Welcome to my blog. You may want to filter posts by your role for your convenience. Click here if you are an individual contributor in product (aka. PM) and here if you are leading a product organisation (aka product leader).
As we get to the end of the year, it’s natural for us to want to spend some time reflecting. What went well for us in the past year? What were some areas where we’d like to improve in the future? And while you may naturally spend time doing this for yourself, if you’re a leader, it’s especially important for you to model this type of self-reflection and encourage it on your team.
Read MoreI recently listened to a podcast episode with Kenneth Berger, and one of his core ideas truly struck a chord with me: uncovering "the dream behind the complaint. Kenneth's insight is a beautiful framing for product leaders. When a direct report comes to you with a complaint, there's often a deeper, unspoken desire behind it.
Read MoreIn this post, the final in the series, we’ll be reviewing the most important points for you to remember (I’m calling this your “Managing up cheat sheet”) as well as some ways to make sure you tailor your message to your manager’s communication style.
Read Morein the third post in the series, we explored what you can do when you’re experiencing conflict with other people or teams. In this post, we’ll be looking at another specific situation when you might need more support from your boss—when you’d like to develop your PM skills.
Read MoreIn this post, we’ll be looking at a specific situation when you might need more support from your boss—when you’re experiencing conflicts with other people or teams and when the boss competency of role clarity might be the missing piece of the puzzle. Need a refresher on all ten boss competencies?
Read MoreIn the first post in this series, I covered why managing up is an important topic, introduced the ten boss responsibilities and the ships vs. shipyard metaphor, and explained why your boss might be struggling in these areas. Want to read that post? You can find it here. In this post, we’ll be looking at one specific situation when you might need more support from your boss and I’ll share some tips and tricks for you to try out.
Read MoreHello there, lovely product people! I wanted to share a quick note to let you know that this article is a little different from what I usually share here. While my blog typically highlights work I’ve already done (e.g. frameworks I’ve developed, podcasts or talks I’ve given, clients I’ve worked with), this post actually represents a work in progress.
Read MoreOne of the things that’s so exciting about developing a coaching tool is seeing how people adapt it to their own needs. And this post celebrates two incredible product people who have gone above and beyond in their adaptations. Not only have they created dynamic versions of the PMwheel, but they’ve made these updates available to anyone who’d like to use them. Meet Product Coach Lisa Mo Wagner and Product Director and podcaster Jason Knight.
Read MoreOne of the recurring themes on my blog and in my work is about professional development. I can’t help it—I’m a coach! I’ve written before about why it’s so important to focus on your own development as a leader. But what exactly should you be focusing on? I realize that it can be hard to know where to focus your efforts, which is why I wanted to share what I’ve been hearing from others who are in your position. Near the end of last year, I asked my LinkedIn community (which is largely made up of Heads of Product, VPs of Product, and other product leaders) to share what they’d like to learn in 2022. Here’s what they had to say.
Read MoreSince publishing my book, STRONG Product People, I’ve been on a mission to get it into the hands of as many product leaders as possible. But beyond just getting product leaders to read my book, I want to help them actually apply the concepts they’ve been introduced to in the book.
This is why I’m excited about one of my newer offerings, the corporate book club for STRONG Product People. Everyone on your team receives a copy of the book and then we hold two 90-minute sessions to discuss any questions your team has about the concepts from the book and how to apply them.
When it comes to offering development opportunities, some companies struggle with doing this in a strategic way. They essentially throw money at the problem, opting to pay a premium for coaching and training. So what’s wrong with this approach? As a coach, shouldn’t I be happy to take money from any potential client who would like to pay me?
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