Product Therapy

• Coaching Up

  Christian sits down with fellow SVPG partner Lea Hickman to tackle a topic that rarely gets discussed openly: coaching up. Why is it taboo to give feedback to your manager? How do you coach leaders who are checked out, micromanaging, or think they’re always right? Hear Lea’s wisdom from her time coaching leaders and leading teams herself at companies like Adobe and IBM. –Today’s discussion unpacks:Why coaching up is different from managing up (and why it matters)How to ask for coaching and feedback, even from disengaged or difficult managersWhat to do when your manager thinks they’re always rightNavigating ego, insecurity, and imposter syndrome in leadershipHow to “manage up” when your manager is new or underqualifiedUsing a personal “user manual” to decode your manager’s styleWhy shaping your relationship with your manager is your responsibility too–References:Adobe: https://www.adobe.com/IBM: https://www.ibm.com/Marty Cagan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cagan/–Where to find Christian Idiodi:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cidiodi/–Where to find Lea Hickman:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leahickman/–Where to find SVPG:SVPG’s newest book, TRANSFORMED: https://www.svpg.com/books/transformed-moving-to-the-product-operating-model/Other books: https://www.svpg.com/books/Articles: https://www.svpg.com/articles/Workshops: https://www.svpg.com/Videos: https://www.svpg.com/videos/–Timestamps:(02:18) The taboo of coaching up(04:04) Coaching up vs. managing up(05:11) What to do if your manager doesn’t coach you(08:28) Managers need to learn how to coach(11:08) Coaching a manager who’s “always right”(16:19) The real challenges of imposter syndrome(17:17) How to coach a manager who isn’t engaged(23:25) Underrated tools to help you coach up(24:21) Write your own user manual(31:32) When coaching up doesn’t work(33:24) Two core skills to become a better employee–Disclaimer:While this podcast is named “Product Therapy”, it is not hosted by licensed therapists or mental health professionals, and it is in no way a substitute for professional mental health services. We recognize the importance of mental well-being and encourage anyone facing personal difficulties to seek support from qualified professionals. See https://findahelpline.com/–Production:Production by⁠supermix.io

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• Coaching Product Leadership with Shreyas Doshi | Understanding the Role and Hiring the Right Fit

  Christian sits down with Shreyas Doshi to discuss product leadership. Shreyas has led teams at Stripe, Twitter, Google, and Yahoo, and he has coached 100s of founders and product executives across the industry. Learn why most product problems are product leadership problems, and how to hire the right product leader for your company stage. –Today’s discussion unpacks:Why nearly every product problem is a product leadership problemThe essence of great product leadership3 archetypal leadership styles—and how to spot themThe key questions to ask before hiring a product leaderHow to hire the right product leader for your company stage–References:3 types of product leaders: https://coda.io/@shreyas/3-product-leader-archetypesThe MSN exercise for hiring:  https://www.linkedin.com/posts/shreyasdoshi_a-job-description-jd-is-the-first-thing-activity-7058964842530934784-4H8F/SVPG articles on product leadership: https://www.svpg.com/insights/product-leadership-articles/Switching from creating to editing products: https://x.com/shreyas/status/1284499367383035904 –Where to find Christian Idiodi: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cidiodi/–Where to find Shreyas Doshi:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shreyasdoshi/X/Twitter: https://x.com/shreyasThreads: https://www.threads.com/@shreyas.threads Shreyas’ Product Sense Course (for founders & product leaders): https://maven.com/shreyas-doshi/product-senseMore: https://linktr.ee/shreyasdoshi–Where to find SVPG:SVPG’s newest book, TRANSFORMED: https://www.svpg.com/books/transformed-moving-to-the-product-operating-model/Other books: https://www.svpg.com/books/Articles: https://www.svpg.com/articles/Workshops: https://www.svpg.com/Videos: https://www.svpg.com/videos/–Timestamps:(00:00) Episode intro (00:20) Shreyas’ product leadership philosophy (07:37) Defining the product leader role(12:46) Step #1 before hiring a product leader (15:55) The most important consideration when hiring product leaders(17:33)  A common failure pattern in product leadership hiring (19:53) The 3 archetypal product leadership styles(25:35) How to uncover someone’s product leadership style (31:37) The MSN exercise(37:13) Before hiring a product leader, ask yourself these questions (40:39)  Closing recap (42:25) Where to find more from SVPG –Disclaimer:While this podcast is named “Product Therapy”, it is not hosted by licensed therapists or mental health professionals, and it is in no way a substitute for professional mental health services. We recognize the importance of mental well-being and encourage anyone facing personal difficulties to seek support from qualified professionals. See https://findahelpline.com/–Production:Production by ⁠supermix.io

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• Coaching Team Topology

  Christian sits down with Marty Cagan to decode team topology: one of the most consequential yet misunderstood levers in product organizations. Learn how great leaders design product teams for maximum autonomy, clarity, and customer impact.–Today’s discussion unpacks:How team topology is different from org structureRed flags that indicate a broken team structureThe brutal trade-offs in optimizing for outcomes vs. velocityHow cognitive load, chemistry, and trust affect team performanceHow to approach team design in growing or transforming orgs–References:Amazon’s Two Pizza Team: https://aws.amazon.com/executive-• insights/content/amazon-two-pizza-team/Factors in Structuring a Product Organization by Marty Cagan: https://www.svpg.com/factors-in-structuring-a-product-organization/High Integrity Commitments by Marty Cagan: https://www.svpg.com/managing-commitments-in-an-agile-team/Pierre Omidyar: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pierre-omidyar-bb10687b/Team Topologies by Matthew Skelton and Manuel Pais: https://www.amazon.com/Team-Topologies-Organizing-Business-Technology/dp/1942788819–Where to find SVPG:SVPG’s newest book, TRANSFORMED: https://www.svpg.com/books/transformed-moving-to-the-product-operating-model/Other books: https://www.svpg.com/books/Articles: https://www.svpg.com/articles/Workshops: https://www.svpg.com/Videos: https://www.svpg.com/videos/–Where to find Christian Idiodi:LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/cidiodi/⁠–Where to find Marty Cagan:LinkedIn:⁠ https://www.linkedin.com/in/cagan/–Timestamps:(00:00) Intro(0:46) What is team topology?(1:56) Top-down vs. bottom-up approaches(3:01) Team topology ≠ org structure(5:26) Optimizing for outcomes vs. throughput(10:20) 3 signs you have a topology problem(15:24) Who should own team topology?(17:17) The surprising value of platform teams(18:14) How do you define a product?(20:36) The first step in a topology project(22:23) The cost of scaling teams(24:52) What high-performing topology requires(25:13) Balancing resources and ratios(32:36) Rolling out team topology changes(33:34) Dismantling bureaucratic team bloat(40:42) Addressing legacy teams and bureaucracy–Disclaimer:While this podcast is named “Product Therapy”, it is not hosted by licensed therapists or mental health professionals, and it is in no way a substitute for professional mental health services. We recognize the importance of mental well-being and encourage anyone facing personal difficulties to seek support from qualified professionals. See https://findahelpline.com/–Production:Production by ⁠supermix.io

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• Coaching Transformation: Inside Datasite's Radical Transformation to a Product Model Powerhouse

  Christian sits down with Doug Cullen and Thomas Fredell to recount how the trio transformed Merrill Corporation into Datasite. Learn from the real stories, strategies, and tactics that turned a 50y/o company into a modern product model powerhouse.–Today’s discussion unpacks:The immense benefits of Datasite’s transformationThe kinds of challenges that arise in a transformation processHow to align stakeholders around a transformationThe all-important interpersonal side of successful transformationAdvice for anyone going through a transformation process–References:Changing How You Solve Problems: https://www.svpg.com/changing-how-you-solve-problems/Cloud Foundry: https://www.cloudfoundry.org/Datasite (Formerly known as Merrill Corporation): https://www.datasite.com/Digital Transformations: Datasite: https://www.svpg.com/podcasts/digital-transformations-datasite/?utm_source=chatgpt.comGood to Great by Jim Collins: https://www.amazon.com/Good-Great-Some-Companies-Others/dp/0066620996Microservices Architecture Style: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/architecture/guide/architecture-styles/microservicesMongoDB: https://www.mongodb.com/SVPG’s Transformation Series: https://www.svpg.com/transformation-series/ Transformation Defined: https://www.svpg.com/transformation-defined/–Where to find SVPG:SVPG’s newest book, TRANSFORMED: https://www.svpg.com/books/transformed-moving-to-the-product-operating-model/Other books: https://www.svpg.com/books/Articles: https://www.svpg.com/articles/Workshops: https://www.svpg.com/Videos: https://www.svpg.com/videos/–Where to find Christian Idiodi:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cidiodi/–Where to find Doug Cullen:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dougcullen/–Where to find Thomas Fredell:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fredell/–Timestamps: (to be updated)(00:00) Intro (01:02) The results of this transformation (03:21) Why Doug and Thomas joined the company (07:07) The company before transformation (12:17) First steps on the transformation journey (15:11) Near misses on the road to success (16:37) How do you pitch transformation to a board? (18:56) Finding the courage to make difficult changes (20:24) Uniting teams around transformation (26:51) The importance of building trust(31:29) Roadbumps on the transformation journey (37:18) Transforming the tech foundations(41:01) The importance of real customer discovery (45:28) Shifting how choices are made (49:06) Merrill's key transformation outcomes (50:08) Closing advice for transformations–Disclaimer:While this podcast is named “Product Therapy”, it is not hosted by licensed therapists or mental health professionals, and it is in no way a substitute for professional mental health services. We recognize the importance of mental well-being and encourage anyone facing personal difficulties to seek support from qualified professionals. See https://findahelpline.com/–Production:Production by ⁠supermix.io

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• Welcome to Product Therapy

  Where to find SVPG: SVPG’s new book, EMPOWERED: https://www.svpg.com/books/transformed-moving-to-the-product-operating-model Other books: https://www.svpg.com/books Articles: https://www.svpg.com/articles Workshops: https://www.svpg.com Videos: https://www.svpg.com/videos

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