PRODUCTHEAD
PRODUCTHEAD is my free curated newsletter of the best articles, videos and podcasts from product leaders and commentators all over the world. All neatly packaged up in a weekly email delivery for your reading, viewing and listening pleasure.
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Recent editions
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» Every other team is allowed to be uncertain about the future — so should product » There are different types of question for strategy, opportunities and interventions » Avoid investments that are neither defense nor offense » What people say and how they really feel can often vary
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» Your users must value your product more than it would cost them to switch » An end-of-life policy sets out the process you will use to retire products for customers » Think about your users and customers’ technical and economic issues first » Retiring a product gracefully means making a plan
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» People more easily accept they’re not seeing the whole picture than being told they’re wrong » Don’t make people feel bad about their beliefs — be kind and connect with them » Research shows that we interpret words like “we believe” with differing confidence levels » There is often a lack of discipline when it comes to talking about uncertainty
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» Use empathy to appreciate the context, needs and pain points of your stakeholders » Understanding people’s social style helps you influence stakeholders more effectively » You can use different modes of persuasion to craft a more compelling argument » Picking the right time to make your point can amplify your persuasiveness
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» Each customer has their own unique journey to and through your product » Conversion funnel analysis with bar charts is a conscious choice to maximise precision over accuracy » Cart abandonment is an opportunity to engage with your users » Conversion rate is a quantitative springboard to qualitative insights
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» Story structure and the right content give your presenting more impact » Try to create presentations that captivate, not subdue » A perception audit helps narrow the gap between how you perceive yourself and how others see you » Good breathing technique when speaking both calms you and produces a better sound
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» A mind map is helpful for noting non-linear information » The Cornell note-taking method can be useful for learning » Sketchnotes allow more effective visual communication
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» What you write online is there to serve the users’ needs » Writing for the web = using short sentences » People read differently on the web than they do on paper » Tools exist to help make your writing easier to understand
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» Read a format that suits you best, whether physical or digital » As you read, ask yourself questions of the content to keep yourself engaged with it » Analytical reading allows you to understand, then accept or reject the key idea being presented » F-shaped reading occurs on web content because people are short on time or engagement
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» Being a better listener can improve your productivity, as well as your ability to influence, persuade and negotiate » Psychological safety partly depends on your team feeling they are being listened to
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» We perform better when we bring our emotions to work » Call out toxic workplaces, but also have an exit strategy » An effective team needs: psychological safety, dependability, structure & clarity, meaning, and impact » Treat psychological safety as a key business metric, as important as revenue, cost of sales, or uptime
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Rumelt: » “Good strategy grows out of independent and careful assessment of the situation” » “Bad strategy follows the crowd, substituting popular slogans for insights” Eriksson: » “Deciding what not to do is just as important as deciding what to do”
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» You can only tell if you’ve been successful if you can measure it » Analytics approaches that work for others may not work in your context » Behind every metrics is a behaviour » The point of an experiment is to learn
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A service: » is defined from an external end user’s point of view » describes something someone would want to do, in their language » has an outcome that relates to the organisation’s goals » includes all the steps between the user and provider » includes all the parts involved in delivering it
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» A component team’s focus on a specific technology can result in being less user-centric » Feature teams are better suited to deal with innovation, uncertainty, and change » Centralised skill teams should aim to make themselves redundant by disseminating knowledge
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» Federation squares the circle of having both a cohesive design system and autonomous product teams » A successful design system closely meets the needs of developers of apps and the end-users of those apps » For a design system to appeal to third parties, it has to accommodate their brand identity and niche audience needs
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» Performance appraisals fail to take into context whether the organisation is permitting them to succeed » Deming: “a bad system will beat a good person every time” » Personal development and performance are different things » Shift performance management from the individual to team, group, or organisational level
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» Service maps help teams and stakeholders to understand interactions with a service across touchpoints over time » They provide a visual representation of an abstract and often wide-reaching process » Think of your service like a theatre: front stage, backstage and behind the scenes » Service mapping helps your team to tell their story to the wider organisation
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» Outcome-driven product roadmaps shift the focus from building features to solving user problems » A product roadmap is a communication tool first and foremost » A now/next/later roadmap helps teams to focus on the bigger picture » Delivering outcomes instead of outputs is harder, but more valuable
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» A product coach should measure their own job performance by the successes of their team members » Strive to develop a capacity for learning in the people you supervise » Coaching taps into an individual’s own wisdom and keeps them accountable for achieving their goals » People who are genuinely committed to change but nonetheless dig in their heels may be unwittingly self-sabotaging