Episodi

  • Clarifying Unclear Product Manager Requests

    Clarifying Unclear Product Manager Requests

    · The Product Porch

    1:42 - Meet Jeff and his big question for product managers: "How can we ensure we have the right understanding from our leaders?"

    4:30 - Ryan emphasizes the importance of focusing on outcomes over outputs to clarify product manager responsibilities.

    7:35 - Todd jokes about where their "outputs over outcomes" tattoo should go.

    9:20 - Ryan urges product managers to seek clarity when they don’t understand the "why" behind a request.

    10:30 - Todd shares a story from his LA Times days on asking for clarification from his boss.

    15:12 - The group discusses how product managers can overcomplicate unclear requests.

    16:00 - Joe suggests playing the "New Guy" card when in doubt.

    19:00 - The team highlights that asking questions is a strength for a product manager, not a weakness.

    23:35 - Ryan poses the question: Is there ever a time when product managers shouldn't ask for clarification?

    24:28 - Joe shares a story about when he had to "bite his tongue" as a product manager.

    26:30 - Todd adds that timing is everything; knowing when to ask is part of the product manager job.

    30:00 - Joe discusses the role evolution from order-taker to partner for a product manager.

    33:26 - Todd revisits Jeff’s story to highlight the importance of avoiding wasted time and resources on misaligned products.

    34:30 - Joe shares a product manager tip: develop internal personas to better manage stakeholders and understand their goals.

    35:20 - A lightning round on common requests that product managers initially misunderstood.

    36:40 - The infamous "JIRA-slinging ticket monkey" term makes an appearance. Shoutout to Dean Peters!

    38:46 - Key takeaways (and some friendly teasing of Joe for his wording choices).

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • Understanding Your PM Spikes

    Understanding Your PM Spikes

    · The Product Porch

    Episode Description

    1:00- Meet Nils Davis

    2:47- Nils reminds us that Product Managers are really “Unicorns” in the workforce

    7:00- Nils shares his favorite phrase as a Product Manager “Your obvious is your art”

    8:47- Nils shares the pros/cons of understanding your “spike”

    10:03- We discuss how it's difficult to share our superpower with the people that surround us

    12:08- Nils shares the different ways we can discover our PM spike/superpower

    15:45- Todd shares the struggle with asking for feedback to identify your PM spike/superpower

    17:52- Nils shares one of his PM spikes

    20:15- Todd shares the PM spike he wishes he had

    22:12- Todd compares Joe’s PM spike to that of a Golden Retriever

    25:20- A new word is introduced to the Product Porch- “Pragmatic Empathy”

    28:15- Todd asks the question of whether or not the PM role has a unique set of capabilities

    33:19- We review the stable of “Product” Unicorns-

    36:19- Todd reminds us why he’s against Annual Performance Reviews and not a coder 🙂

    39:10- We wrap up with our advice for the PM community struggling to find their “spike” (Nils-leverage Clifton Strengths Finder assessment)- people are the stars of their own movies

    40:18- Todd- Don’t feel guilty for your spike. Find that thing that you love and lean into it

    41:30- Joe- Be genuine and true to yourself (not as profound as Todd/Nils)

    42:00- Nils ends with a very profound thought- “Product Managers are amazing creatures, yet you would never know it from reading their resume”

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

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  • Executing Product Solutions

    Executing Product Solutions

    · The Product Porch

    2:15 What are the Product Management trends everyone is talking about

    4:30- Todd asks the question: Are we focusing on the problem at the expense of the solution?

    7:00- Joe explains why he believes we have over-indexed on some of the common PM themes

    10:05- We are getting paid to deliver- reality check for all PMs

    11:45- Ryan tells how this is a struggle for Type A personalities

    13:16- Todd walks us through his approach to move to execution (from high-level concepts to delivery)

    14:21- Joe’s shares an unpopular opinion about SAFe and its value for Product Leaders

    16:08- Todd shares how he uses Ryan and Joe for some very specific product needs- team bonding moment

    18:45 Todd admits that SAFe quarterly planning is awesome. Joe and Todd have a moment

    22:54- What is the Product Managers Role in Solutioning? Ryan shared his POV

    27:12- Todd shares a current situation on what to do with competing perspectives on proposed solutions-

    29:09- You need to have confidence and conviction- Ryan Cantwell- this is what a PM needs to do

    30:30- Sometimes you just make calculated risks as Product Managers- we discuss as a team

    35:03- Todd kicks off a Job title game- problem or solution. Grab your popcorn!

    39:01- Todd shares why he loves “defining the problem”

    41:04- Key Takeaways-

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • Layoffs in Product Management

    Layoffs in Product Management

    · The Product Porch

    1:22 The fellas discuss their favorite Ken phrase

    1:44- Ken tells us what it means to be a product management truth teller

    5:16- What can we do as product managers to become more valuable?

    8:35- One of the first steps- What goal are you trying to achieve and how can I help you get there?

    10:30- Ken tells us why you should spend 20 min a week interviewing a customer

    12:55: Todd outlines why experimentation is critical for a product manager

    16:45- The team discuss the product management anti-patterns we should watch out for

    23:00- How to make yourself an indispensable product person?

    26:30- Ken talks about how you can build a quarterly plan to build a strong product management team

    28:00- Todd shares his PM secret sauce- Product Framing

    29:00- Ryan reminds us to ask the question “So What”

    30:56- We share Ken’s favorite PM phrase “Magic Beans”

    34:15- What got us here (why are there so many PMs that are unemployed)?

    37:40- Is there another domain where the role is defined by someone who doesn’t understand the value of product management?

    40:00 Key Takeaways/Wrap-up

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • The Product Manager as a Player-Coach

    The Product Manager as a Player-Coach

    · The Product Porch

    1:22- Joe explains why the role of Product Player Coach role is a cop-out

    2:51- Todd uses data to say how it can work and leverages his love of the NBA to demonstrates why

    5:34- We discuss what success looks like for a Product Manager Player Coach

    10:02- Ryan walks us through how we resolved the challenges associated with this hybrid role

    13:32- Todd walks us through the disadvantages of the hybrid PM/Coach role

    16:03- Joe emphatically tells us why Product Managers must be successful at relationships- Product Managers are already “coaches”

    20:15- We talk about getting uncomfortable to grow as a product manager

    23:30- Joe discusses his affinity for gold stars

    26:30- Life lessons from being a player-coach have advantages for career advancement if you want to be a people manager

    30:20- What are the negatives of being a player-coach?

    32:30- We hear about Todd’s real-life experience as a player-coach. Todd clashes with his peers but learns to turn it around.

    34:50- Ryan tells us about his real-life experience as a player-coach. He’s the scapegoat!

    37:10- How do relationships change when you become a player-coach?

    40:20- Hear a fantastic analogy between player-coach and Spider-man 2

    44:25- Words of advice for anyone considering the role of player-coach.

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • Transforming Product Setbacks Into Success

    Transforming Product Setbacks Into Success

    · The Product Porch

    1:30 Ryan ponders what product failure means?

    3:37 The true definition of failure is identified

    6:33 Todd speaks to the categories of product failure

    9:33 Todd assumes the role of therapist and tells Ryan and Joe they didn’t fail

    12:13- We discuss how we turn failure into a learning opportunity

    15:06- Joe discusses the most underrated product management skill

    19:08- We bring back the Jobs to be done framework when dealing with our co-workers

    22:25- Todd shares a tip on how manage friction with a co-workers (brilliant)

    25:44- We talk about the temptation to take short-cuts with process

    29:00 Todd tells us why he didn’t win any newsroom awards one year

    31:00 Ryan comes up with a new PM slogan “It's the scars that make you and not the successes” (Joe thinks it should be on a bumper sticker)

    32:34- The “learning” is knowing how we can do it better next time (Hallmark card time)

    35:00 - Todd reminds why we shouldn’t never give up when the going gets tough

    36:08 - We talk about the fear of using AI to make product management short cuts

    37:09 - We all share our product failure war stories

    44:30- Wayne’s World reference makes its way into our podcast- Success!

    48:00- Thoughts on how you respond to failure drives who you are as a product manager

    52:00 Wrap Up

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • Product Management Jargon Draft

    Product Management Jargon Draft

    · The Product Porch

    1:07 – Joe kicks off the discussion on useless product management terms.
    1:49 – We start the PM Jargon Draft, with Todd winning the #1 pick.
    3:04 – Todd and Ryan’s #1 pick: "CEO of the Product."
    4:23 – Joe’s #1 pick: "Customer Centric" (he’s salty he couldn’t trade for the #1 pick).
    6:07 – Todd discusses how every healthcare company is "patient-first" – shouldn’t we all be patient-first in healthcare?
    7:14 – Ryan questions "Productize" – is it a verb? A new word in the English dictionary? The big draft controversy.
    9:41 – Todd adds "Gathering Requirements" to his hit list of terrible PM terms. We suggest "Gathering Insights" as a better alternative.
    15:00 – Iteration vs. Agile discussion – "We are going to be Agile" drives Joe nuts because it often just means "Can we launch it faster?"
    18:20 – Ryan selects a declaration: "We are going to be more innovative."
    21:10 – "Thinking outside the box" is a controversial pick in the draft.
    22:25 – Todd explains why he hates the term "Feature Parity"; Joe recommends "Holistic Approach" instead.
    30:51 – "Being Product-led" is a steal in the 3rd round for Ryan, who explains what it really means.
    36:10 – Undrafted superstar PM Terms (Joe has PTSD from Ryan yelling at him for "fail fast").
    40:00 – Todd predicts next year’s draft class, starting with "Outcomes over Outputs," "Product-Market Fit," and "Go-to-Market Enablement."
    43:00 – Actionable takeaways.

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • Product Principles In Real Life

    Product Principles In Real Life

    · The Product Porch
    Ryan tells us how he leveraged PM principles recently for his mulch project ( 0:45)Joe shows us how Ryan applied the Jobs to Done framework to Ryan’s approach (3:00)We discuss how often we apply PM Principles creep into our life (5:00)Todd discusses how Problem Framing can be applied in real-world scenarios (12:00)Joe gives us a review of the Broadway Show “Heart of Rock and Roll” (20:00)Ryan walks us through dot voting techniques for family (21:00)Todd experiments with Tiny Acts of Discovery (23:50) Ryan applies iteration techniques when filling up the dishwasher (26:40)Todd discusses success metrics and his neighbor's lawn (31:00)We talk about which product principles don’t work in real life (32:27)Key takeaways and our recommendations (38:24)

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • Rebranding the Product Manager Title

    Rebranding the Product Manager Title

    · The Product Porch
    Product Champions: a new title for PMs (1:00)Airbnb gets rid of product manager title (3:45)Chief No Officer / Head of No / Innovation Sponge / Walking Roadblock / Killer of Dreams, (5:55)Superman, Smokey the Bear and Lil Smokies, and User Psychologists (12:15)Group Therapist, Anger Manager, and The Negotiator (15:20)Outcome Architect and Director of Opinions (19:00)Aladdin and Product Genie wishing rules (22:30)Provlemologist and Innovation Specialists (27:15)The Fortune Teller, Product Facilier, and Product Gambler (29:45)Napalm Artist, sports cliches, and The Joker (33:40)Value Broker, Risk Mitigator, and Zookeeper (37:40)We discuss whether or not the PM title needs a rebrand (39:00)Which PM titles are our favorites (41:00)Why the Product Manager role needs a brand and marketing department (45:15)Key Takeaways (46:40)

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • How Much Does Industry Experience Matter

    How Much Does Industry Experience Matter

    · The Product Porch
    Ryan emphatically explains why you don’t need experience for a PM job (2:11)Joe shares why it isn’t a black/white answer (4:20)The danger in over-indexing to hiring for experience (8:30)The value of mentorships to overcome a lack of industry experience (18:00)Ryan walks us through the beginners mindset as a product leader (23:00)Find fit for the role - don’t rely on the experience - how long does it take to be great at product discovery (28:00)Ryan tell us why he hates the term “fail fast” (31:00)The similarities between baseball and product management (35:10)A teaser on an upcoming product management podcast (41:00)Key Takeaways (45:30)

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • The Dark Side of Product Management

    The Dark Side of Product Management

    · The Product Porch
    Ryan’s story - struggle with plastic bags - being environmentally responsible (:58)Jobs to be Done is a PM’s superpower (5:00)Using the empathy superpower for evil (6:00)Using the storytelling for evil (8:14)Navigating Righteous Path of Product Management (13:20)Using the planning superpower for evil (17:00)Avoiding stakeholders that get in your way (20:15)Why shouldn't we pursue the dark side of product management (22:00)How do you know when your employees are looking for impact but doing it in a self serving way - how to stop it from happening (27:00)Balance between short and long term product decisions (31:30)Todd’s talks about how the Nintendo Wii is a good example of ethical product management (36:30)Key takeaways (38:00)

    Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.

  • The Product Porch Trailer

    The Product Porch Trailer

    · The Product Porch

    On The Product Porch, every topic is a product topic. Dive into casual conversations on product management and career growth, woven with pop culture and real-life insights. Each episode offers actionable takeaways as the hosts tackle pressing questions and challenges in the product field. Settle in with Joe Ghali, Ryan Cantwell, and Todd Blaquiere!Help keep the Product Porch lights on by giving at
    Patreon.com/TheProductPorch.