Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
What Product Leaders Do
Rich MironovProduct Camp Portland
7 March 2020
• Software product manager since 1988• Product leader since 1991
• 8 full-time leader roles (Director, VP, CEO)• 9 interim VP Product (“smokejumper”) roles
• Writer, mentor, Product Camp founder• Moving to PDX this summer!
About Rich
THE A
RT OF PRO
DUC
T MA
NA
GEM
ENT Rich M
ironov
THE ART OFPRODUCT MANAGEMENTL E S S O N S F R O M A S I L I C O N VA L L E Y I N N O VA T O R
Rich Mironov&(2��0LURQRY�&RQVXOWLQJ
“Rich is a thought leader among technology practitioners. He balances practical experience with systematic insights into how products are built and what makes start-ups successful. This book captures the wisdom he has accumulated, along with considerable scar tissue.”
Henry Chesbrough, author of Open Innovation and professor at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business
The Art of Product Management takes us inside the head of a product management thought leader. With color and humor, Rich Mironov gives us a taste of Silicon Valley’s tireless pursuit of great technology and its creation of new products. He provides strategic advice about start-ups and big organizations, how to think like a customer, and what things should cost—while reminding us to love our products and our teams. The Art of Product Management brings together the best insights from more than seven years of Product Bytes.
“This book is for everyone who needs to understand how customers think and companies work. Don’t plan your next product until you’ve read these real-life lessons.”
Steve Westly, CEO of The Westly Group and former California State Controller
“The Art of Product Management is a true resource for product management and market-ing problem solving. This book should be on every product professional’s desk.”
David Taber, CEO of SalesLogistix
“Like a master filmmaker, Rich sheds a soft light on the sometimes harsh realities of prod-uct management, bringing a rare moment of entertainment to those of us solving hard problems for our customers.”
Luke Hohmann, CEO of Enthiosys
“I’ve trained thousands of product management professionals over the last 12 years at Pragmatic Marketing and have recommended Product Bytes to seminar attendees since it began in 2002. Each article hits a product management pain point and gives specific tips or tools to solve it”
Steve Johnson, VP, Pragmatic Marketing andauthor of The Strategic Role of Product Management
“In my 15 years working with technology companies, Rich is the ONLY product guy I’ve ever found who truly understands the processes, people, and politics behind creating products. This book should be required reading for every product manager in Silicon Valley!”
Andrea Corney, President, Acorn Consulting
“Any aspiring or experienced product manager can use Rich’s collection as an illuminat-ing set of career mile-markers.”
Steven Haines, President of Sequent Learning Networks and author of The Product Manager’s Desk Reference
0LURQRY�&RQVXOWLQJ6DQ�)UDQFLVFR��&$�������ZZZ�PLURQRY�FRP
US $21.95
2160647814399
ISBN 978-1-4392-1606-490000 >
@RichMironov
• Drives delivery and market acceptance of whole products• Targets market segments, not individual customers• “What does this segment need/what will it pay for?”• Technical features and acceptance and adoption• Resolves inevitable competing priorities• Motivates/aligns functional groups
beyond development (marketing, sales, support, partners, finance…)
What Does a Product Manager Do?
@RichMironov
Context, conversations, market view, priorities, problem statements,roadmaps, epics, user stories,
backlogs, personas…
product bits
Revenue forecasts, commitments, roadmaps,
strategy
budgets, staff,targets
“ input & feedback”
Sellable stories, segmentation, messages, benefits/features, pricing, demos…
Markets & Customers
Makers(Development,
Design…)
Marketing& Sales
Executives
ProductManagement
What Does a Product Manager Do?
@RichMironov
“Be a mensch, not (just) an MBA”Mensch (n): A person of integrity and honor who• Helps people• Does right things the right way• Pays it forward
• Manages a team of product managers• …might also include designers
• Group Product Manager, Director of Products, VP Product Mgmt, CPO
• Not VP Engineering/Development, CIO, CTO or Business Unit GM
What’s a Product Leader?
@RichMironov
1. Designing/building/nurturing a product team2. Driving product strategy, processes, tooling3. Growing cross-functional collaboration and trust4. Working with C-level execs on strategy, goal, alignment
Create conditions that let product managers succeed
Four Key Responsibilities for Product Leaders
@RichMironov
Need a strong point of view and a plan:• How many product managers we need• Organizational structures that align PMs
to development, products or markets• Hiring strategy: experience,
newbie enthusiasm, SMEs?• Coaching/mentoring plan
[1] Designing/Building/Nurturing a Product Team
@RichMironov
• Building the wrong thing is 100% waste• Biggest frustration is shifting priorities,
executive interrupts, strategy du jour• “Proxies” is a four-letter word
• Undermine context, skip validation, reduce motivation, output over outcome
First Principles for Product Teams
@RichMironov
Every handoff loses context • Specs always incomplete or incorrect• User stories = conversation starters (by design)• Second-hand information:
sparse, biased, context-light, full of hidden assumptions
Handoffs Are the Enemy of Insight
@RichMironov
Stable, complete dev team
Users (custs)
Prod Mgr
Value/Functional Area
Frequent, in-depth, non-sales learning conversations
A Product Structure I Like
Product Line
Director
Stable, complete dev team
Users (custs)
Prod Mgr
Value/Functional Area
Frequent, in-depth, non-sales learning conversations
Stable, complete dev team
Users (custs)
Prod Mgr
Value/Functional Area
Frequent, in-depth, non-sales learning conversations
Stable, complete dev team
Users (custs)
Prod Mgr
Value/Functional Area
Frequent, in-depth, non-sales learning conversations
Dev & Design
Directors
@RichMironov
Requirements
A Product Structure I Don’t Like
Stable, complete dev
team
Team rotates
Prod Mgr
Users (custs)
Stable, complete dev
team
Prod Owner
Mkt Mgr
Users (custs)
Stable, complete dev
team
Prod Mgr
Prod Mgr
Users (custs)
@RichMironov
“The Business”
A Product Structure I Hate
CIO
Project team from pool BA
Project team from pool
Tech PM
Project team from pool
Prod Owner
Tech ReqmtsDelivery Dates
BU Exec
Mkt Mgr CAB
Prod Dir
Sales Mktg
Prod Mgr
Users (custs)
“IT”
@RichMironov
• Write and accept all stories, prioritize team-level backlog• Must be available to team at all timesBUT• Proxies and stakeholders interpret user need• No time, training or reward for direct end user discovery• Focus on team-level productivity, not end user value• Assigned after project defined, funded, scheduled
Product owner is a role, not a job
IMHO, Scrum-Defined Product Owners Are Set Up to Fail
@RichMironov
• Champion long-term customer value, especially in OKRs/KPIs
• Portfolio-level strategy • Shared tools and processes
[2] Driving Strategy, Tooling, Outcomes
@RichMironov
“Every important development effort should tie to an outcome, measured by business-relevant changes in human behavior.”
Josh Seiden: Outcomes Over Output
@RichMironov
• Design of teams / task forces• Cross-functional trust, psychological safety• Outcome focus: goal alignment with
customers and company• Context sharing, insights,
data-informed decisions
[3] Growing Cross-Functional Collaboration
@RichMironov
Good product managers don’t “gather requirements” or “write down what customers want.” Instead:• Get teams to deeply understand
user problems• Collectively find elegant solutions• Earn customer trust, love,
renewals, referrals• Not a mechanical process
Problem-Framing and Solution Design are Contact Team Sports
@RichMironov
• Push for business coherence, ruthless C-level prioritization
• Relentless focus on end customer value and company-wide success
• Peer coaching: executive behaviors, culture, empathy
[4] Working With (Other) C-Level Execs
@RichMironov
unplanned, deal-driven
15%
DevOps, quality,
scalability, security 25%
validation, R&D10%
planned features, UX,
revenue drivers50%
Typical Enterprise Software Company’s Development Budget
@RichMironov
Customer Validation Feature Definition/Design In Development
End User App Team
Reporting Infra Team
Partner APIs Team
Customer Validation Feature Definition/Design In Development
End User App Team
1. Faster notifications2. UI templates v23. Auto-update
Reporting Infra Team
1. Background queues2. Data resynch
Partner APIs Team
1. Usage monitoring per partner
2. Tiered API access
Customer Validation Feature Definition/Design In Development
End User App Team
1. Improved Sign-In2. UI templates v33. Help-Me Chatbot
1. Faster notifications2. UI templates v23. Auto-update
Reporting Infra Team
1. Historical archives2. Date spinners
1. Background queues2. Data resynch
Partner APIs Team
1. Scale-up to 120 req/sec2. Turn off deprecated calls
1. Usage monitoring per partner
2. Tiered API access
Product WIP (Work In Progress)
@RichMironov
Customer Validation Feature Definition/Design In Development
End User App Team
1. New Job-To-Be-Done2. Workflow snags3. Adjacent market
1. Improved Sign-In2. UI templates v33. Help-Me Chatbot
1. Faster notifications2. UI templates v23. Auto-update
Reporting Infra Team
1. P&L report redesigns2. Next big report?
1. Historical archives2. Date spinners
1. Background queues2. Data resynch
Partner APIs Team
1. 2020 pricing/volumeestimates
2. Code sample quality
1. Scale-up to 120 req/sec2. Turn off deprecated calls
1. Usage monitoring per partner
2. Tiered API access
ready to move one column to the right
• Product leaders focus on product teams and portfolios (versus individual products)
• Design your organization; coach in order to delegate• Understand how other groups think, are rewarded• Champion long-term customer value,
aligned goals, engaged employees• Create conditions for product managers to succeed
My Product Leadership Takeaways
@RichMironov
