Marty Cagan argues that strong product organizations are built on teams of missionaries, people who are engaged, understand the business context, and empathize with customers, rather than mercenaries who simply execute…
Marty Cagan argues that the largest source of technology waste is not government projects or startups but large non-tech companies such as banks, insurers, airlines and retailers. These firms, often run by CIOs or CFOs…
“I’ve never met a product manager who doesn’t want to get better at what they do. The challenge is not in the desire, but in putting that desire into action. Product management isn’t a well-defined function. It’s changed rapidly over the past two decades. Most”
Cagan argues that companies often ask how they can copy the product management model of Google or Apple, but this usually backfires. Those models fit their specific founders, cultures, and products, and Apple's in…
Marty Cagan argues that product innovation is no longer confined to Silicon Valley and that talent in developing markets is moving through a clear progression. The industry began with outsourcing, moved to US companies…
Marty Cagan argues that established companies with long-standing non-digital value, such as banks, insurers, retailers and media firms, often split product management into a 'Legacy PM' group that owns the core product…
Lenny Rachitsky answers a question from a newly minted product manager by describing five common early-career pitfalls: acting as a coordinator, a dictator, a dreamer, a feature factory, and a shield failing to filter…
Marty Cagan examines the adage that product managers get blamed for failure but rarely credited for success, and asks whether that is fair. He explains that on empowered product teams the product manager owns value and…
Marty Cagan argues that the so-called AI productivity paradox, where teams ship faster but outcomes do not improve, is not really a paradox at all. Most organizations use AI to accelerate the old project model, which is…
Marty Cagan argues that product teams should design for specific personas rather than vague generic users. Using eBay seller tools as an example, he sketches three detailed fictional people with different backgrounds…
Lenny Rachitsky answers a reader's request for real-world 1-Pagers and PRDs, explaining why good examples are scarce and listing traits of effective documents: problem focus, clear success criteria, just-enough…
Marty Cagan argues that "product sense" is a misleading term because it suggests an innate gift, when in reality it is deep product knowledge built through sustained immersion in a specific product space. He describes…
Marty Cagan reflects on his personal regrets from coaching companies through product transformations, prompted by a reader's question about whether every transformation in the book TRANSFORMED succeeded. He admits that…
Hiten Shah traces the idea of 'slop' from 19th-century pig feed and swill milk through naval slop chests, industrial refineries, institutional cafeteria food and today's algorithmic content feeds. His core argument is…
Teresa Torres describes how she turns annual priorities into workable plans: first into measurable product goals and process goals, then into concrete processes that deconstruct each goal, and finally into habits that…
Teresa Torres argues that asking how much time to spend in discovery is the wrong question, because discovery and delivery should happen continuously rather than in sequence. The right amount of discovery is whatever is…
This is an index page from SVPG (Silicon Valley Product Group) curating its articles on product discovery, the work of deciding what to build before handing it to delivery. The page is organized into four groups…
Marty Cagan argues that product managers face a constant flood of requests from well-meaning colleagues, and that a product manager who simply funnels all of them into the roadmap will slowly kill the product. He…
Marty Cagan and Chris Jones examine whether the product operating model, originally designed for product organizations building technology products, applies to traditional IT departments. They argue it can help when IT…
Marty Cagan argues that the rapid rise of generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Midjourney and GPT-4 is a disruptive technology wave comparable to personal computers, the Internet, and the iPhone. He notes that disruptions…
Jason Fried, co-founder of Basecamp, praises the Concept2 RowErg indoor rowing machine as a benchmark of product quality. He describes its simple, durable construction, low maintenance, easy assembly and compact…
Cagan argues that friction between product and marketing is common and usually stems from the two functions not collaborating well, even though their goals should align. He stresses that marketing is critical and that…
Cagan argues that innovation is harder in large companies because growing organizations become risk-averse, but it is still possible and essential. He says corporate culture and one's manager are the biggest factors…
Marty Cagan announces the pre-order launch of his new book EMPOWERED, co-written with Chris Jones, and explains how it complements INSPIRED. He argues that many companies can teach product teams strong practices but…