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.
To ensure you receive your subscription, please add
jock [at] mailtrain [dot] productpeo [dot] pl
to your Safe Senders list.
Recent editions
-
» Piles of books by experts in disciplines you’ll be working with on your product team
-
» Meetings are for information exchange, workshops are for solving problems » With hybrid working, adopt a “remote first” mindset to avoid divisions in your team » Poor workshop facilitation discourages future participation » Reflection gives everyone a chance to contribute and listen
-
» Charities’ strategy should focus on the future, not the annual planning cycle » Break the habit of surveys and focus groups with user interviews » The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated growth in digital fundraising » Commodity services free teams from reactive and defensive development patterns to truly innovate
-
» Learning is more valuable than being successful and not knowing why » You can experiment with the content and layout of any web-based product with basic skills » The success rate of experimentation is higher if there is no penalty for failing » “If you have a good idea on a Monday and can design, test and learn by the Friday, then innovation explodes.”
-
» More specific questions yield better user research findings » User research works well when the team collaborates with a specialist user researcher » Increased team user exposure hours correlates with more successful product improvements by the team » The sooner you start user research, the greater impact it will have on your product » A Kanban board helps the team to collate and track the questions to be researched
-
» To build trust, mutual respect and transparency are critical » Becoming a product leader means letting go of the day-to-day product management » Being good at your job means training others to be good at theirs » Equip your team to make good choices without needing your input » Developing people is the single most important part of your job
-
» Saying no to a good idea requires confidence in your product strategy » Even if saying no to an opportunity, take the time to understand its value and context » Keep ideas and suggestions separate from your product backlog » Clear company goals and strategy make it easier to say no to unaligned requests » Saying yes habitually to one-off custom features will usually kill your product business
-
» A selection of the best product management podcasts by product people, recommended by product people
-
» Discovery is about understanding the problem space experienced by people » When on a tight budget for discovery, mitigate bias where possible and document all the biases you see » A relaxed participant will open up and be more honest with you » A discovery can prompt one or more possible solutions, or tell you the problem is not worth pursuing
-
» Bootstrapped startups have free rein with their strategy » Successful startups try to anticipate failure, and learn from it when they don’t » Investors look for long-term defensibility of your product’s proposition and unique advantage » Operational velocity is key to company success
-
» When starting your next role, gather opinions and evaluate them before making your own appraisal of the state of the product » Think of your first month’s activity in terms of people, product and personal » The transition from product manager to leader requires many new skill sets » To set up a new starter in your team for success, be clear on their role and goals
-
» Success theatre undermines the long-term potential of your team and organisation » Small changes can incite a large culture transformation » As organisations grow, they incorrectly start to value the importance of “process” over “product” » Measuring process distracts you from determining whether you are creating value » Quarterly planning is disruptive when it introduces too much new information at once
-
» Free, online courses are available to help you become more literate in the basics of finance » There are three key financial metrics to track in a recurring / subscription business » Gain a competitive advantage by interpreting annual corporate accounts » Challenge received wisdom about key financial metrics and ratios to reveal hidden insights
-
» The vision describes the future we are trying to create » The strategy describes how we’ll make the vision a reality » There are only 4 strategies after finding product-market fit » Tesla subsidised more affordable car models with the revenue from their initial luxury roadster » Storytelling helps to convince stakeholders to believe in your vision
-
» Customer research and validation is critical, but it can’t always make decisions for you » Remedy mistakes quickly and honestly to earn respect » Use the “rule of 10” to put mistakes in context » People remember most your small defining moments
-
» Objectives and key results (OKRs) set ambitious goals and track progress towards them » Manage your desired outcomes separately from what you do to achieve those outcomes » Make use of OKRs standard across all teams » Learn from when you fail to achieve your desired outcomes » OKRs go hand-in-hand with team autonomy
-
» 6 core concepts of systems thinking will help you start solving complex problems » Systems thinking complements the more familiar analytical (reductionist) thinking » It is a way of creating a shared understanding of how something works » It provides useful tools for surfacing and breaking reinforcing cycles of blame
-
» Competing execs will sometimes sabotage by claiming features for their own product long before they plan to implement them » Your product roadmap can reveal symptoms of underlying organisational dysfunctions » We need to consciously remember that the needs of our users change over time » Many biases are underpinned by shared psychological mechanisms, such as the desire to feel positively about ourselves
-
» Coaching allows you to leap ahead — it doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you » Active listening helps you restrain the urge to jump in early with a solution » Performance management is retrospective; performance development looks forward » A lack of clear goals and simplistic evaluation are ways performance management goes wrong
-
» Mind The Product pivoted in 8 weeks, then spent the next 8 months refining the concept » When working remotely, post information in at least 3 places to ensure everyone sees it » Pivots that align with the existing corporate vision tend to be more successful » The shift to digital during the COVID-19 pandemic will not be as sticky as some assume