Daria Mitaenko

Do you want a sneak peak into how a director of product at Delivery Hero and Adyen conducts #interview for a #productmanger? I found one of their articles about this and here you go... 🔽 I was looking for different ways companies conduct interviews for their PM candidates; to #improve myself and to improve the way I interview other product managers for our company, and I came across an article summarized in the PDF below. The original article named "60 Minutes: Interviewing Product Managers" is written by Shriram Ganesh, the current SVP Product at Adyen and the former Director of Product and Design at Delivery Hero and Product Owner at Qualcomm Innovation Center, Inc. His background is impressive 💪. He uses simple yet effective questions and interview structure to check the competence of the #candidate. His approach is different from other product leaders I know, and that's why I wanted to share it with you. 🔝The #PDF is my take from his article, and I also added my opinion to it, especially to improve the "Wrap Up" section. I think it would be a good idea if every product leader shares his way of conducting PM interviews to improve the product community, for PMs and for other leaders. ❓So, how do you conduct product interviews? Which product interview stood up for you as a product manager? Share them in the comments.

37

11 commentaren

#SaaS Update 🚀 | Nearly 1,000 clones created with Clonable! SaaS is all about the right metrics, so I’m sharing some of our data here (yes, also to convince a few investors still on the fence—or those who may have turned us down before 😉). 📊 Clones Created Per Year: 2024: 563 clones (aiming to reach 700 by year-end!) 2023: 250 clones 2022: 60 clones 2021: 60 clones (started in June; more than half were internal projects or our own clients on the Clonable site) 2025 Goal: At least 1,000 clones in a single year, with approximately 300 paid clones. Note: Not all of these are subscriptions, as some didn’t continue past the trial phase. However, the numbers are highly encouraging. Here’s what we’ve observed: 🔹 2024: Nearly all users registered their own accounts thanks to our improved registration funnel. First dozen paid subscriptions from self-registering users or affiliate resellers. Platform engagement is up, and although support demands are still high, partner agencies are increasingly helping manage them. 🔹 2023: Only a few dozen users registered themselves. Paid subscriptions mainly resulted from sales efforts, not self-registered users. Clonable handled nearly all support, and user engagement was low. 🔹 2022: Just one or two users registered independently. 🔹 2021: No users created their own accounts. Our updated registration funnel is clearly helping users start cloning independently. Can it improve further? Absolutely. Next steps: scaling up both user volume and paid conversions through marketing, sales initiatives, and a few technical enhancements to our platform.

9

1 commentaar

CEOs often mistake BUSYNESS for PROGRESS. If you're like most CEOs, you feel exhausted. Unfulfilled. Despite all the decisions you've made. That's because you're measuring the wrong things. Stop counting completed tasks. Start focusing on how your company flourishes. Real growth happens when you: - Prioritize strategic thinking over constant firefighting - Invest in your team's development, not just their output - Challenge your assumptions, not just your competitors Next board meeting, ask: Are we just busy, or are we truly advancing? P.S: Is your packed calendar hiding a stagnant business? P.P.S: Feeling overwhelmed with your business goals? Learn how I scaled to 8 figures by doing less. Join my free workshop: hi.remo.co/conquer #productivity #delegation #virtualassistant #growth

13

5 commentaren

Why mission-driven founders need better support: Starting and scaling a business is … hard. (I know: I'm stating the obvious. Please bare with me.) Some days (read: weeks) you might feel you are making progress, but then there are also the other kinds of days (read: weeks); those where you are just surviving. For impact driven female founders, the road is often filled with some extra hurdles: —> balancing impact with profitability; —> the bias to navigate to secure funding; —> the added mental load of being mission-driven in a competitive world. Yet, you are out there, doing it all, but you shouldn’t have to. As a founder myself, I understand the pressure to keep all the plates spinning and the risk of burnout as you try to grow, in todays world, without losing sight of your mission and your values, or yourself. It is beyond hard. This is where true support comes in—not just someone to give advice or take tasks off your plate, but a partner who shares your vision and is there to build alongside you. Not a coach or a consult that just tells you what to change from the sidelines, but someone actually willing to role-up their sleeves and help out. Imagine having someone by your side who can help streamline your operations (not your cup of tea anyway, right?), clear obstacles, and free up time so you can focus on the visionary work that made you start your company in the first place. This is what it means to have an integrator—a partner in growth ;-), who keeps the gears turning and ensures every decision supports your goals and values. If you’re a female founder looking for a partner who gets your mission and wants to help you scale sustainably, reach out. 💬 Comment below or send me a message—I’d love to connect. What’s been your biggest recent challenge as a female founder? I’ll share one that has been keeping me busy these past weeks (and MIA here): Deciding to stop working with someone we worked with for the past 2 years. Not only was the decision hard, also the consequences of the decision were hard, because it meant starting from scratch, again. Not having to do this alone made all the difference though. I’d love to hear yours in the comments or in a message!

9

2 commentaren

The End of Product Management? I'm thrilled to announce that Mollie's CPO, Rogier Schoute, will be speaking @ Lisbon Product Meetup! 🚀 Join us on the 8th July! Mollie's CPO Rogier Schoute will provide his views on the future of the product management craft and would love to meet many of you for a good debate! Enrol now! Save your spot using the link in the comments. Can't wait to see you all at @ Lisbon Product Meetup 🙌 #productmanagement #lisbonproduct #product #fintech

37

3 commentaren

I didn't have funding & still survived COVID-19 (ofcourse, with profits). Can you believe it? I founded build-yours.de and WordClock in 2017 with one thing in mind: creating impact, not just products. And in 2020, COVID 19 hit. Just imagine the struggles one faced, after founding their industry : ⟶The sleepless nights worrying about tomorrow’s uncertainties. ⟶The pressure to make every decision the right one. ⟶The endless doubts if your vision will ever succeed. And honestly, this all gets doubled, actually tripled when COVID hit. But still I survived covid (without funding). How's that possible. Here's the answer: ⟶Lean operations: I kept costs low, focusing only on essentials. ⟶Creative solutions: I found new ways to connect with customers, even in lockdown. ⟶Self-reliance: No funding meant I had to rely on resourcefulness and grit. ⟶Adaptability: I adjust to the market’s changing needs with confidence. And today? buildyours.de and WordClock are the favourite platforms for Germans. P.S: what's the most creative solution you have implemented to overcome a business challenge? Let's chat.

8

3 commentaren

Why Companies & Start-ups Hesitate to Hire Consultants and Why They Shouldn't 🚀 Ever wondered why companies and start-ups are hesitant to bring in consultants? It's often because of Cost Concerns, Trust Issues, Internal Resistance, Control and Confidentiality, Previous Experiences, Cultural Fit, Over Confidence on Internal Team. But bypassing external expertise might be the ultimate missed opportunity for growth! 🌱 Here’s why consultants are like secret weapons for your business: Unbiased Insights: They offer objective viewpoints, free from internal politics. It’s like getting a second opinion without the family drama. 🕵️‍♂️ Honest Feedback: Not afraid to highlight negative results, consultants ensure you get clear and direct feedback. They don’t sugarcoat! 🍭🚫 Courage to Say No: Consultants can challenge flawed decisions with an independent perspective that prioritizes the company's best interests. They’re not afraid to tell you when you’re wrong. 🛡️🚫 Specialized Expertise: With niche skills and industry know-how, they tackle complex problems like superheroes. They’ve got a toolkit you don’t have in-house. 🛠️💡 Experience with Best Practices: They bring a treasure chest of best practices from various industries, making your operations soar. 🌟🚀 Resource Efficiency: Consultants offer temporary expertise without the long-term commitment of full-time hires. It’s like renting a luxury car instead of buying one. 🚗💨 Focus on Core Activities: They handle specialized tasks so your team can concentrate on what they do best. It’s all about working smarter, not harder! 🧠💪 Change Management: They guide you through organizational changes smoothly, like a GPS for your business. 📈📉 Training and Development: Consultants don’t just leave you hanging—they mentor and upskill your team, leaving a legacy of knowledge. 📚👩‍🏫 Embrace the value of consultants and watch your business transform from ‘meh’ to ‘wow!’ 🌟🚀 Ready to supercharge your business without the hassle? Let Bizzeazy be your consultant hero, swooping in with all the expertise and none of the permanent baggage! 🦸‍♂️💼 💬 What are your thoughts on using consultants? Have you had any experiences or challenges? Share in the comments below! And if you want to explore how consultants can help your business, let’s connect! #Consulting #Bizzeazy #BusinessGrowth #ExpertAdvice #Innovation #ResourceEfficiency #ChangeManagement #BusinessStrategy #Leadership #ProfessionalDevelopment #IndustryBestPractices #ConsultingLife #BusinessSolutions #StrategyConsulting #ManagementConsulting #StartupSuccess #OperationalExcellence #BusinessImprovement #ConsultantTips #GrowthHacking #EfficiencyBoost

1

In the last 16 years, I've worked for all sorts of companies (various sectors) with annual turnover ranging from £10mn - £30bn, and have led team sizes of 5-105! 🔥 I've done B2C/D2C, B2B (SaaS), and even B2G. I got into management roles very early in my career, so most of that 16 years have been spent in leading/nurturing/coaching some brilliant minds. I have always hired for potential rather than experience; that's because I was mostly hired for potential too (story of any young-ish leader). There is NO single formula for success, and there is NO single definiton for success either. But, the ONE thing that drives me everyday is my GRIT! 🎖 I would highly recommend this👇🏼 book to everyone. Grit is a book about what goes through your head when you fall down, and how that (not talent or luck) makes all the difference. 😇

51

10 commentaren

We have been advising B2B SaaS companies on how to leverage community-led growth for over a year now. Those companies are tapping into the power of community to drive serious growth. They're winning trust, loyalty and priceless user insights. Five examples of companies who are killing it: 1. Notion - This workspace app has over 100K members in their buzzing online community. They get users involved in product development, creating a real sense of ownership. 2. Figma - The design platform brings its community together through virtual events, workshops and hackathons. Designers get to connect, upskill and directly shape the tool. 3. Personio - The HR tech firm takes community offline with regular meetups for HR pros to network and share know-how on the future of the industry. 4. Miro - Over 35 million whiteboard wizards make up this online community. Forums, user groups and events help members collaborate and innovate together. 5. Airtable - This spreadsheet-database hybrid harnesses its community's knowledge through forums, templates and integrations created by users themselves. Want to dive deeper into this community-led growth movement? Don't miss "The Power of Community in B2B SaaS" at the Personio office in Amsterdam on May 22nd. We'll have Julia Pilkes (HubSpot), Koen Stam (Personio) and Lorenzo Tiberi (Crono) breaking it down while you network with other community builders from the best sales and marketing teams in tech. Spots are limited: https://lnkd.in/eP8D3ymM

52

6 commentaren

Starting a startup? Here's how you should think about splitting the pie. What this post doesn't show is how important it is to setup an option pool for advisors and key hires.

5

From 'feeling' your CS team makes an impact to quantifying the impact. We did a workshop at Pavilion Amsterdam on how to use Impact Drivers to quantify & customer success attribution. -> The SaaS landscape has shifted from a Growth At All Cost (GAAC) model to a Profitable Efficient Growth (PEG) model.This means that it's more important than ever to focus on proactive customer success. -> Traditional customer success metrics (NRR, GRR, etc.) are lagging indicators.  This can make it difficult to prove the value of customer success and to incentivize CSMs to focus on the right activities. -> Impact Drivers help to bridge this gap. Impact Drivers are high value activities that are directly tied to customer outcomes. By tracking and measuring Impact Drivers, CSMs can demonstrate their value and focus on activities that drive real business results. Thanks Koen Stam & André Bressel for organising! Jennifer Peters Valerie Berntsen-Isaak Frédéric Van de Calseyde Jasper Klos Eline Wolters Peter Lalonde Vinícius Zarpellon

51

9 commentaren

Last week at Rally, I wrote about how product teams can accidentally overestimate feature value. It sounds something like this: 🗣️“We lost a $100K deal to [competitor] because we didn’t have [feature] yet” Product marketers and product managers know this story well. When using customer requests or deal feedback to prioritize product investments, opportunities (deals) like this sounds like a good way to grow revenue. So what's the problem? 👇 The example above assumes three things: 1. The deal your competitor won was $100K 2. You could have won the deal at $100K. 3. Having the feature would have changed the outcome. Best case scenario, all three are true and you now have a compelling data point. But if you’re looking at lost deals and interviewing sales reps/CSM's without understanding how their process works, you may also overestimate the value of a feature. #productmarketing #b2b #startups #productmanagement

16

1 commentaar

I just got back from SaaSiest Amsterdam. A lot of incredible insights from: Nathan Latka, Wes Bush, Daan Assen, Joliene van Grieken. These 2 days were amazing. It’s crazy how some conversations can be life-changing. (or at least business-changing haha) As I’m sharing with you every aspect of Smart Role’s growth, Here are my favorite learnings from this event: From Nathan Latka:  Key strategies from successful companies like Aircall which: → Consistently launched 1 new integration per week. → Or leveraged Other People’s Traffic (OPT) to drive 1 million website hits and impressive revenue growth. He also shared Contentful’s AI playbook, about how AI must be mixed into your product to create real value. From Wes Bush:  The importance of building a Product-Led Organization (PLO). For him, it’s about self-serve revenue while making sure every part of your business is aligned to drive product-led success. From Daan Assen:  How crucial it is to convert pilot projects into paying customers, especially with a focus on KPIs like the User Effort Score. (We will definitely implement that at Smart Role.) From Joliene van Grieken:  The concept of the Dark Funnel, a fascinating new idea where she emphasized the importance of Thought Leadership in demand generation. She pointed out that while most companies focus on the 5% of clients already in-market, there’s a huge opportunity in the 95% who aren’t yet actively looking but could be influenced through strategies like thought leadership, ABM, and PLG. Recently, I’ve really enjoyed going to events as it’s an incredible way to: → Test my sales skills → Gain growth tips for Smart Role → Or increase my general business knowledge And more events are coming for us! Our next stop will be SaaStock in Dublin, on October 14-16. (And this time, we won’t only be there to visit 😉) - Thibaut 🦊 PS: If you’re Wes Bush, huge thanks for this quick 1-on-1 session, we are already working on your feedback!

36

13 commentaren

"Every second counts." If you've watched "The Bear," you know this phrase hangs on the kitchen wall - a constant reminder in their chaotic push for excellence. To my ears that sounded super toxic. A few weeks ago, during our team workshop in Groningen, our coach Jennifer dropped the same words. And suddenly it clicked differently. It's not about rushing, bringing everyone to their limits or squeezing more into less time. It's about doing less. It's about not postponing the hard decisions. It's about getting two votes on which features must be done by the end of the year, when three is the bare minimum you would have needed. When we pulled our engineers away from their screens for two full days of planning and alignment, every moment counted. Every coffee break conversation shaped our understanding. Every casual dinner discussion refined our vision. Now we're laser-focused on the next 4 sprints until Christmas, because we collectively understand what's at stake and where we're heading. Time will pass anyway. The question is: Will we make it count? #engineering #leadership #softwaredevelopment #agile

14

1 commentaar

🚨 The Priority Trap: When Everything is "High Priority" Sound familiar? - Your team is overwhelmed - Every project is "urgent" - Resources are stretched thin - Multiple "top priorities" competing - Nobody knows what to focus on first The default solution? High/Medium/Low prioritization. The reality? It's a trap that creates: • An overstuffed "High" category • Confused teams • Wasted resources • Missed strategic goals Enter: THE BUCKET METHOD 🪣 A systematic approach that forces real prioritization: 1️⃣ Initial Sort Take ALL initiatives (let's say 60) Split into 3 equal buckets (20/20/20) Don't overthink it - this is just round one 2️⃣ Team Review Present the initial sort Welcome disagreements Key question: "If X moves up, what moves down?" 3️⃣ Define Success Criteria Establish clear metrics for "top priority" Align on strategic importance Create objective measurement standards 4️⃣ Refine Top 20 Break into smaller buckets (e.g., top 5, next 7, final 8) Apply criteria rigorously No ties allowed! 5️⃣ Final Stack Rank Create clear 1-20 ranking Document rationale Communicate across organization 🎯 Remember: There can only be ONE #1 priority! The magic? It forces tough choices while making the impossible feel manageable. What's your biggest prioritization challenge? Share below! 👇 #Leadership #Strategy #ExecutiveLeadership #Prioritization #DecisionMaking

26

6 commentaren

As a startup, what are the biggest risks from your employees POV? Here's our insights. In a round table session at Upstream Festival we discussed how Steward Ownership de-risks joining a startup from the employee point of view. We had a blast in diving in what it actually means to be Steward Owned! Steward Ownership offers your employees - Clear, purpose-driven goals that attract motivated employees. - Employee incentive schemes that provide long-term benefits compared to traditional startups We looked at the difference in tackling employee risks between a traditional startup setup and a startup that embraced Steward Ownership (SO). Here's what came up. 1. The startup has a too small base and fails - with SO, the base of investors, stewards, believers has to be large to even get started. 2. The startup changes its mission (the reason lots of employees started working there in the first place) - with SO, the mission is locked in, changing is simply impossible. The road might change, but we are getting to Rome. 3. The startup is hijacked by a (new) investor, changing the culture and goals - with SO, ownership and control are separated. 4. The renumeration of employees changes drastically - with SO, it's clear how well you will do in X years if the company is doing well. Thanks to Jaime Ascencio Ming-Faraz Khan Omar Mustafa Yiran Wang Tessa de Flines Eric Dijkhuis Ayushman Talwar for discussing your cases! Do you have anything to add? Thanks to Lars Crama, Leonie Timmermans and Femke de Jonge for bringing us together! How to get started with Steward Ownership? 1. Read up: https://lnkd.in/eMPPt4te https://lnkd.in/ecf6pqDA 2. Understand the choices you have to make: https://lnkd.in/eXZHUXqs 3. Reach out to wonderful people that could help you on your way -> ask a question below, or DM me, Neil Smyth or others active in the space - happy to help!

23

3 commentaren

Do you know why it's cool to have deployed my SaaS go-to-market framework in a big corp valued more than 60 billions? This is a picture taken during a coaching and training session I gave days ago to the brand activation agencies of BAT in one of their main European countries. These agencies are managing, in just one country, more than a thousand brand ambassadors spread across stores and shopping malls across the territory, connecting and engaging with potential and existing customers 7 days a week. As far as I'm concerned the cool side is that this is all about big numbers and big impact. We have aligned all the customer touch points around SaaS-like conversational choreographies to move smokers to less harmful alternatives. Through the work we did together, these conversations contain now a set of qualification triggers that are reflected in a Salesforce-centred granular funnel. Just like a SaaS business does. A SaaS-like approach is showing to be the best friend of go-to-market leadership teams. It give them structure and framework for them internally and for their agencies. It provides a sense of control and an aligned message across all channels. Most importantly, they got a platform to understand "fact" and "numbers", bottlenecks and areas of improvement across the whole customer acquisition funnel, in a granular way. Both online and offline. It has been a pleasure to have inspired and provided a framework to make these process happen. #AllBusinessesAreSaaSBusiness #gotomarket #SaaS

4

2 commentaren

Our total revenue collection nearly doubled in the last three months. And we expect it to further double in the next three months. That’s 4X growth in six months. Without any changes to the product. Without any disruptions to the cost structure. How did we do it? Let me give you a walkthrough. Our customers fall into three tiers based on their revenues. Through experiments, we figured the top tier was willing to pay much more (than what we were billing them) for the right offering. For example, large enterprises focus a lot on business intelligence, security and robust admin controls — areas Powerplay naturally excels at. It was all about repackaging and rebundling our existing offerings to align with their distinct needs. We were able to spark a psychological trigger – suddenly, those clients saw much higher value in the bundle vs considering each item separately. We were able to unleash untapped revenue potential. Without reinventing the wheel. Without spending an extra penny. In a world where differentiation is key, the way you present your product can be the difference between stagnation and exponential growth. #SaaS #PricingStrategy #Startups

95

2 commentaren