For product leaders, fresh perspectives and valuable insights can tip the scales to success. This month, Dragonboat’s Accelerate 2024 virtual summit hosted product and business executives who shared their experiences and wisdom on how to drive revenue via product.
What emerged from this event was a collection of views that defied conventional thinking and can reshape the way we look at the world of product forever. Here, we’re excited to share these surprising insights:
Product Management 3.0: Product Managers as Business Operators
As Becky Flint noted in her opening statements to the Accelerate virtual summit, Product management is now well into its “third wave”. Product managers are no longer just “technologists” or “makers”; their role now involves collaboration with design, data analytics, and individuals throughout their business, not just engineering. The best product managers are “product operators” – responsible for driving the growth and trajectory of a business, extending their influence further to turn ideas into outcomes.
During a roundtable discussion, industry veterans discussed how product leaders drive revenue growth. Panelists Dickson Chu, Vanessa Garber, Robin Chiang, and Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia unanimously agreed that expectations for product managers have risen. Robin Chiang noted that it’s no longer sufficient to have only business acumen and economic understanding; product managers now need to integrate disciplines like design, analytics, and UX, while focusing on overall business objectives.
“These days, to be a bonafide product manager, the expected skill set is much higher than in the past. You have to bring the organization together, to understand the market, the competitors, the customer, understand what value you are driving for customers, and to drive enduring revenue.”
Robin Chiang, Director of Product Operations at Google
Bora Chung, a product veteran turned investor, echoed this sentiment. She explained that advancing in a product career requires evolving from a focus on specific domains to the product strategy of the entire organization. From Blackhawk Network, Claire Erickson’s presentation demonstrated that to balance the expanding responsibilities of product management, companies are implementing Product Operations. This optimally helps the entire product organization manage business data, customer insights, and tools, expanding the role’s strategic focus.
“Product Ops can be a force multiplier within your product organization. The mission of Product Ops teams is to empower product teams with the tools, processes, and insights they need to deliver exceptional outcomes.”
Claire Erickson, VP of Product & Tech Strategy & Ops, Blackhawk Network
In the closing session of the summit, world-renowned product management expert Melissa Perri encouraged product teams to capture the most value from the expanding scope of their responsibilities. To win, product leaders must implement scalable, flexible processes aligned with business goals.
Want to learn how leading product managers are reshaping the landscape of business growth?
Watch Becky Flint’s full keynote on-demand to explore strategies that could redefine your product approach.
Data and Analytics Are Not Wallpapers – They Need To Be Part of the Operating Model
The panel at the summit underscored the transformative impact of AI and advanced data analytics on product management, emphasizing that data should be integral to the product operating model rather than merely decorative. Vanessa Garber, CPO of Global Mobile Apps at Toyota, highlighted the need for judicious data use, stressing the importance of establishing “do-no-harm” metrics. She urged organizations to not only embrace AI but also understand its implications to enhance both business and product outcomes.
“Teams struggle with a wealth of data. It’s important to establish do-no-harm metrics – not just to chase the good, but what should we not impact or harm along the way. So it’s important to encourage the organization to both adopt AI and understand the impacts of that adoption to enhance the business and our products.”
Vanessa Garber, CPO of Global Mobile Apps, Toyota
Becky Flint pointed out that integrating data effectively is crucial for decision-making and aligning product strategies with broader business goals. Claire Erickson emphasized the role of data in Product Ops for analyzing business performance and customer insights, while Bora Chung discussed the CPO’s responsibility to oversee product analytics to drive team performance and achieve business objectives. For teams aiming to harness the power of data, these insights provide a valuable guide to incorporating analytics into their core operating strategies.
Want to hear best practices and trends in making data and AI part of your product strategy?
Access the on-demand session: “How Great Product Leaders Operate to Drive Revenue”.
Cross-Functional Collaboration Is Not a “Nice-To-Have”
As product management’s scope expands to include design, data analytics, and customer insights, integrating efforts across diverse teams becomes essential for aligning objectives, breaking down silos, and ensuring efficient execution. Cross-functional collaboration is now required for the product organization, as the speakers emphatically agreed.
As Becky Flint noted in her key address, teams must work together to ensure that every aspect of the product lifecycle is considered and integrated. The Accelerate panelists encouraged product managers to integrate various disciplines and align product improvements with revenue growth and adoption.
“Product Strategy is not just for the executive. Any member of the team should know how their work is contributing to the strategy.”
Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia, CEO of Product School
But these are not just lofty theories – Rob Seidman’s story as CPO behind launching US Bank’s Avvance product exemplifies the benefits of continuous cross-functional collaboration. The alignment he was able to achieve across the teams enabled Avvance to adapt quickly to market changes and scale their product effectively. Rob advocated for using tools like Dragonboat to align OKRs with feature delivery. By doing so, all team members and stakeholders remain focused on the same objectives, which fosters a unified direction and streamlines the path from ideation to execution.
“You need the active participation of everyone in the business – regulatory teams included – to effectively launch in a short timeframe.“
Rob Seidman, CPO of Avvance at US Bank
Discover how seamless cross-functional collaboration can drive successful product outcomes. Hear Rob Seidman’s best practices from the highly successful product launch of Avvance at US Bank.
Watch Rob’s session on-demand.
This seamless integration across functions naturally leads to the next critical component: Product Operations enable collaborative efforts and drive strategic success.
Product Operations Is Not Just a Job Title, It’s a Skill for Strategic Functions
Product Ops function aligns initiatives with business goals, fosters cross-functional collaboration, and leverages data for informed decisions. Recognizing and investing in Product Ops as a strategic capability can significantly enhance overall business performance – and the speakers at Accelerate all agreed. Bora Chung explained that Product Operations was an essential part of her toolkit as a CPO, while Melissa Perri warned product leaders that their role now includes operationalizing success in their product practice.
“CPO and Product Ops set the beat of product execution.”
Bora Chung, Product executive, Board member, and Angel investor
Claire Erickson’s guide to implementing Product Ops went beyond the “why” to the “how”. She urges teams how to “sell the vision” for Product Ops, build a robust charter, and establish essential structures and KPIs. Full of practical tips and lessons from her experience, the session demonstrated how Product Ops breaks down silos and empowers your product management function.
Learn how to turn Product Ops into a strategic advantage with practical tips and proven methods.
Watch Claire’s session on-demand.
The insights shared at the Accelerate 2024 virtual summit offer a roadmap for navigating the evolving landscape of product management. From embracing Product Management 3.0 to leveraging data as an integral part of the operating model and recognizing Product Ops as a strategic skill, the event highlighted how modern product leaders can drive meaningful impact.
By integrating cross-functional collaboration and optimizing Product Operations, teams drive their revenue via product. To delve deeper into these strategies and implement them effectively, watch the sessions on-demand and explore how these ideas, from the front lines of product, can transform your organization today.
“The way we operate to build our products is what makes the difference between products that have an impact on revenue and growth and those that don’t.”
Melissa Perri, CEO of ProduxLabs
