Product Bakery – The Product Management, UX & Design Podcast

In this episode, Alex and Christian bring you an insightful discussion about a hot topic in the industry. They dive into the recent announcement by the CEO of Airbnb, who boldly stated that the company is moving away from product managers. They explore the implications of this decision and its potential impact on the role of product management. They also share their thoughts on the evolving nature of the product manager role and how organizations can optimize their workforce for efficient product development. Join us as we unpack the CEO's vision for a more design-driven company and the possible implications for the future of product management. Stay tuned for a thought-provoking conversation addressing product managers' role and relevance in today's ever-changing landscape.

What we've covered:

(00:01:56) Apple worked without product managers, interesting discussion.

(00:05:26) Engineering manager enables on-time delivery, overlaps determine role necessity - Apple example.

(00:08:16) Designers and CPMs should work together effectively.

(00:11:44) One person can cover the process, but experts validate.

We know you might be tired of people talking about AI...

Nevertheless, there are tremendous trends changing the industry and we believe it's important to stay on top of things before...

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Innovation is a word that many companies claim to do. Or, they want to be more innovative by hiring external people, setting up innovation labs, and more. What is innovation though? We took it from there and dove into the definition of innovation as well as what it needs to "do innovation" and how not to do it.

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The summer break is over! We're back with an episode about learning from feedback, news, podcasts, books, and other resources. We don't only talk about how you learn, we talk about how you learn in the right way by taking a wider perspective on things instead of "just adapting" new knowledge.

We've covered:

(00:02:18) Thoughts on podcasting and professional development vary.

(00:03:50) How to absorb information and apply it.

(00:08:16) Understanding problems before chasing solutions is crucial.

(00:12:09) The Coaching Habit: effective learning and adaptation.

(00:14:31) Romans exist, follow us for updates.

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Long story short: We'll change the podcast format to make our conversation even more interactive. Tune in and learn about our plans ;-)

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We've been invited to the Product Conference in Munich and interviewed great guests about the importance of the product strategy.

Here are the questions we've asked:

The importance of product strategy

• Why do product teams need a product strategy (or not)?
• What are the key steps for a team or individual PM to define a strategy (ideally with examples)?
• Which key parts & information need every strategy to cover?
• How can teams & leaders ensure that their teams live by the defined strategy and further develop it so it doesn't get outdated?
• What do CEOs & founders need to give buy-in?

Follow the guests:

We've been invited to the Product Conference in Munich and interviewed great guests about the product discovery process.

Here are the questions we've asked:

Running the product discovery process

• How do you run product discovery at your company?
• How did you initially set up or adjust a product discovery process when starting at your company?
• Which KPIs & metrics do you use to measure the impact of your discovery (ideally with examples)?
• At which point of the discovery process do most teams fail?

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In this episode, Alex and Christian are joined by the insightful Ofir, a Chief Product Officer with a deep passion for AI. They explore the evolving role of AI in product management and design, discussing how AI capabilities can empower users, boost productivity, and unlock new value. From AI copilot assistants to generative AI tools, they provide practical examples and valuable resources for integrating AI into your work. Join us as we dive into the AI revolution and discover how to develop an AI mindset in the world of product development.

What We’ve Covered:

(00:01:24) A good CPO focuses on AI, tools, and AI mindset.

(00:06:59) AI empowers product managers to innovate faster.

(00:09:13) English is the new programming language.

(00:13:50) Will AI make humans smarter or dumber?

(00:17:41) Rate of change challenges the education system now.

(00:21:50) Generative AI tools will help.

(00:24:45) Saving time with backlog management.

(00:30:06) Revolutionary shift in product development approaches.

(00:32:32) AI transformation empowers users and boosts productivity.

(00:35:00) AI is a powerful partner, not hype.

(00:39:23) Be mindful of AI but don't underestimate it.

Connect with Ofir:

We invited Esmar to our show who is an experienced product leader. In this episode, he talked about how to set up a product discovery process as a leader who recently joined a new team/company.

After diving into the product discovery, we continued our conversation and talked about the product delivery process.

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This week, Alex talks about how he does product discovery and how he and his team managed to establish a new process within their company.

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After many requests, we finally talked for the first time about OKR planning! In this episode, we looked at the whole planning process of OKRs on a team and company level. We specifically looked at the planning process and the common traps teams fall into.

OKR planning & process

This time we attended the Chief Product Officer Conference 2023 in Berlin. We've hosted a panel discussion and talked about product lead growth as well as the importance of AI.

Our guests:

After our previous discussion about product owners and managers, we looked deeper into product design vs. UX design.

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Product management and design collaboration is what we've talked most about in the past. The same goes for product and engineering collaboration.

In this episode, we talk about how product designers and engineers should collaborate to ensure seamless delivery to production.

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We enjoyed talking to the analytics veteran and product evangelist Adam Greco. Adam has more than 20 years of experience in the industry. We talked about the importance of good data for marketers and product teams, the shift from sales-led growth to product-led growth as well as the upcoming trends around machine learning and AI.

Table of content:

• 00:30 - Intro Adam
• 02:40 - The rise of data
• 05:10 - Privacy, GDPR & more
• 13:25 - Marketing vs. product analytics
• 19:00 - Tracking based on business questions
• 27:20 - Good tracking vs. bad tracking (example)
• 33:10 - The trend of AI 
• 36:45 - Adam's advice for product teams
  

The product manager vs. product owner discussion is still a thing. What's the difference and how do companies distinguish these roles? This time, we shared our thoughts and experiences around the titles.

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Giving and receiving feedback can be very challenging. Especially when it comes to the topics that bother us. In this episode, we talked about how we're giving feedback as well as the negative side effects of not speaking the truth.

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Do you have a place where you collect every idea of a stakeholder, team members, etc.? Are some ideas getting lost sometimes? 

We discussed some approaches to manage ideas and report transparently on the progress of the stakeholder requests.

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Christian was at the Berlin Product Conference 2023 and hosted a panel discussion about the importance of user-centricity in product development. The whole conversation was recorded including the QA session. 

Panel Guests:

Netflix shared their new salary ranges due to the legal requirements for open positions. Interestingly a senior designer role has a range between $50k - $600k. We discussed the crazy range and what you can do to get the salary that you deserve!

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Creating a good product strategy is one thing. Another is ensuring that the whole company buys in and follows the strategy. We talked about how important it is to clearly communicate our plans as product leaders.

"I don't have time to..." is maybe a quote you've said or heard many times. We made a deep-dive into time management and talked about the root-causes.

Meeting attendance decision tree:

Today, we talked about the recent news on FTX (crypto exchange) and the current mass layoffs the tech industry faces. We took a deep dive into how the current economic situation impacts hiring, culture, how people are approaching job search, and more!

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After an eventful year, we're heading into a short break. Thank you all for the support throughout this year and see you back in 2023.

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We're sure you've heard about ChatGPT! In this episode, we discussed the new technology and the threats and opportunities of this new enhanced AI.

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Backlog management is not only a task for product managers. Design teams need to manage and prioritize their work as well. Therefore, we talked about how to best manage and coordinate the work between product and design.

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The new Arc browser is on its way! This time, we discussed how browsers have developed and what we expect from a product & design PoV from a good browsing experience.

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Maybe you've experienced something similar...
Many times people work on features or solutions... if you ask the question though: "What's the problem" you are not getting a real answer...

In this episode, we discussed why people are tempted to jump to solutions and how you can be more problem/customer-centric.

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After more than 91 episodes we finally talked about design thinking. This time, Alex got interviewed about his opinion on design thinking and how to apply it.

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There is a tool... called the company compass or medicine wheel. It's used for strategic planning and defining clear roles within a company, project, or group. In this episode, we talk about the new framework we've discovered and how to apply it in product.

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This time, we talk about how to best approach when your team members are struggling with their performance. We looked at questions like:

• What best to do?
• What do the people need?
• How can you empower them?

Tune in to learn more!

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What to do if you're in trouble with your leader(ship team)? Can individual contributors make a change? Is it even their job? Or, should you just move on and let it go? This time we talked about what product people can and may should do if they want to change the direction of their leaders.

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You may have noticed that Instagram updated its app and rolled it back to the previous version. We took a closer look at what has happened, especially on the product & engineering side. 

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In this episode, we talk about the importance of having and working with experienced people who coach or mentor you. 

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Access Granted! No, it's not about that kind of accessibility. We talk about what most product & design teams call edge cases or "we can ship that later." 

We believe people with disabilities and restrictions need to be fully included in the product planning and development process, especially for products that are already live and are being used by customers. 

Tune in to hear our perspectives on understanding all customers and how to plan feature and product releases.

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You can't help others if you can't help yourself. You can't manage others if you can't manage yourself. 

We've touched on those quotes a couple of times in previous episodes. In this conversation, we dive into a leader's role and what a leader should expect from their employees. Clarity about the role of a leader is the key to defining their employees' role. 

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Many people update their LinkedIn profiles and add new positions in Web 3.0 startups. That raised the question for Alex whether he should quit his job to work on a Web 3.0 startup. We took a deeper look into that and discussed what Web 3.0 actually is and if it's a hype or trend you shouldn't miss.

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There is one big question many people asking themselves currently: Should I work full-time or as a freelancer? In this conversation, we talk about why we're doing what we're doing. It's not about what is better! It's about what motivates us to work full-time or as a freelancer. 

Tune in to get a different perspective on the two sides.

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The world goes crazy... corona, war, inflation, and many more things are happening right now. The impact on the economy is huge. Due to the financial situation, many companies need to save budget and start firing people to save costs. At the same time, many business models and strategic plans start to break too. 

In this episode, we talk about how you as an employee and a company can make the best out of the situation and convert it into a great opportunity!

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There is so much to say and write about our opinion on boot camps. However, the best way is to tune in ;) 

Enjoy and let us know what you think about boot camps!

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We've talked about how important it is to take of yourself if you're a leader in this episode. How do you want to help people if you can't help yourself? What should you expect from your employees? What are your primary responsibilities as a leader?

Tune in for a deep dive into the (product) leadership role and self care.

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It has been a while since our last episode. We both were very busy with our jobs, side projects, and vacation recently. Nevertheless, we decided to regroup and continue with new episodes about great topics. Tune in to get the latest update and what's coming up next.

Best,

Alex & Christian

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It's not always about data. Sometimes, you need to listen to your gut!

This week the Product Bakers interviewed Projjal Ghatak talking about how to solve customers' problems and how to bring in the right people into a company. 

Table of content: 

• 00:30 - Episode Intro
• 02:00 - Intro Projjal Ghatak
• 04:20 - Starting a company based on a problem
• 06:55 - Dealing with intuition vs. data
• 12:30 - Networking to find the right people
• 17:10 - Understand and define good problems
• 25:00 - Company strategy: quality vs. growth
• 28:30 - Delivering value to customers
• 30:40 - Creating a great advisory board
• 34:45 - CEO advice: Fokus

Connect with Projjal:

In this episode, Alex and Christian discussed the danger of falling in love with your first idea or solution.

Table of content:

• 00:30 - The importance of quality
• 03:30 - The of too much MVP thinking
• 06:30 - Not enough vs. too much data
• 09:00 -  8 sketches, 8 minutes
• 11:20 - Timeboxing research & prototyping

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Doing product management isn't easy. Even though, with gazillions of books that people have read, they can sometimes not execute the knowledge. In this episode, Christian and Alex took a deeper look at why that's the case. 

Table of content:

• 00:30 - Why is product management so hard?
• 02:40 - Chicken & egg problem
• 03:30 - Collaboration & soft skills are essential
• 06:50 - Regular reminders 
• 08:15 - Making a change as an individual
• 10:55 - Making compromises

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Asking great questions is a real-life superpower! Sometimes though, it's important to take a step back and ask (powerful) stupid questions, especially when you are new in a role as a product person. 

In this episode, the Product Bakers talked to Paul about coaching CEOs to develop a product mindset. Despite that, they've talked about what product people can do to establish more product thinking.

Table of content:

• 00:30 - Episode Intro
• 01:50 - Intro Paul
• 04:45 - The ego of founders
• 10:50 - What founders need to hear
• 16:10 - Influential product management
• 22:35 - Asking dumb questions
• 32:35 - What founders & PMs can do to make a change

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Public roadmaps became a hot topic in the past. Christian & Alex decided to speak about the benefits of sharing your roadmap with your customers and how to define it in a way that they will understand your future plans.

Table of content:

• 00:30 - Intro & chit chat
• 02:35 - Transparency is key
• 03:20 - The idea of "open startup"
• 05:50 - Customers love knowing your plans
• 07:15 - Using good terminology
• 11:25 - Getting feedback from your customers
• 13:30 - What you should not share publicly
• 16:00 - Don't be afraid to share your plans

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The Product Bakery podcast was started on the 10th of September 2020. After one year of podcasting and many interviews, Christian and Alex sat down to take a couple of looks back...

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The whole insurance space is very slow. At least it used to be! Konrad Heipmel's mission @Getsafe is to disrupt the insurance market. As VP of Data & Product, he shared with the Product Bakers how they focus on data to build a product that fits the market needs and solves the customer pain points.

Table of content:

• 00:30 - Episode Intro
• 02:20 - Intro of Konrad & the insurance space
• 07:00 - The biggest challenges of the industry
• 10:40 - Working with product principles
• 13:45 - How to scale up domains & teams
• 16:15 - The relevance of data
• 18:15 - Establishing a data mindset & culture
• 21:10 - Data-driven product strategy
• 25:15 - Data as a foundation to form teams & squads
• 29:25 - Entrepreneurial decision vs. data-based decisions

Links & connect with Konrad: