3 Gems from around the (PM) world - Vol 5
Cadence operating systems for growth companies, PM skills at various levels
Hey PMs
Happy Friday. Here are some things I found of immense value about product management. Hope you find them useful too.
In this post:
Gem #1: Cadence operating system for startups growing form 50 to 500 employees by David Sacks
Gem #2: PM Skills by seniority level by Brent Tworetzky
Gem #3: Site for generating mock data
Gem #1: Cadence operating system for startups growing form 50 to 500 employees by David Sacks
This one is for post Series A startups.
Perhaps the most pervasive problem afflicting venture-backed startups, once they achieve a basic level of product-market fit, is managing the organizational chaos that results from rapid growth. Almost by definition, this is a chronic challenge of Series A-C stage startups since the rapid expansion of the team to chase a new market opportunity is the purpose of that venture funding in the first place. During this time, the growing pains of the startup will reach such a crescendo that the founders and board will cry out as one, “we need a COO!”
As with any potential problem in a startup, it is possible to posit that a perfect hire could solve that problem, but the more direct route is simply to solve it yourself. Putting your startup on an operating cadence is the way to do that. The Cadence is an operating philosophy that David Sacks used as CEO at Yammer.
https://medium.com/craft-ventures/the-cadence-how-to-operate-a-saas-startup-436aa8099e8
Gem #2: Product Manager Skills by Seniority Level — A Deep Breakdown
By Brent Tworetzky
As you grow your PM career, your skills set will change. This article wonderfully discusses skills to expect at different Product Manager levels across six Product Manager skill areas.
This is a helpful guide for you to consider as you advance in your PM Career.
https://medium.com/agileinsider/product-manager-skills-by-seniority-level-a-deep-breakdown-cd0690f76d10
Gem #3: Generating mock data
As a PM or a founder, we sometimes have to generate mock data for demo and testing purposes. I found this wonderful site where you can generate almost any kind of mock data. You can customize the kind of data you want in your random selection e.g. American names vs EU names, or gender, Cities.
When you give a demo to customers, use as much real life data as possible. This reduces the cognitive load on your customers and helps them understand the value of the product much better.
https://www.mockaroo.com/
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I post twice daily on my experiences in B2B Product Management.
If you missed my Tuesday newsletter this week, here is the link.
The conundrum of release planning
How to balance innovation, improvements and defect work in your releases. (Hint: do not allocate by percentage time)
I am available for coaching and advisory for B2B product teams and startups. Here are some things I can help.
Align business strategy to product strategy with revenue growth
Assess your product processes and recommend areas of improvement
Design product analytics for growth
Individual 1:1 or group coaching
Let’s start with a free 30 min intro call.