Mironov Consulting

MARCH 4, 2020

A pattern I’ve seen 4 or 5 times seems worth describing, since other folks may be experiencing it: a very early-stage B2B/enterprise company brings on a full sales team before finding product/market fit. First, let’s recapping the basics of why we hire enterprise sales teams and what they do.

User Testing 69

User Testing Enterprise Weak Development Team Product Research 69

The Product Guy

OCTOBER 9, 2018

Guest Post by: Julian Dunn (Mentee, Session 6, The Product Mentor) [Paired with Mentor, Vikas Batra]. I became a product manager because I wanted to take a more strategic role at my company. Thus, I arrived at the Product Mentor program with ambitions to learn strategy development from a seasoned product mentor.

Weak Development Team 130

Weak Development Team Product Strategy Strategy Development 130

Mind the Product

NOVEMBER 21, 2019

As a product leader, you are the product manager for a leadership team, and the tricks you learned in product teams remain valuable, they just need a little tweak. Here, to help you, are five product management tricks and tools for every product leader. Value Proposition.

Reporting Tools 138

Reporting Tools User Testing Research Software Product Research 138

Mironov Consulting

FEBRUARY 6, 2020

I’m often asked what KPIs B2B/enterprise product folks should use, or what OKRs they should choose. This is (of course) an unreasonable question, as every product/ business has its own uniqueness. Why KPIs from consumer companies don’t fit well with B2B/enterprise. Yet it’s the first KPI proposed by many exec teams.

B2B 118

B2B Enterprise Onboarding KPIs User Testing 118

Mironov Consulting

NOVEMBER 2, 2018

Most product companies have a few things in their roadmaps that are specifically for single customers – I call these sales one-offs. The end result can be frustration, uninspiring products, falling profitability, and an inability to grow the business. Good estimation and busy technical team are the keys to success.

Reporting Tools 108

Reporting Tools Weak Development Team User Testing Feedback Software 108

Mind the Product

NOVEMBER 27, 2017

Observations of a B2C startup product manager working in enterprise. A startup, finding its feet and learning how to stand, should by certain logic be less wise, less capable and less developed than its older, wiser counterparts. Here are two of my most notable product take-aways and one piece of advice for survival.

Enterprise 92

Enterprise Startups Customer Experience Product Management 92

Product Innovation Educators

JUNE 12, 2023

Tools for planning and executing product projects Today we are talking about the skills product managers need to grow their careers. Before joining Google, Neha worked as a Management Consultant at Essex Product Consulting, where she helped organizations build products. To help us, Neha Bansal is with us.

User Testing 94

User Testing Customer Feedback Customer Experience Product Management 94

Mironov Consulting

JUNE 27, 2020

I have a narrow, somewhat puritanical view about product manager conversations with customers and prospects: we should never lie to them. That might seem obvious or naïve, but recent conversations with several B2B/enterprise clients suggest that it’s actually controversial. B2B is lumpier than B2C.). Roadmaps are shared.

User Testing 137

User Testing Customer Experience Weak Development Team Enterprise 137

BrainMates

MARCH 6, 2023

Unlock The Power of Product-Led Teams By MARTIN NORTH With organisations debating and adopting competing strategies such as Sales-Led, Marketing-Led, or Customer-Led, learning about the benefits of being Product-Led might seem like an unnecessary distraction. How many different ways of being “led” do we need? revenue multiple.

Weak Development Team 52

Weak Development Team Product Research Data Visualization User Testing 52

The Product Coalition

SEPTEMBER 4, 2020

My journey to product management was not what you might expect , but then again, maybe you would. I redesigned the internal and public web properties and was promoted into my first “product leadership” role. I became director of communications, leading the development of intranets and web applications.

Weak Development Team 126

Weak Development Team Systems Review Customer Experience Software Review 126

Mironov Consulting

MAY 16, 2020

A topic that’s come up several times recently in my product leader coaching sessions: how much to delegate to the (individual contributor) product managers on our teams – including different ways of building product skills and balancing personal empowerment against good results.

Weak Development Team 145

Weak Development Team Product Research User Testing Customer Experience 145

The Product Coalition

MARCH 18, 2022

Around that time, a healthy startup should have established: A solid team A great product/service with at least one core value proposition A base of loyal and highly satisfied customers Once the founder sees good traction with 50+ enterprise customers and/or thousands of users, they face a dilemma.

Customer Experience 187

Customer Experience Onboarding KPIs User Testing Customer Feedback 187

The Product Coalition

NOVEMBER 13, 2023

In many cases, an economic downturn simply reveals your already existing weaknesses since they now have more impact. When people (and VCs) aren’t spending money easily, you must be super sharp with your value proposition, positioning, product, marketing, and sales. Your product makes sense for your first few customers.

Product Strategy 115

Product Strategy Strategy User Testing Weak Development Team 115

Mironov Consulting

MAY 18, 2024

Something that comes up periodically in my product leadership coaching sessions: “As a Director or VP of Product, how do I get folks outside my immediate span of control to make improvements or do their jobs better or take my advice?”    (Idealized, I know.) 

Technical Advisors 65

Technical Advisors Technical Review Weak Development Team Product Research 65

The Product Coalition

DECEMBER 4, 2023

In many cases, an economic downturn simply reveals your already existing weaknesses since they now have more impact. Product Strategy on Round A Responsibility: Founders with the leadership team Goal: Build the go-to-market playbook Toward round A you start seeing success (or it would be very hard to raise a decent A round).

Product Strategy 104

Product Strategy Strategy User Testing Weak Development Team 104

Mironov Consulting

JULY 28, 2022

Especially in B2B/enterprise software companies, I see two dramatically divergent ( incompatible ) worldviews that IMO explain a lot of corporate behavior. Enterprise Sales and Solutions Teams… Are paid/rewarded/promoted for working with individual prospects or customers one at a time.  Sales

Reporting Tools 133

Reporting Tools Software Review Technical Review Weak Development Team 133

Mironov Consulting

SEPTEMBER 14, 2020

Over the last three decades, across 10 full-time jobs and 150 consulting clients, I’ve headed up product teams 18 times (mostly as interim VP ) and helped another dozen companies choose their Head of Product. Here are some patterns I’ve seen in picking successful Heads of Product.

Reporting Tools 145

Reporting Tools Analytic Tools Onboarding KPIs Data Visualization 145

Mironov Consulting

APRIL 15, 2023

In my experience, there’s usually a fundamental misalignment between two broad groups at software companies – especially B2B/enterprise companies — that I’ve been thinking/writing for a while.  One On either side, it’s easy to assume bad intent or have this get personal.  Almost

Software Review 125

Software Review Customer Experience User Testing Technical Review 125

Product Talk

SEPTEMBER 11, 2019

One of my goals at Product Talk is to showcase what good product management looks like. Today, I’m excited to introduce a new series, Product in Practice, where I’ll profile product managers doing great work. To kick off the series, we interviewed Rachel Allen , Director of Product at Omnitracs.

Research Software 190

Research Software User Testing Data Visualization Feedback Software 190

The Product Coalition

AUGUST 23, 2023

By the look on the face of the product manager asking me, she didn’t want a canned answer; she was looking for a reason to believe, to rekindle her energy. I knew why the company existed, but I never thought about the purpose behind the product other than the problem it solved for the customer and the value it delivered.

Weak Development Team 128

Weak Development Team Customer Experience Technical Review Customer Feedback 128

Mironov Consulting

MAY 24, 2022

Everywhere I go, I see massive amounts of product waste : development work delivered on time/on budget that doesn’t drive sales or customer satisfaction or business improvement.  Yet  We shout past each other using secret keywords (“agile”) and assuming bad intent.  Project teams that ship v1.0

Product Research 143

Product Research Reporting Tools Technical Review Onboarding KPIs 143

The Product Coalition

JULY 6, 2022

Fifteen years ago Ben Horowitz published his now famous memo, “G ood Product Manager/Bad Product Manager ” in which he posits that “A good product manager is the CEO of the product”. A bad CEO takes the credit and passes on the blame. It’s a relative term?—?some

Data Visualization 104

Data Visualization Weak Development Team Technical Review Software Review 104

The Product Coalition

NOVEMBER 4, 2020

Two friends share tools they learned from improv comedy to help you on your product journey By Becca Groner and Gabby Zilkha As product managers with improvisational comedy training, we’ve been surprised how often our improv skills have helped us be more effective in our roles. We hope they come in handy for you and your team.

Article 203

Article User Friction Product Management Product Manager 203

Userpilot

JULY 9, 2021

What are the best product management books to add to your 2021 reading list? We’ve put together a list for you with a few staples from every product manager’s bookshelf and some new releases too. New in – Best New Product Management Books in 2021. You can read her writing on ProductTalk.org.

Books 98

Books Research Software Feedback Software Analytic Tools 98

The Product Guy

APRIL 9, 2019

Guest Post by: Eric Wang (Mentee, Session 8, The Product Mentor) [Paired with Mentor, Chris Butler]. The notion of a strategy in product management seems like something that only high-level stakeholders at the executive level should care about. Journey Into the World of Strategy. Simple task, right? First Attempt.

Feedback Software 148

Feedback Software Analytic Tools Technical Advisors Strategy 148

Mind the Product

JANUARY 28, 2019

Most product managers are driven to achieve excellence in their craft. Many, however, get stuck in what I call “product consultant” mode and cannot break out of it. Many product managers never get to launch a product, let alone own one. Accumulating Product Management Scar Tissue.

Product Management 135

Product Management Product Manager Customer Experience User Testing 135

Mironov Consulting

FEBRUARY 28, 2024

An essential role of CPOs and other product leaders that’s never listed in the job description is giving organizational 'air cover' to product managers to postpone almost all new requests — so that their teams can finish work already underway.    “ How hard could it be? 

Reporting Tools 105

Reporting Tools Software Review Technical Review Weak Development Team 105

Mironov Consulting

JUNE 30, 2017

I’ve noticed a frequent executive-level misalignment of expectations across a range of software/tech companies, particularly in B2B/Enterprise companies and where Sales/Marketing is geographically far away from Engineering/Product Management. Let’s call it the software development deli counter problem.

Software Developers 96

Software Developers Software Development Reporting Tools Software Review 96

The Product Guy

FEBRUARY 27, 2020

Guest Post by: Syed Abdullah (Mentee, Session 11, The Product Mentor) [Paired with Mentor, Bryan Postelnek]. I have worked on several products that were built with passion and vigor. At JCDecaux, I led the development of an information kiosk for airport passengers. No one liked the product.

User Testing 167

User Testing Weak Development Team Product Research Customer Experience 167

The Product Coalition

MARCH 29, 2018

I realize not every product person has to navigate sales stakeholders. But if you’re working on a B2B product with a sales force, odds are you know what I mean. I try to help product and sales teams succeed under the mantra “Easy to Sell, Easy to Renew.” Where do your teams agree on low scores?

Development Team Review 113

Development Team Review Weak Development Team Feedback Software Product Research 113

The Product Coalition

FEBRUARY 26, 2022

Why have Product Managers stopped speaking to customers? Very sadly, most product managers I meet today no longer talk directly to customers regularly. I ran a survey with industry insiders and at least 50% of all product managers who responded haven’t spoken to a customer recently.

User Testing 168

User Testing Weak Development Team Customer Experience Customer Feedback 168

People-First Product Leadership

JULY 17, 2023

Identifying the right approach in product management can seem obscure, a bit like looking for sparks of fireworks through the fog. In product management there is always the opportunity to innovate, to do things differently, and to add a bit of your own special super power to turn chaos into order.

Technical Review 52

Technical Review Technology Weak Development Team Generative AI 52

The Product Coalition

MAY 17, 2019

A mental model started to emerge as I was trying to represent the product manager role in a similar way to the Maslow hierarchy of needs for human beings. Its main merit is to represent product management role as something that is easy to explain visually. The team tend to operate in weekly / bi-weekly cadence.

Weak Development Team 60

Weak Development Team Product Research Product Management Product Manager 60

Mind the Product

AUGUST 23, 2018

I’ve worked for more than a decade in product management with Fortune 500 companies and startups, and I realize I’m seeing a scary pattern. Product managers are only hired after the innovation or startup teams get concepts or funding approved. Frequent design changes. Shortage of resources.

Weak Development Team 117

Weak Development Team Product Management Product Manager Technical Review 117

ProductPlan

JUNE 1, 2023

All those new features might look good on a product comparison matrix and give salespeople a new angle when pitching reluctant prospects, but none of it matters if those features aren’t solving real customer problems. Where are product teams getting their feature ideas? Why do product teams become feature factories?

User Testing 83

User Testing User Friction Development Team Review Reporting Tools 83

Mind the Product

DECEMBER 11, 2017

My journey to product management was not what you might expect, but then again, maybe you would. I redesigned the internal and public web properties and was promoted into my first “product leadership” role. I became director of communications, leading the development of intranets and web applications.

Weak Development Team 84

Weak Development Team Systems Review Customer Experience Software Review 84

Intercom, Inc.

MAY 13, 2021

Although Linda started her career in sales, she has spent the past twelve years scaling post-sales teams and moving hyper-growth companies like Zendesk, Slack, and now Gong upmarket into the enterprise realm. These evolving demands from enterprise customers bring with them different skillsets customer success managers need to hone.

User Testing 177

User Testing Customer Feedback Customer Experience Strategy 177