Good employee performance is critical to the success of an organization and the products it builds, and feedback is one of the most important factors in employee performance for good reason. As management professor Christine Porath points out in Harvard Business Review: “High-performing teams share nearly six times more positive feedback than average teams.”
But most of us are guilty of not giving enough feedback to our peers, colleagues, and direct reports. Why is that?
Read MoreHow much time do you spend communicating with the other people in your organization? Chances are, it’s not enough. Megan Murphy, VP of Product at Hotjar, told the MTP Engage Leadership Forum that she spends 50% of her time on internal communication. This was such an important tidbit that I called it out as a key learning in my blog recap of the event.
Communication is one of those tricky skills. Since we all do it all the time, we tend to think we’re much better at it than we actually are. But there’s often a gap between the way we view ourselves as communicators and the way our teams view us. Here are a few of the most common communication problems I see in product organizations.
Read MoreWhen it comes to offering development opportunities, some companies struggle with doing this in a strategic way. They essentially throw money at the problem, opting to pay a premium for coaching and training. So what’s wrong with this approach? As a coach, shouldn’t I be happy to take money from any potential client who would like to pay me?
Read MoreWhat does it mean to be “good” at something? This can be a tough question to answer. But if you’re trying to coach your product managers on their professional development, it’s essential to help them conduct an accurate self-assessment.
Read MoreIn my new book STRONG Product People: A Complete Guide to Developing Great Product Managers, I’ve aimed to deliver everything a product leader needs to help team members live up to their full potential and to feel empowered. Get a quick overview of the book here and find out how I recommend approaching the content in the book here.
Want to actually dive into some of the book content? In this post, you can preview Chapter 11: How to Find the Time?
Read MoreOne of the biggest topics I address in my daily work is the development of strong product people. I help product leaders to understand the importance of people development and I’ve created all sorts of frameworks and canvases. My goal is to help them become the best coach their PMs have ever had.
Read MoreLet´s assume you are a Product Manager and you know or have figured out what your next best development topic is (e.g. by using the PMwheel) you then should come up with something I would call a development plan. Something that helps you commit to small actions that get you closer to the competent product management personality you want to become.
The future-self framework takes the form of a document that you need to fill, and it has four parts: As-Is, To-Be, Actions and a Timeframe.
Read MoreThe PMwheel has become a reliable compass for people who want to navigate their product career or develop their direct reports. It’s an approach that I have personally used in my work with clients ever since I developed it.
For managers, The PMwheel is a simple, but powerful way to assess the responsibilities, skills, and knowhow of your product managers. Keep in mind that no two assessments for your different product managers will be the same—some will be stronger in one area, while others will be stronger in others.
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