Rodrigo Davies

I get frustrated whenever I hear business outcomes and customer outcomes described as two forces that are in tension, and that it’s necessary to choose between either building a fantastic product or having a fantastic business. It’s certainly possible to have a highly profitable business with a shoddy product, but I believe that the advantage that organizations gain by going that path is short term, and that eventually a poor product experience will erode trust and lead customers to move on to b ...Read More

I transitioned from journalism to product management earlier in my career, and although it’s not a straightforward path, it’s actually pretty common for PMs to join tech from other sectors. An Asana PM teammate of mine, Ari Janover, actually has the best articulation of how to make the transition that I’ve ever heard. He says there are three common paths: The Ninja: Join a small startup as another role and push to own PM work until you become a PM. The Expert: Apply for roles where the value of ...Read More

For me the biggest differentiator is having a growth mindset. This doesn't just mean they want to make an impact and improve as a PM. For me it comes down to three things: They have a sense of what they know and don't know, and are always eager to learn more. They question their own assumptions. They're humble and curious in trying to figure out what they don't know and leverage the expertise of others. They frequently seek feedback from others and try to challenge themselves, not just to achiev ...Read More

One common misconception about b2b product teams is that they should spend most of their time thinking about the buyer (e.g. an executive, IT decision maker) rather than the individuals using the product every day. This misconception arises because in business settings, everyday users sometimes don’t have much choice in the tools they use. However, product teams who focus too much attention on the buyer and not enough on everyday users often end up building products that may get some initial tra ...Read More

It sounds like you're potentially looping your designer in too late. They should be there early to help you think through competitors, potential inspiration in the market, and help you learn from users. Getting a user's first explanation of their painpoints is one thing, but you will develop your understanding of their painpoints by showing them potential solutions (that you and your designer work on together). That all said, if I'm short of immediate inspiration, I like to look laterally, outsi ...Read More

The one attribute that is hardest to coach and most likely to be make-or-break is customer centricity. It's essential that PMs always start with the customer and their needs, and are extremely curious about them. This often comes through in case study-style interviews: some candidates can generate interesting solution ideas without being customer centric, but they will likely then find it hard to explain why they made certain choices over others without a foundation in which customer they're ser ...Read More