Pitfalls of Survivorship Bias: Building a Product Way of Thinking
Manage episode 424677205 series 3573400
Description
This episode explores creative leadership techniques that drive outcomes as well as the pitfalls of survivorship bias in building a product. Kelsey Nichols discusses her unconventional path into product management and building a product way of thinking that focuses on failure patterns and how to adapt.
Show Notes
(0:05) - Introduction to the podcast and hosts
(0:57) - Welcome to Kelsey Nichols, CTO at Landing
(1:07) - Kelsey describes her career journey from PE teacher to engineer to product manager and back to engineering
(3:36) - Kelsey talks about her transition from engineering to product management
(8:14) - The benefits of having a diverse background in product development
(9:33) - The event that led Kelsey to focus more on the "why" of product development
(10:57) - Areas where product leaders might miss the mark according to Kelsey's experience on the engineering team
(13:19) - Challenges of integrating a new product team and common friction points
(14:36) - Building a product department from the ground up and how it's similar to building a product
(16:33) - Initial challenges and concerns about the success of the product department at Landing
(17:40) - Why looking at failures can be just as valuable as looking at successes (concept of survivorship bias)
(21:15) - The importance of embracing failure and creating a safe space for experimentation
(23:34) - Kelsey's experience as the longest-standing product leader at Landing (in jest)
(24:29) - The importance of creating a safe space for product development
(25:12) - The reality of failure and success rates in product development
(25:28) - Transitioning from Engineer to Product Leader
(28:34) - The Danger of Saying No in Product Management
(29:03) - Creative Strategies for Handling Feature Requests
(32:18) - Building Relationships with Stakeholders
(34:33) - The Importance of Business and Customer Focus
(36:09) - Problem-Solving as a Core Skill
(36:58) - The Value of Customer Research
(38:21) - Learning from Mistakes
9 episodes