Between Product and Partnerships

For years, SaaS pricing was relatively simple. Build the product, sell seats, and scale. AI is changing that equation. In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships, Cristina Flaschen sits down with Roee Hartuv, Sr. Pricing Advisor & Head of GTM Expertise at Willingness to Pay, to discuss why AI is forcing software companies to rethink pricing from the ground up. As AI introduces real ma...

AI models let anyone "vibe code" an integration from 0 to 90% overnight, but scaling that final 10% is where most projects hit a wall. In this episode, former Knak VP of Product Rod Moshfeghi joins Cristina Flaschen to break down why the rise of the citizen developer actually makes rigorous systems design and long-term maintenance more critical than ever.

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Cristina Flaschen talks with Martin Scholz , founder of CEG Consult , about why most partnership initiatives miss the mark, and what actually separates transactional deals from true, strategic relationships. Drawing on more than 20 years of partnership experience across startups, scale-ups, and enterprises, Martin cuts through the noise to expl...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships ,  Cristina Flaschen sits down with  Jenn Steele , CEO of  SoundGTM , to pull back the curtain on why most SaaS partnerships collapse. Jenn draws on her experience as a former CMO to explain the internal perspective of leaders asked to support partnership launches without proper lead time. The conversation dives into the common pitfalls of "...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Cristina Flaschen sits down with Stephanie Neill , Head of Product at Stripe, to explore what’s actually changing in product development in the age of AI, and what isn’t. Stephanie draws on experience across government, Twitch, and Stripe to explain why the pressure to “just use AI” often leads teams in the wrong direction. Instead, she makes t...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Biljana Pecelj joins Cristina Flaschen to explain how smaller teams successfully ship integrations with larger platform partners. She makes the case that leveraging usage data and performance metrics is the key to proving your integration's value, giving you the necessary influence to move up a major partner's priority list. Biljana s...

Integrations look deceptively simple until they become the backbone of your business. In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Pandium CEO Cristina Flaschen sits down with Scott Lavery, Senior Product Manager at Arkestro. They unpack what really happens when integrations shift from a "nice to have" feature to something the company can't function without. Scott shares ha...

How do you turn mission into products that actually work? In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Pandium CEO Cristina Flaschen sits down with product leader Jacqueline Karlin to unpack how mission-driven thinking translates into real-world execution across vastly different scales. From small business lending at Amazon, to global expansion on Alexa, to early conversational commerce a...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Cristina Flaschen speaks with Mike Gelber, Chief Product Officer at Impiricus, about his career path and the experiences that shaped his approach to product leadership in healthcare. Mike’s background spans finance, ad tech, and healthcare, and his move into product reflects a steady pull toward roles that combine technical depth with proximity...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Cristina Flaschen sits down with Michael Kowalchik, Founder and CEO of Matterbeam , to unpack why so many companies still feel stuck when working with their data. Drawing on years of experience in machine learning and large-scale product architecture, Michael shares what he learned at Pluralsight when he was asked to help overhaul the company’s...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Cristina Flaschen speaks with Therese Stowell, VP of Product Launch at Anaplan , about what it takes to design scalable, repeatable product launch systems inside fast-moving SaaS organizations. Therese shares her nonlinear career journey, from Microsoft engineer, to artist, to product leader, and how that diverse background shaped her systems-d...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Cristina Flaschen talks with Francesca Smedberg , VP of Product at Rillion. Together they explore how product management has changed over the past two decades, what it takes to move from shipping features to achieving outcomes, and how curiosity and collaboration can transform a team. A Career Built on Curiosity and Experience Francesca began h...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Cristina Flaschen , CEO of Pandium, speaks with Nate Lee , Founder of Cloudsec.ai, about the evolving challenges of security in SaaS ecosystems, AI, and integrations. Their conversation explores lessons from real-world incidents, risk management in fast-moving environments, and the emerging landscape of AI agents. Nate’s Background and Security...

In this episode, Cristina Flaschen speaks with Chris Samila, Co-Founder of Partnership Leaders, about what makes ecosystems thrive, how services and partnerships intersect, and how AI is reshaping the partner landscape. Chris’s Journey to Partnership Leaders Chris has spent most of his career in partnerships, moving from the clean tech space into SaaS with roles at Optimizely, FullStory and Crossb...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Cristina Flaschen sits down with Arvita Tripati, a seasoned healthcare product leader and advisor. They explore her unique journey from customer service in medical devices to leading product management in high-stakes, regulated environments. A Career Built on Curiosity and Empathy Arvita began career working with cosmetic and reconstructive lip...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships, Pandium CEO Cristina Flaschen speaks with Beth Beese, Director of Partnerships at Loopio, about her unique journey into partnerships, building an ecosystem from the ground up, and why cross-functional relationships are the secret weapon for success. From Fax Lines to Tech Partnerships Beth’s path to tech partnerships was anything but traditional...

In this episode, Cristina Flaschen, CEO of Pandium, sits down with Ben Marks, longtime developer advocate and open source champion, to explore the evolving role of ecosystems and communities in the tech industry. From e-commerce to AI, their discussion spans the forces reshaping how software gets built and how people collaborate across silos. From Music to Code Ben shares his unconventional journe...

In this episode, Cristina Flaschen, CEO of Pandium, speaks with Bani Malhotra, a seasoned product leader with experience at Walmart, Shipt, and Narvar. They discuss the complex realities of scaling products, leading through acquisition, and aligning teams around shared goals. Bani’s Background and Product-Driven Mindset Bani transitioned from investment banking and venture capital into product man...

In this discussion, Cristina Flaschen, CEO of Pandium, speaks with Heather Flanagan, Principal at Spherical Cow Consulting, and Shon Urbas, CTO of Pandium, about the complex realities of building integrations when identity, compliance, and data governance are on the line. Heather’s Background and Identity-Centric Lens Heather Flanagan draws on years of experience in identity standards, advising go...

In this discussion, Cristina Flaschen , CEO of Pandium , speaks with Kayleen Standridge , Senior Technical Product Manager at Stellar Cyber , about the unique challenges of building integrations within cybersecurity platforms. Kayleen’s Background and Approach to Integrations Kayleen shares her journey from technical support and professional services roles at companies like ClickUp and Podium to l...

In this discussion, Cristina Flaschen, CEO of Pandium, interviews Archna Carlstone, Head of Product at Carputty, about building, scaling, and evolving SaaS platforms, with a focus on Carputty’s journey from an internal finance tool to a white-labeled SaaS product for partners and customers. Carputty’s Origin and Product Evolution Carputty was founded in October 2020, with Carlstone as an early tea...

In this discussion, Cristina sits down with Faria Anzum, Developer Experience Product Design Lead at Canva, to explore her approach to SaaS integrations, developer experience, as well as the impact of AI on building scalable partner ecosystems. Faria’s Role and Canva’s Ecosystem Approach Faria leads developer experience within Canva’s ecosystem team, focusing on optimizing the end-to-end journey f...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships, we sit down with Indy Sen, Product Marketing Manager for Ecosystem at Canva, to explore what it really takes to build a thriving SaaS platform and developer ecosystem. Indy shares hard-earned lessons from his career shaping ecosystems at Salesforce, Box, MuleSoft, Google, and now Canva. From launching on the early Salesforce AppExchange to scali...

In this episode of Between Product and Partnerships , Cristina Flaschen sat down with Shrijit Patel , Technical Product Manager at Chronograph , to talk about building integration infrastructure, developing anti-fragile systems, and bridging the technical gap as a backend-focused PM.  Drawing from his experience at Accenture, FIS, Amazon, and now Chronograph, Shrijit broke down what most PMs miss...

As SaaS companies navigate 2025, building integration strategies that drive growth, retain customers, and adapt to evolving partner ecosystems is essential. In this conversation, we spoke with Product Managers and Technology Partnerships Leaders at Justuno, Triple Whale, and Gorgias who’ve successfully tackled integration challenges. Our panelists share: - Why a robust integration strategy importa...