Rachel DiVerdi

Sharing real stories from the trenches of product management. First topic - balancing big visions 🌟 with building MVPs that actually solve problems 💡 Would love to hear your thoughts! 👇 https://lnkd.in/einzrwbZ #ProductManagement #MVP #Startups

60

1 Comment

Gathering and prioritizing customer feedback - at scale! - is an incredible challenge. A decade ago, we standardized on portals where customers can contribute, sort, search, comment, and vote on ideas. Product Managers spent hours, days, and weeks triaging responses, responding to ideas, and generally becoming frustrated with not being able to keep up with the amount of incoming feedback! Today, Pendo launches Listen as part of the Pendo One Platform. It is such a massive step forward in how we can capture customer feedback from seemingly endless sources, collate, summarize, intelligently route, validate, and take action on it. It's really magically and scales beautifully. I think it focuses in on the difference between hearing the voice of your customer and truly listening. Hearing is about a single sense. Listening involves all of your senses. Pendo Listen deeply integrates our quantitative analytics, integrations, and replay to Listen to your customer and take action. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eTPR4HiQ

37

1 Comment

What's not being good at interviewing costing you? "I just cannot seem to interview well. I have lost out on roles to people who used to report to me." I was speaking to my client—let's call him Steve. He was a smart, accomplished product leader who had led successful launches of products you have probably heard of. He launched multiple hit products, drove millions in revenue, and all that jazz. But Steven had a problem—a big one. Despite being a total PM rockstar, he still interviewed like he had seven years ago. When he was interviewed, the impression he left was "Great product manager, not leadership material yet." Ever felt like you're the most accomplished person in the room, but when it comes to interviews, you can't seem to convey that? That was Steve. Do you know who didn't choke on interviews? The PM's Steve personally trained and mentored. That's right - Steve's own pupils interviewed well rose above their sensei by having better storytelling and positioning, and the executive presence and confidence that got them further in an interview. His pupils had risen to levels above him. Can you imagine how emasculating and demoralizing that must have felt? To have your star pupils, whom you groomed from scratch, outshine and outearn you just because they could describe their achievements better? Steve had already missed out on many years of success, new roles, and millions of dollars because he was worse at interviewing. He felt the sting of watching others, who he knew he was more qualified than, climb the ranks and achieve the success he deserved. This wasn't just a financial loss but a blow to his self-esteem. He wanted his kids to look up to him and be proud of his accomplishments. Enough was enough. He decided he couldn't afford to lose out anymore. He came to us as Intentional Product Manager, determined to turn things around. We worked with him to refine his narrative, boost his interview skills, and truly represent the outstanding professional he is. It took work, but he got there. The result? He's achieved a prime role at a company you would have heard of and now makes over a million dollars annually. Not only did he secure the financial success he always deserved, but he also earned the respect and admiration of his peers and, most importantly, his family. But as importantly, he carries his skills and executive presence every day. --- P.S., If this resonates with you, and you: - Are a product manager - You love to take action - You are committed to career growth But if you need help in landing that ideal next role. DM me "dream role" and I will send you details. We only work with selected folks and have started to limit how many people we accept every month.

10

1 Comment

🏆 Andre Marquet knows his stuff! What a fun podcast. I had the pleasure of chatting with him about #productstrategy and how #productoperations enables : 1️⃣ A winning product strategy 2️⃣ How you measure the success of a product strategy transformation 3️⃣ Just how do you get Product Operations stood up? ⭐ Building on that theme, join me in Lisbon for my NEW workshop "From 0-1: Standing Up Product Operations (with no new hires)" at the Productized conference Oct 2-4. https://lnkd.in/esiH8hff #productmanagement

27

1 Comment

Earlier in my career I used to look for consensus for my product idea and the more consensus I got the more confident I became. I have flipped that now. Now the more consensus I get the more likely that it's the obvious thing - very likely that someone else is also thinking the same and is going to copy it right away or is already working on it. I believe that building a differentiating product requires a non consensus path. So cherish it when others don't agree with your insights and have the confidence and support to push through. #productmanagement

15

1 Comment

I've been thinking a lot about what separates good product from great product. I keep coming back to these 3 principles: 1) Instant. A great product delivers what the user wants, fast. 2) Frictionless. Every click or swipe or tap feels natural. Effortless. No need to stop and think "how do I do this?". Smooth, intuitive experiences win. 3) Personal. It's about making each user feel like the product was built just for them. Any more you'd think to add?

19

6 Comments

You know there's some momentum happening if Marty Cagan decides to write about a product topic you've been at work trying to enable for years. Love to see it, and BIG shout out to Stacey Langer for providing her expertise in this article! 🧘‍♀️ Here are a few other pros that came to mind for the product model: 1. The government product model makes product (public) value and risk management possible. Product risks—such as value, desirability, viability, and feasibility—are not risks that traditional project management models can effectively manage. Government agencies interact with the public through the services they offer, but government digital experiences are not always inherently valuable. It’s what these digital services do for users that create individual and public value. Building tech alone ≠ value. 2. Evidence-driven decision-making uses discovery, iterative delivery, and testing with actual end users, where you continuously learn. This enables many things, mainly building with your users while validating the solution direction. It can also enable an incremental funding option specifically for products/services (traditionally called ‘projects’) that are especially complex, high priority, and/or contain many unknowns. 3. Driving technology from a place of vision and strategy measured in outcomes that can align and even influence policy changes. 🤸‍♀️ Some realities in trying to adopt a product model in gov: 1. The word ‘product’ often can be confusing, especially when it doesn’t fully represent what is being built and managed. A lot, if not most, of the technology work happening in government often involves solving service design challenges. So, in gov products, you focus on solving for the end-to-end experience, which can mean processes and non-tech things. 2. Conway’s Law and government systems replicate the organizational structures in agencies, which are often siloed and isolated. This is often represented as 'legacy tech.' Much of the work in 'product' in government is modernizing legacy systems, which requires the same principles as the product model but often a different emphasis on its varied approaches. Not all products or digital services start from the same place; many are not greenfield. 3. Traditional ATO structures can stop the product operating model in its tracks. To overcome this, it is important to integrate the ATO into the product model, utilizing a ‘continuous ATO’ operating model. But see point 2 above. At the end of the day, the product model isn’t a process you learn to implement and then just implement. It’s not just ‘Agile’ or Scrum or DevOps. Those methods can (or sometimes can’t) enable the product model. It's a mentality and discipline for continuously using new inputs to deliver value throughout a product's LIFE. It's a cultural change as much as an operating change, and there is no 'single way' to do it. However, operating from product thinking principles can help us start from the right place.

23

3 Comments

"Every single founder and leader NEEDS to be in the details. Founders and leaders have unique insights, an understanding of the business, and an outsized level of care toward the business." - This!! 🎯 'Founder Mode' brings a unique eagle-eye vision to the company, ensuring that details are not lost even when looking at things from a high and comprehensive level. It is the perfect blend of the 'full company' AND the 'heavy on granular details' perspectives, critical for sound decision-making.

189

35 Comments

🤔 It may be an unpopular opinion, but I think it's always best to be first to the party 🥳 Innovation is the engine of growth, and the partnership between MikMak and DoorDash is a testament to this principle. This first-of-its-kind integration is a game-changer, revolutionizing how consumers shop and brands sell. Imagine this: you're scrolling through your favorite social media platform, see an ad for a product you love, and within moments, you can have it delivered to your doorstep via DoorDash. This is the power of MikMak's integration with DoorDash, a seamless fusion of social commerce and on-demand delivery. But this partnership isn't just about convenience; it's about empowering brands with valuable data and insights. MikMak's closed-loop attribution provides a granular understanding of consumer behavior, enabling brands to optimize their marketing strategies and drive sales. 🚀 This is the future of omnichannel shopping, a world where every interaction is a potential purchase, and every purchase is a data point. MikMak and DoorDash are leading the charge, and I'm excited to see where this journey takes us. 🗞️ Read the Press Release here: https://lnkd.in/e-VqFtSb? #MikMak #DoorDash #Omnichannel #ecommerce #innovation #marketing #attribution #data #insights #partnership #futureofretail

69

6 Comments

"Is product development an art or a science?" It’s a question I’ve thought about throughout my career, and after reading Marty Cagan’s recent article, I feel validated in my long-held belief that it’s both. For years, I’ve approached product development as a balance of art and science. On one hand, we use hypotheses, testing, and iteration—clear elements of science—to solve problems for our customers. On the other, there’s an undeniable artistry in engineering, design, and crafting solutions that not only work but inspire and resonate with users. Marty’s article captures this perfectly. What struck me most is how he frames creativity in product management as "discovery" and problem-solving through experimentation. It’s this blend of art and science that drives great products, and reading his perspective felt like a validation of the balance we strive for every day. If you’re in product, design, or engineering, I highly recommend checking out Marty’s thoughts. His insights are spot on for anyone working to build products that deliver value while maintaining creativity and innovation. #ProductManagement #MartyCagan #ArtAndScience #ProductDesign #Innovation #CustomerValue #ProblemSolving

8

3 Comments

Strategic alignment across product and field is complex and not easy to get right, but it's a pleasure to work alongside Brett Crane, Trevor Jett (Childers), and Jarod Greene. It's wonderful to be in conversation with them, sharing what we have learned, in this webinar: https://lnkd.in/gc-qp7Hk

13

Stop obsessing over launch tiers and focus on launch cadence. I've interviewed a lot of product marketers lately, many of them great. But my eyes always glaze over when I ask about their approach to product launches and they whip out a spreadsheet or walk me through their "framework" for prioritizing launches based on a tiered approach. This isn't necessarily wrong, it's just not going to differentiate you from other PMM candidates. And it's not going to help you wield influence and drive impact within your company if you do get the job. One of the most impactful things you CAN do is put a stake in the ground around launch cadence. At LivePerson, for example, we've committed to doing two major product launches per year, one in the Spring and one in the Fall. We call our launch events Spark – and they're as much about sparking action internally as they are about bringing our new products and capabilities to market. A semi-annual launch cadence acts as a forcing function and rallying point for the entire organization. It drives urgency and accountability around everything from product development and adoption to sales enablement and operations to customer marketing and success. The Spark model also encourages a strategic storytelling approach to GTM. Instead of launching capabilities as one-offs (informed by product availability and those silly "tiers"), a predictable launch cadence allows us to think thematically and focus on outcomes rather than inputs, solutions rather than specs. Our Fall launch, for instance, will hone in on the Assist phase of our Conversational Flywheel which is all about the agent experience and how brands can spark a better CX by empowering their people with AI and other agent-centric technology. We'll be launching some transformative new products and some smaller stuff that will make agents happier and more efficient but that might have gotten lost in a tier-based launch framework. More on that soon. For now, it's time to keep that rhythm going 🥁 #productmarketing #gotomarket

18

How does a product manager land two offers in three months in an incredibly difficult market? In today’s feature, join me, Shobhit, the founder of Intentional Product Manager, as we dive into an enlightening conversation with Sally Niu. Sally, a marketer turned product manager, shares her transformative journey through our Intentional Job Search (IJS) program, where she successfully landed two job offers within just three months of joining. Sally walks us through her experience, detailing the pivotal moments and the comprehensive support she received that drastically improved her storytelling skills—something she identified as a major hurdle in her previous job applications. Despite having significant experience in both B2B SaaS and marketplace products, Sally struggled to convey her value effectively during interviews. IJS offered her the tools and coaching necessary to refine her narrative, align it with key product management competencies, and polish her personal branding across her resume and LinkedIn profile. What makes Sally's story even more compelling are the mock interviews and live practice sessions provided by IJS, which she credits for her newfound confidence and success in landing competitive roles. Additionally, Sally discusses her initial hesitations about the program's return on investment and how a recommendation from a trusted friend who was an IJS alumna finally convinced her to take the leap. Beyond just securing job offers, Sally highlights the invaluable network and community she gained through IJS—a supportive environment that continues to benefit her well beyond the job search. This video is a must-watch for any product managers who find themselves stuck or unnoticed in their career progression. Discover how intentional strategies and a supportive community can elevate your professional journey, just like they did for Sally. Watch and be inspired to redefine your own career path with Intentional Job Search, where we don't just prepare you to land a job; we prepare you to excel in it and make a significant impact in your field. Are you ready to be the next success story? Join us and transform your career trajectory with Intentional Job Search. Watch and Enjoy! Shobhit. Key Moments in this Episode ======================== 00:00 - Introduction and Impact on her career 01:44 - Her hesitations about Intentional Job Search and the decision to take the leap 02:50 - Her biggest AHA moments in the program 04:00 - Her advice for you https://lnkd.in/gmqDCrCu

11

1 Comment

ENOUGH WITH THE FRAMEWORKS! If you've worked with me, you've probably heard me say that. Product teams should be focused on driving outcome and impact, not falling in love with the process. And that's something Peter Yang from Roblox knows all too well. We had a great conversation on Next Gen Builders about how the PM role is evolving, how to use #AI to focus on more important work (like talking to customers), and more. Tune in to our conversation: https://lnkd.in/dY-AZh2s

81

5 Comments

🚀 New Episode Release: On the Hardest Lesson in Product Development! 🚀   In this video, Drew Falkman shares a key lesson learned the hard way—why validating ideas with users early can save time, money, and runway. Perfect for startups and product teams! 🌟   🔑 What You’ll Learn: Fail Fast, Learn Fast: The power of testing ideas quickly. Validate Before You Build: Why skipping user validation is costly. Lessons from Experience: How assumptions can derail your progress.   ✨ Catch it here: https://lnkd.in/efJxRRDj 🎥 And stay tuned every Friday for new episodes featuring more product leaders!   👉 What’s your go-to method for validating product ideas? Let’s discuss in the comments!   #FailFast #ProductManagement #StartupLessons #UserValidation #Agile

3

1 Comment

I'm often asked about the difference between full-time and fractional product work. Here's one of the things I always tell folks -- fractional is all about impact, impact, impact 🔥 This means that the ability to develop context quickly, ramp up (and get educated) around new problem spaces & industries and sniff out potential challenges for a product and team are crucial...and also what makes the role so damn fun and dynamic. Side-note: This is not to say this isn’t the case with full-time work. The best full-time folks certainly adopt this mindset. But I know this to be *particularly* the case with fractional work and what you should expect when working with a stellar fractional professional.

48

6 Comments

Like many, I've often used the Lego analogy when discussing composable commerce, and it’s a good fit. But recently, while browsing multiple house listings on the same street, I realized that composability is a lot like choosing a house. The choices are numerous and significant, with the biggest takeaway being the need to figure out what works best for my family now and in the years to come. I'm seeking something reliable, proven, adaptable, and cost-effective within my budget. Bedrooms, Bathrooms, Garage Space, and More - 🛏️ How many bedrooms do you need? - 🛁 Bathrooms? - 🚗 Space for cars in the garage? Outdoor Features - 🌳 Fenced yard or not? - 🌸 Landscaped? - 🛖 Shed? - ☀️ Deck or patio, covered or open? - 🏊 Pool or hot tub? Interior Finishes - 🏠 Modern, country, contemporary? - 💰 Quality vs. cost efficiency? - 🏚️ Finished or unfinished basement? - 🛌 Size of bedrooms? - 🚪 Open or closed concept? The lists go on and on. Making these choices can be challenging, and I might not get them all right. But having the ability to choose, rather than settling for a cookie-cutter house with no options, is invaluable. The same applies to composable commerce. It might seem like a bit of a challenge, but the ability to tailor solutions to specific needs far outweighs the complexity of struggling with a one-size-fits-all solution.

11

1 Comment

Had a blast chatting with Manasi on the Wharton Tech Club's Podcast. We talked about how Zillow's cutting-edge AI powers tools that continue to improve and evolve our product suite, how we’re approaching GenAI in this “teenage phase,” and my top tips for Product Managers with this latest AI wave. Last, but not least, what books I rely on daily and my two favorite classes as a Wharton Undergrad. Manasi asked for just one, but I had to include MGMT 101 where I met my wife as a favorite class, too. Check out the link below or listen wherever you usually enjoy podcasts! #ProjectManagement #TechTalks #Tech #Zillow #AI

77