Practical Product Management

In this kickoff episode of season two of Practical Product Management , Leah and Marilyn dive into New Year’s resolutions and their parallels to product management practices. They tackle the common resolutions people set—like losing weight, spending more time with family, and getting out of debt—and reframe them for PMs as trimming backlogs, improving customer and stakeholder relationships, and ma...

🎄 A Special Holiday Episode to Wrap Up 2024 🎁 In the final episode of Practical Product Management Season 1, Leah Farmer and Marilyn McDonald celebrate the year with a thought-provoking conversation featuring Toni Dos Santos, a B2B product consultant and AI expert. Toni shares his remarkable journey from economics and the music industry to entrepreneurship, offering insights into how startups ca...

🍂 In this special Thanksgiving episode of Practical Product Management, hosts Leah and Marilyn dive into how product management skills transcend the workplace and enrich everyday life. From communication and prioritization to empathy and feedback loops, they explore how these principles help navigate challenges and build stronger connections outside of work. The episode features 7 inspiring stori...

In this episode of Practical Product Management, Leah and Marilyn sit down with Jil Berning, founder of Femote, to discuss her journey from product manager to entrepreneur in healthcare tech. Jil dives into her motivations for creating a company focused on remote gynecological solutions and shares the challenges she’s encountered along the way. The conversation touches on building a supportive com...

In this episode of Practical Product Management, Leah and Marilyn sit down with Mirela Mus, founder of Product People, to unpack the unique world of interim product management. They discuss how interim roles differ from traditional product management, emphasizing the importance of adaptability, tactical execution, and navigating the challenges of temporary engagements. Mirela shares insights on ba...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn dive into the nuanced world of product management through the lens of team dynamics, particularly focusing on transitions when employees move on. They discuss the challenges leaders face emotionally and strategically during these transitions, highlighting the need for open communication and empathy. The conversation explores how leaders can balance the transaction...

In this episode of Practical Product Management, we sit down with Jay Fluegel, a seasoned product leader with 25 years of experience spanning startups, Microsoft, Expedia, and Axon. Together, we explore the evolving role of product management across different organizational contexts, from big tech giants to traditional, non-digital companies. The conversation underscores the importance of fosterin...

In this episode of Practical Product Management, Leah and Marilyn sit down with guest Ekaterina Gabaruk Monnot to dive into the nuances of technical and platform product management. They explore how Ekaterina transitioned into product management, the specific challenges faced by technical product managers, and how understanding both customer needs and system architecture is critical. The discussio...

In this episode of Practical Product Management, Leah and Marilyn sit down with Pete Peterson, a seasoned product design leader with a wealth of experience in building design teams and user research practices. They dive deep into the intricacies of product management in large organizations, uncovering how harmonizing design standards can foster a unified user experience. Pete also shares his wisdo...

Summary In this episode, Leah and Marilyn dive into the world of fintech and its intersection with product management. They break down what fintech encompasses—everything from payments to lending and wealth management—and discuss their vast experiences in the field. The conversation highlights key elements such as the movement of money, the importance of security, compliance with regulations, and...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn delve into the often-overlooked negative aspects of product management, highlighting how certain practices can harm users. They cover the ethical concerns surrounding manipulative marketing tactics, the pervasive use of cookies for tracking user behavior, and the role of algorithms in fostering echo chambers and amplifying divisive content. Throughout the discussi...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn sit down with Haresh Bajaj, the VP of Product Growth at PLEO, to delve into the evolving landscape of product management. Haresh sheds light on the critical role of product growth, which goes beyond traditional product management by focusing on driving user growth, increasing revenue, and managing cross-functional teams. As the head of the SMB business at PLEO, Ha...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn dive into the evolving relationship between AI and product management. They discuss the common fear of AI replacing jobs and provide a fresh perspective on how AI should be seen as an augmentation tool rather than a replacement for human roles. The conversation centers around the opportunities AI presents to product managers, from enhancing ideation processes to a...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn delve into the intricacies of hiring exceptional product managers. They discuss the core competencies necessary for the role, such as having a customer-centric mindset, thriving in ambiguity, and possessing a strong drive to get things done. The conversation also covers the challenges of transitioning individuals from other roles into product management and the im...

In this episode, Leah interviews Greg Cohen, CEO of Fortis about the current state of the financial technology industry. They discuss the concept of "The Great Restoration" and how the industry is experiencing a shift due to changing interest rates and market dynamics. They also explore the challenges faced by startups in the industry, such as the need for profitability and regulatory compliance....

In this podcast episode, Leah and Marilyn discuss OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) and their role in product management. They explore the misconceptions and challenges surrounding OKRs, emphasizing the importance of understanding the purpose and context behind them. Overall, they stress the need for a thoughtful and practical approach to implementing OKRs. Takeaways OKRs are often misunderstood a...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn discuss the importance of psychological safety in product management. They define psychological safety as creating an environment where team members feel safe to take risks, be vulnerable, and share their opinions without fear of humiliation or criticism. They reference a study done at Google, which found that psychological safety and trust were the top factors th...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn dive into their personal experiences with the highs and lows of product management. They share captivating stories of successful product launches that significantly impacted their organizations and frustrating failures that came with costly lessons. Through these anecdotes, they highlight the importance of iterative development, the power of small, empowered teams...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn talk to Product Leader & Change-Maker Dana Rosenberg about her superpower of galvanizing teams and driving change in product management. The discussion emphasizes the importance of simplifying the story, focusing on key narratives, and regularly delivering measurable progress. The hosts and guest share their experiences and lessons learned in product managemen...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn discuss some of the biggest misconceptions about the role of a product manager. They start with the idea that product managers are the CEOs of the product, emphasizing that product managers must influence without control and work as part of a team. They also address a few other often discussed myths and misconceptions. Takeaways Product managers are not the CEOs o...

In this episode, Leah and Marilyn discuss the tension between building for customers and building things that matter for a business. They explore why product managers often prioritize customer needs over business goals and the importance of understanding the customer. They also discuss the concept of minimal viable products (MVPs) and the need to focus on solving real customer problems rather than...

Leah and Marilyn discuss bad habits that product managers often fall into. They share their own experiences and provide insights on how to overcome these habits. Some of the bad habits discussed include avoiding detail work, being too opinionated, over-engineering solutions, trying to emulate larger companies, not talking to customers, and not being honest about project status. They emphasize the...

Leah and Marilyn discuss their journey as product managers, the challenges they faced, and the practical aspects of product management. They emphasize the importance of critical thinking, problem-solving, and the need for practicality in applying product management frameworks. They also share a stakeholder interview tool to help product managers think critically about the work they are being asked...

Here's a little sneak peak to Episode 1 of Practical Product Management. In this episode get to know Leah and Marilyn and hear why they think it's so important to marry theory with practical tools.