams.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Luke Skurman, CEO of Niche, joins Melissa Perri to explore the incredible story of Niche's journey from helping students choose the right college to become a successful company in the education industry. They dive into Niche's first years, how the company adapted to the changing landscape, raised funds, and achieved rapid growth when it switched from a survival mindset to a growth mindset.

In this Dear Melissa segment, Melissa Perri answers subscribers’ questions about structuring product management teams for complicated portfolios such as medical devices and having software digital products, moving from sales-led to product-led, and capacity planning for teams.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Stephanie Leue, Chief Product Officer at Doodle, joins Melissa Perri to navigate the challenges and opportunities of transitioning from a free to a subscription-based model, the importance of a strong organizational support system, and the role of data in decision-making. They also shed light on Stephanie's leadership and focus on people, purpose, process, and performance that have helped Doodle navigate complex product challenges and achieve growth.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Michelle Parsons, Product Executive in Residence at Product School, joins Melissa Perri to share what makes a stellar consumer product, the challenges of implementing user personalization, and Michelle's experiences at big consumer names like Spotify and Netflix. They also delve into the role of personalization in the dating app Hinge and its mission to create meaningful connections.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Jason Fried, Co-founder and CEO of 37signals, joins Melissa Perri to explore the importance of simplicity in product design, saying no to customer requests, designing for profitability, and running a successful business while maintaining work-life balance.

In this Dear Melissa segment, Melissa Perri answers subscribers’ questions about product ROI techniques, how we relate our product metrics to our financial metrics, buying versus building a product, and how you can get realistic market size estimates for your team.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Hubert Palan, Founder and CEO of Productboard, joins Melissa Perri to dive into the ever-changing role of product management and how it is influencing the technology industry. They also touch upon current events in the tech world, including AI, and how they may be shaping product management practices.

In this Dear Melissa segment, Melissa Perri answers subscribers’ questions about how to get your dream PM job, resources for young product managers, and how to determine if a project is a standalone product or a set of features.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Blake Samic, Former Global Head of Product Operations at Stripe, joins Melissa Perri to discuss the evolution and importance of product operations, the role of product ops in supporting product management teams, and the strategies employed to build successful teams and improve the product experience.

In this Dear Melissa segment, Melissa Perri answers subscribers’ questions about digital transformation, including how to set up a successful digital strategy for a Fortune 500 company, how to keep your digital transformation under control without pushing it too far, and how to transition product owners into product managers.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Steve Wilson, Chief Product Officer at Contrast Security, joins Melissa Perri to explore the dynamic world of product management. They dive into the intersection of customer demands and technological shifts, how to harness the power of AI in product management, the integration of AI and Machine Learning for enhanced cybersecurity, and how product managers can meet both user needs and security requirements.

In this Dear Melissa segment, Melissa Perri answers subscribers’ questions about developing the strategy for a new product, managing legacy products when you are a product owner, and redeveloping an existing product.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Melissa Perri talks with Glen Stoffel and Caryn Fried, the Co-Founders of Camp4. They talk all about tough skills for product managers such as emotional intelligence; how to deal with stakeholders; how to communicate with the rest of your team; as well as some great facilitation techniques so that you can get the work done! Both Glen and Caryn are the Co-Founders of Camp4, an organization bringing together the world’s leading sales practitioners to advise and accelerate the growth of the next generation of Salesforce innovators. Glen is also the Co-Founder of Think it Done, and previously held leadership roles at Bluewolf, an IBM company. Caryn is both the Co-Founder and CEO at Camp4, and Co-Founded Think it Done with Glen before leaving in 2020. The two have worked together closely for years and we can’t wait for you to hear their stories and gain some super actionable insights into product management and team facilitation.

In this episode, Melissa answers questions on navigating conflicting methodologies, the importance of hiring a skilled product manager, and achieving strategic alignment and execution in large enterprise companies with multiple product lines and strategies. She further delves into the importance of standardizing processes, such as product strategy cadence, roadmaps, and discovery toolkits, to facilitate coordination and collaboration. To find out how Dear Melissa is helping build the perfect product management company, head to Dear Melissa.