AMA: Jit.io VP of Product Management, Orit Golowinski on Product Innovation

I proactively stay up to date by immersing myself in a wide range of online resources. This includes diligently reading technical blogs, competitive marketing analysis, and staying informed through personalized RSS feeds and email subscriptions. I also engage with industry professionals and thought leaders on LinkedIn, absorbing valuable insights from their posts and discussions. Podcasts have become an integral part of my learning journey, allowing me to explore diverse perspectives. In addition to these sources, I regularly consult analyst reports to gain deep insights into market trends, emerging technologies, and industry forecasts. These reports offer expert analysis and help me understand the broader landscape, making them a valuable resource for staying ahead of the curve. To further expand my knowledge and connect with the latest trends, I actively participate in conferences and webinars. These events expose me to a wide array of fascinating companies and provide a firsthand look at emerging trends in our industry. Moreover, I actively contribute to these events by sharing my own expertise and experiences, enabling me to forge meaningful connections with fellow professionals. By adopting this comprehensive approach, which includes reading analyst reports, I ensure that I am consistently well-informed about emerging trends and technologies. This empowers me to drive product innovation and maintain a competitive edge in our rapidly evolving industry.

At GitLab, we adopted a systematic framework called the 'Opportunity Canvas' to generate and evaluate new product ideas. For the Opportunity Canvas, we engaged in customer interviews to validate the problem. Through these interviews, we sought to understand customer pain points, identify target personas, and explore any workarounds they were using. Additionally, we conducted thorough research, examining market trends and competitors to ensure business justification for the proposed solution. Understanding the potential business impact, such as increasing user numbers or enhancing stickiness, was a critical aspect of this validation process. The solution validation part of the Opportunity Canvas was equally valuable. We carefully defined the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and made decisions about what features would be included or excluded in the initial offering. Defining our differentiation, setting success metrics, and crafting a clear go-to-market messaging strategy were essential components in our decision-making process. The Opportunity Canvas framework proved effective, but it could be time-consuming due to the customer interviews and detailed research involved. In some cases, when time was limited, we introduced an 'Opportunity Canvas lite' version. This streamlined approach was asynchronous and allowed us to move quickly when the problem was clear and didn't require extensive research. Despite the reduced complexity, we still ensured that the proposed solution aligned with customer needs and market trends. In my current role, as VP product at a startup company, we continue to prioritize involving customers in any framework we use to generate and evaluate new product ideas. Working closely with our design partners when developing new functionalities has proven to be invaluable. Their input and collaboration play a significant role in shaping the final solution, ensuring it aligns perfectly with our users' needs and expectations. By placing customers at the heart of any framework and embracing a collaborative and iterative approach, we've been able to consistently generate and evaluate breakthrough product ideas that resonate with our customers and drive impactful innovations.

To source breakthrough product ideas, organizations leverage a variety of strategies that tap into different aspects of their ecosystem: 1. Customer Feedback and Surveys: Gathering insights from existing customers through feedback and surveys uncovers valuable information about pain points, unmet needs, and potential improvements. This customer-centric approach fuels breakthrough ideas. 2. User Research and Observations: In-depth user research and observing customer interactions provide deeper understanding. Techniques like user interviewing and using tools like Hotjar reveal hidden opportunities and inspire innovative solutions. 3. Market Research and Trend Analysis: Staying informed about market trends, competitor analysis, and emerging technologies enables organizations to identify gaps and seize opportunities for breakthrough product ideas. 4. Cross-Functional Brainstorming Sessions: Fostering cross-functional collaboration through brainstorming sessions with diverse team members sparks creativity. For me, the last two organizations I have worked for targeted developers, having the development team contribute ideas has proven pivotal in creating features that developers love. 5. Hackathons and Innovation Challenges: Internal hackathons and innovation challenges cultivate a culture of innovation, encouraging employees to generate breakthrough ideas and explore uncharted territories. 6. Collaborating with Customers and Partners: Engaging in co-creation sessions with customers and strategic partners provides unique insights and leads to new product ideas. Transparent design partnerships that help build products catered to customer needs continuously gather invaluable feedback. 7. Continuous Learning and Inspiration: Encouraging team members to attend conferences, webinars, and workshops fosters inspiration and exposes them to novel ideas and industry trends. By employing these diverse approaches, organizations foster innovation, empower their teams, and drive transformative advancements in their products.

When striving to innovate on existing products, product managers face a variety of challenges that can impact the success of their endeavors. While innovation is essential for maintaining a competitive edge and meeting evolving customer needs, certain common mistakes can hinder progress and limit the full potential of their efforts. These are some common mistakes that I have witnessed: * Tunnel Vision on Current Features: One common pitfall is a narrow-minded approach that confines innovative ideas within the existing product's capabilities. This can hinder exploration of new possibilities and limit the potential for groundbreaking advancements. * Insufficient User Research: Relying on assumptions without conducting thorough user research can result in misguided innovations that fail to resonate with the target audience. Informed decisions should be based on data and user insights. * Overemphasis on Incremental Improvements: While incremental updates are vital for maintaining the product, solely focusing on minor enhancements may hinder the pursuit of transformative innovations that could set the product apart from competitors. * Lack of Cross-Functional Collaboration: Successful innovation often requires collaboration between different teams within an organization. Failing to facilitate communication and collaboration between product, engineering, marketing, and other departments can hinder progress. * Short-Term Focus: Prioritizing immediate revenue and quick wins over long-term vision might deter investment in innovative projects with substantial future potential. * Ignoring Market Trends: Not keeping a pulse on market trends and industry shifts can result in a product becoming outdated and losing competitiveness. Staying aware of trends helps identify potential areas for innovation. To foster successful innovation on existing products, product managers should cultivate an open-minded, customer-centric, and data-driven approach. Encouraging experimentation, continuous learning, and a proactive response to market changes will fuel a culture of innovation and enable the team to deliver compelling and forward-looking products.

In managing the risks and challenges associated with introducing new product innovations, I adopt a proactive approach. I assess risks in advance and develop mitigation plans to address potential obstacles. However, I also believe in taking calculated chances and embracing a fail-fast mentality. This mindset encourages us to quickly iterate and learn from failures, allowing us to course-correct and refine our approach. Data and feedback play a pivotal role in our risk management strategy. We heavily rely on both quantitative and qualitative data to validate and fine-tune our product plans. By analyzing market trends, customer behavior, and user feedback, we ensure that what we have envisioned and delivered aligns with customer expectations and is well-accepted in the market. Moreover, we emphasize a culture of continuous improvement and learning. By fostering an environment where teams are encouraged to experiment and innovate, we create opportunities for breakthrough ideas. We leverage data and feedback to validate these ideas and make informed decisions about the direction of our product innovations. Overall, by assessing risks, embracing the possibility of failure, and leveraging data and feedback, we navigate the challenges of introducing new product innovations. This approach allows us to make informed decisions, adapt quickly, and increase the likelihood of delivering successful and impactful products to the market.