The Product Bistro

DECEMBER 28, 2018

I’m going to tell a story that will ultimately show how misguided many supposed “good ideas” are, especially in relation to business cases, strategy, and planning. One site that I hang out on is Slashdot , an old school hang out that bills itself as “News for Nerds.” On /. (see what I did there?) there seems to always be a thread on the front page about Apple and their business practices.

Engineering 195

Engineering Product Management Product Manager Entertainment 195

The Product Bistro

APRIL 7, 2019

An interesting topic today, what it must be like to sell to someone who lives and breathes products, and all aspects therein. This post revolves around selecting a realtor as the trustee of my Stepfather’s estate. Synopsis : In late 2018, my Stepfather, my father figure for over 40 years, passed away. He had been ill for a while, so it wasn’t a surprise that his health deteriorated and he slipped off this mortal coil, it was a turning point for me personally.

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 195

The Product Bistro

AUGUST 16, 2019

Having participated recently in the screening process for a product management position we are seeking to fill, scanning through a curated list of resumes, I was taken aback by the wide range of competencies that I saw. Then, while perusing Twitter, I saw a prescient post: “A Product Manager doesn’t need to know it all. they need to know enough “ This was part of a discussion about whether a product manager needed to be conversant in some hot new framework to be effective le

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Engineering Positioning 195

The Product Bistro

DECEMBER 13, 2019

Christina Wodtke’s latest is a gripping read, combining a compelling story line, with some novel, and useful ideas to help team dynamics and how to lead. Without giving too much of the story away (trust me, this is a page turner) the main protagonist is Allie, a product manager of a studio at a game company. The studio is like a little business unit with a lot of autonomy, yet strong responsibilities to the executive staff.

Books 195

Books Management Management Product Management 195

The Product Bistro

AUGUST 28, 2020

It has been a while since I have picked up pen and drafted a post, but I came across a Tweet last week that really made me pause and think. As a Product Mentor, I've seen these career paths to Product Management: – Business Analyst – Product Marketer – Software Engineer – Visual/UX Designer – Project Manager What was your path?

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 195

The Product Bistro

JANUARY 25, 2021

That is the question. In the way back time, before Agile, before OKRs and other fads, product managers wrote MRDs, or Market Requirement Documents. This was the artifact the began the process of developing a new product, or a variant of a product. Now, the general consensus seems to be that the MRD is dead as the Dodo, replaced by a product backlog, groomed by a product owner, and lean startup techniques that encourage build/test/evaluate/pivot cycles until you achieve the magical “produc

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Document Product Marketing 195

The Product Bistro

MARCH 3, 2021

Lately, I have been in a funk. Part of it is the isolation of the Covid era, and the enforced working from home. But a big part of it is the expectation I have that I am productive every second I am at my computer. However, I shouldn’t beat myself up over it. Product management is a role unlike any other. Not just because of the wide variance between companies and even organizations within a company of what they expect from their “product manager” (and, honestly, there is a

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Definition Engineering 195

The Product Bistro

MARCH 8, 2021

Almost 5 years ago, I found myself starting a job that focused around training, and skills validation, and my area of focus was in the future of work, as well as the seismic change that “Digital Transformation” was having on the workplace ecosystem. A major part of my early research on this was reading a lot of papers, white papers, articles, and just general digging into the topics related.

Naming 195

Naming White Paper Travel Article 195

The Product Bistro

MARCH 16, 2021

The most powerful phrase in product management isn’t something witty about product market fit, or positioning, or market segmentation. No, it is a very simple 3 or 4 words, depending on whether you employ a contraction or not. It’s my fault. That is it. Simple, but very difficult. Perhaps one of your developers pushed a bad bit of code to production, or you have lost some customer data, or your procurement team failed to buy enough 1% tolerance resistors, and you are getting 100% f

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 195

The Product Bistro

MARCH 23, 2021

Ask ten product managers what their life is like, and you will get ten different answers. However, there will be one constant. They will complain that they do too much “Tactical” work. It is a complaint, and one that people both inside and outside of product management will make, but it ought to be a cause for thought. First, Tactical is not a great term.

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Strategy Management 195

The Product Bistro

JUNE 11, 2021

A little history. When I originally bought my Honda S2000, I became very interested in keeping it in great condition, and to do that, I picked up a habit of detailing. It was fun, relaxing and rewarding practice, a Saturday ritual to wash, and clean my car, with waxing happening several times a year, and at least once a year a full paint maintenance cycle.

Branding 195

Branding Marketing Positioning 195

The Product Bistro

JUNE 12, 2021

A little history. When I originally bought my Honda S2000, I became very interested in keeping it in great condition, and to do that, I picked up a habit of detailing. It was fun, relaxing and rewarding practice, a Saturday ritual to wash, and clean my car, with waxing happening several times a year, and […].

Marketing 221

Marketing 221

The Product Bistro

MARCH 23, 2021

Product Management often feels like they are too tactical, and they should be more strategic, but not all tactical tasks are bad to own.

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 195

The Product Bistro

MARCH 16, 2021

The most powerful 3 words in a Product Manager's vocabulary is "It's My Fault." The blame game should not be in your toolbox, you own the product, act like it. Your team will thank you.

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 195

The Product Bistro

MARCH 9, 2021

The way we work, and the type of work we will do is changing. In my past research, one name has come up over and over, David Autor of MIT.

Naming 195

Naming 195

The Product Bistro

MARCH 3, 2021

Product Management is different from most roles in that you are always thinking about the product, and the myriad threads that it takes to make it. So, when you need to unplug, do not feel guilty.

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 195

The Product Bistro

JANUARY 25, 2021

In the modern era, it seems that product management and organizations have eschewed the venerable MRD or marketing requirements document. However, it still has a place in the toolkit, and it should be leveraged more often.

Product Management 195

Product Management Product Manager Document Management 195

The Product Bistro

AUGUST 29, 2020

A topic that often comes up is where to find new product managers, and often people with certain titles are mentioned. But there are other important or more important) considerations.

Product Management 221

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 221

The Product Bistro

DECEMBER 14, 2019

Christina Wodtke’s latest is a gripping read, combining a compelling story line, with some novel, and useful ideas to help team dynamics and how to lead. Without giving too much of the story away (trust me, this is a page turner) the main protagonist is Allie, a product manager of a studio at a game […].

Management 221

Management Management Books Product Management 221

The Product Bistro

AUGUST 17, 2019

Product Managers don't need to be experts on the technology, they merely need to know what is enough. Mastery of the role is synonymous with the zen of knowing what you need to know.

Product Management 199

Product Management Product Manager Technology Management 199

The Product Bistro

APRIL 7, 2019

An interesting topic today, what it must be like to sell to someone who lives and breathes products, and all aspects therein. This post revolves around selecting a realtor as the trustee of my Stepfather’s estate. Synopsis: In late 2018, my Stepfather, my father figure for over 40 years, passed away. He had been ill […].

Product Management 236

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 236

The Product Bistro

DECEMBER 29, 2018

I’m going to tell a story that will ultimately show how misguided many supposed “good ideas” are, especially in relation to business cases, strategy, and planning. One site that I hang out on is Slashdot, an old school hang out that bills itself as “News for Nerds.” On /. (see what I did there?) there […].

Strategy 210

Strategy Product Management Product Manager Management 210

The Product Bistro

DECEMBER 12, 2018

A recent round of staff reductions at work has led to the expected “goodbye” emails, where departing colleagues send notes of their departure, some memories, and contact information. Alas, the ones I have recently seen were somewhat, uh, pedestrian, and uninspired. I wistfully remember the art and creativity that people used to put into it. […].

Information 46

Information 46

The Product Bistro

DECEMBER 8, 2018

Way back, when I started the Product Bistro, I had a lot of spare time (between gigs), and I was using the blog to drum up some consulting, and piece work to fill in the gaps and time. I created this site to first describe what I could offer, and how my prior expertise could […].

Consulting 170

Consulting Blog Product Management Product Manager 170

The Product Bistro

NOVEMBER 26, 2018

The role of Product Management brings many responsibilities, some great, some awful, and many that are just “there” One of the “there” responsibilities is forecasting. Being at the center of the organization, Product Management is the logical focal point for this activity, even though it requires input from groups outside their control. i.e.

Product Management 265

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 265

The Product Bistro

NOVEMBER 19, 2018

A while back, I read a blog that got me thinking. Its premise was that developers should always have the fastest, best hardware to minimize down time. Waiting 12 seconds to compile a module was too long, and encouraged the developer’s attention to stray to Reddit, or some other time suck, and then they would […].

User Experience 170

User Experience Blog Development UX 170

The Product Bistro

NOVEMBER 12, 2018

Product management is a discipline where there is an unending to-do list, a fixed amount of time in the day, and enough outside influencers to make even the best multi-tasker whither and die. Yet good product managers always appear to be in control of the situation. This is a testament to several traits that are […].

Product Management 170

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 170

The Product Bistro

NOVEMBER 5, 2018

If you work at a startup, or a small company, chances are this three letter acronym is alien to you. However once you graduate to a mid sized company, with multiple products, and, more importantly, multiple divisions or business units, the construct of a PLC is inevitable, and even welcomed. PLC is an acronym for […].

Startups 170

Startups Construction Product Management Product Manager 170

The Product Bistro

OCTOBER 29, 2018

When starting a new job as a product manager, you are occasionally handed the reins on a product that has never had ANY product management, whatsoever. There are many reasons for this. In this specific case, it was a hardware technology product that came out of a small startup. My then current company provided some […].

Product Management 220

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 220

The Product Bistro

OCTOBER 26, 2018

So you want a product management job? How should you prepare for the interview? Especially if you are junior or looking for your first step on the product management ladder. I will share my experiences of several hops, and over 20 years of experience, on both sides of the interviewing process. Or you have been […].

Product Management 207

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 207

The Product Bistro

OCTOBER 22, 2018

I read a post today by Tom Leung on his blog, “Always be Shipping” that got me thinking. The premise of the posting was that only superstars need to apply. As someone in my earlier days who viewed himself with many of the qualities that are being sought, and to a large degree still lives […].

Product Management 186

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 186

The Product Bistro

OCTOBER 16, 2018

One day, I was musing about the job of product manager, and what differentiates a good product manager from an okay one, and an analogy sprung to mind. Think about a golf swing. There is the addressing of the ball, the back swing, the forward swing, and ultimately the follow though. When you are teaching […].

Product Management 170

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 170

The Product Bistro

OCTOBER 9, 2018

One of the most difficult part of a product manager’s job is pricing. Too low and you don’t make enough money (or leave money on the table), too high, and the product fails to take off. Getting it just right is part alchemy, part luck, and often just a bit of a guess. There are […].

Product Management 220

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 220

The Product Bistro

OCTOBER 1, 2018

I wish I had the secret to time management and how to control the beastly amount of tasks that build inexorably in the typical product manager’s “to-do” list. Alas, Product Management is one of those roles that collects the odds and ends of the organization, either by design (formally assigned), or by being the “buck-stops-here” […].

Management 170

Management Management Product Management Product Manager 170

The Product Bistro

SEPTEMBER 24, 2018

In my more than two decades of product management experience, with many different engineering and development organizations. Regardless of how great the teams are/were, there are always slips in schedule. I am puzzled by this. Even when with a great team, populated with hugely talented, and highly productive engineers, programs take longer than planned.

Product Management 191

Product Management Product Manager Engineering Management 191

The Product Bistro

SEPTEMBER 17, 2018

Revenues are softening, some long term decline is suddenly accelerating, and you are missing plan. Senior management wants to know why, and – more importantly – what are you doing about it. They point their fingers to Product Management to right the ship. The Problem – Product Management has many tools in its bag that […].

Product Management 236

Product Management Product Manager Management Management 236

The Product Bistro

SEPTEMBER 10, 2018

During a calorie laden splurge for lunch, I stopped in at the local Five Guys franchise. While waiting for my grilled gut-bomb (which was delicious) I watched the Coke Freestyle machine. It was an illuminating experience. The machines weren’t new to me, having seen a couple in the past, I figured out what I wanted, […].

UX 170

UX Product Management Product Manager Management 170