In this episode of the Product Thinking Podcast, Vishal Kapoor, Senior Vice President of Product at Affirm, joins Melissa Perri to dive into the intricacies of building and scaling products in the fintech space. Vishal shares his journey through 15+ years of product management. The episode offers deep insight into not just what Affirm is up to, but into the very bones of the culture that drives their product development. For instance, Vishal lets us in on how the company balances customer-centric innovation with the complex regulations of the financial sector. Tune in to learn how Affirm is shaping the future of fintech and get practical advice for building adaptable product strategies in complex industries.

Robin Daniels is on the Product Thinking Podcast to discuss how it’s possible to transform working cultures through the careful construction of a supportive community atmosphere. Robin, Chief Business and Product Officer at Zensai, explains to Melissa Perri how his remarkable journey through product management and marketing across leading tech companies like Salesforce and LinkedIn has led him to where he is today. The pair ponder the question of what sparks joy in a corporate setting, and they discuss how a weekly check-in system that promotes self-reflection among employees is a far more functional system than the outmoded annual performance review method of performance management. Tune in to discover Robin’s insights on driving growth through product-led strategies and the evolving landscape of product management.

Mercedes Chatfield-Taylor, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Artico Search, Inc. and a top recruiter specializing in leadership roles for scale-up companies, returns to chat with Melissa Perri on this episode of Product Thinking. Together, they discuss the evolving CEO landscape, particularly the increasing importance of collaboration across functions in lean organizations and the growing demand for leaders focused on profitability and sustainability. Mercedes shares insights into the typical paths to becoming a CEO, including from product leadership roles, and the skills needed to transition successfully. What is the path to CEO from CPO? Tune in to find out.

In this episode of the Product Thinking Podcast, Melissa Perri speaks with Sean Solme Kim, former head of product at TikTok and previously at Amazon Prime. They discuss key insights from his time at both companies, including how Amazon's metrics-driven approach influenced his work at TikTok and the development of the Stitch feature. Sean shares his perspective on empowering product teams, fostering ownership among product managers, and navigating the challenges of hypergrowth environments like TikTok. They also explore the importance of creating frictionless user experiences and scaling product features to drive engagement and retention.

Host Melissa Perri enjoys a far-reaching conversation with Brian Fugere in this episode of the Product Thinking Podcast. Brian is the Chief Product Officer at Symplr, with extensive experience in transforming businesses through AI-powered automation and robotics. They discuss the impact of AI and automation on supply chain innovation, the balance between operational efficiency and creativity in product leadership, and how to scale product teams effectively. Brian also shares insights into aligning teams with business outcomes, fostering innovation while managing risk, and navigating the challenges of working with cutting-edge technology.

Host Melissa Perri sits down with Blake Morgan, in this episode of the Product Thinking Podcast. Blake is a seasoned expert in customer experience, best-selling author, and someone with a career spanning major companies like Coca-Cola and AT&T. They discuss the evolution of customer experience, the key principles of customer-focused leadership, and how to effectively measure success beyond mere metrics. She also shares insights on avoiding common pitfalls, the power of storytelling in advocating for customer-centric practices, and best practices for gathering valuable customer feedback.

In this episode of the Product Thinking Podcast, host Melissa Perri welcomes Shruti Patel, Executive Vice President and CPO Business Banking at U.S. Bank, to share her expertise on navigating the complexities of product development within large financial institutions. Shruti delves into the intricacies of balancing innovation with legacy systems, the importance of focusing on high-impact products, and strategies for aligning teams around customer-centric goals.

Vijay Pitchumani is the esteemed guest of Melissa Perri on this episode of the Product Thinking podcast. Tune in to hear Vijay, a renowned expert in product strategy and Director of Product at Okta, share his insights on the essential role of product managers in platform teams and the unique challenges they face. The discussion covers the importance of defining success metrics, experimenting with API-first approaches, and balancing short-term experiments with long-term goals. Vijay also highlights strategies for innovating within platform teams and managing PM rotations to foster diverse experiences and drive impactful outcomes. Listen now to explore how platform PMs can effectively navigate the complexities of scaling and evolving their products.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, Melissa Perri sits down with Tamar Yehoshua, President of Product and Technology at Glean, to explore the transformative role of AI in modern enterprise search and productivity. Tamar shares her journey from leading product teams at Google to driving innovation at Glean, discussing how AI and retrieval-augmented generation are reshaping how organizations access and utilize information. She dives into the challenges of scaling AI-driven products in a fast-paced startup environment and the strategies her team employs to maximize impact and drive user adoption.

Melissa Perri welcomed Vrushali Paunikar, Chief Product Officer of Carta, to this episode of the Product Thinking podcast. In this engaging conversation, Vrushali delves into the dynamic world of product management and innovation, sharing insights on how to balance subject matter expertise with fresh perspectives. She discusses the challenges and triumphs of building a custom general ledger from scratch and how her team's approach to innovation and validation has led to significant business growth.

Melissa Perri sat down with Christopher Li, SVP of Product at Xactly on this episode of the Product Thinking podcast. In this enthralling episode, Christopher shares his journey from engineering to product management and the challenges his company faced in adopting the Scaled Agile Framework. Christopher has spent the past 15 years in product management, working through different functions and eventually becoming the SVP of Product at Xactly, an enterprise software provider.

Melissa Douros is the guest on this episode of the Product Thinking podcast and she sat down with our host, Melissa Perri, to discuss her career journey and role as the Chief Product Officer at Green Dot, a modern fintech company. The pair explore the challenges and excitement of working in the banking-as-a-service model, the importance of adopting a product model in organizations undergoing digital transformation, and the role of effective communication and collaboration in driving successful customer experiences.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, Melissa Perri sits down with Trisha Price, Chief Product Officer at Pendo. They explore the evolving landscape of product management, including the shifting role of product operations and the integration of tools like Pendo in enhancing productivity. Trisha shares insights on how product managers can navigate the balance between immediate demands and long-term strategy, as well as the impact of recent developments in product management practices.

Todd Wilkens joined our host Melissa Perri on the latest episode of the Product Thinking podcast. Todd started his career in design and gradually transitioned into product development, now serving as the Chief Product Officer at Qualio. In this engaging episode, they discuss the importance of collaboration, shared goals, and breaking down disciplinary boundaries in organizations. Todd shares his extensive experience in various roles, including design and product development, and highlights the value of hiring smart people and giving them autonomy.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, Melissa Perri sits down with Amir Kabbara, a seasoned product leader with a diverse background at Microsoft, Amazon, Shopify, and now serving as Advisor to the CEO at Paper. In their conversation, they explore the intricacies of managing product strategy and balancing the needs of various stakeholders in high-growth environments. Amir shares valuable insights on data-driven decision-making, the challenges of leading teams through transformation, and the importance of aligning product management with overall business goals. The discussion also delves into ethical considerations in AI and how to address them effectively. Tune in to gain a broader perspective on general management principles and strategies for driving successful product outcomes.

Atif Rafiq was Melissa Perri’s guest In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast. Atif is a multi-talented CEO at Ritual, as well as a Board Member at multiple companies. On top of that, he is the best-selling author of Decision Sprint. Tune in to discover how Atif's software, Ritual, combines workflow and AI to facilitate decision-making and hear his thoughts on balancing long-term goals with short-term objectives. Don't miss out on this inspiring discussion about the future of technology and problem-solving within organizations.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Melissa Perri speaks with Sean O'Neill, Chief Product & Technology Officer at Syncron, about the concept of value-creation moments in product management and the importance of understanding the business side of product development. Financial literacy is a must for product managers, and aligning team goals with overall business outcomes is an ongoing battle they have to engage in. This episode offers fantastic insights into creating value for customers and driving business success, so don’t miss it!

Join Melissa Perri as she interviews Sara Rossio, Chief Product Officer at G2, about the impact of AI on their working processes and expectations. Learn about career development and reskilling opportunities at G2, as well as the potential for AI to improve personalization and localization efforts. Stay informed about new technology trends and gain valuable insights from this engaging podcast conversation. Don't miss out – listen now!

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri welcomes Ying Chen, the Chief Product Officer at Quantive onto the show to discuss her career in product management and the differences between working in large enterprises and startups. From the learning opportunities present in both environments to the skills needed to be successful, this conversation is a must-listen for those wanting insights from a seasoned product management professional.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri celebrates the updated ten-year anniversary edition of Interviewing Users with author Steve Portigal. Steve explains what has changed in those ten years, and why this was a necessary update.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri welcomes Debbie Widjaja onto the show to discuss her 13 year career, and how her witnessing of the transformative power of technology on people’s lives, shaped her perspective of product management. Debbie is the Chief Product Officer of Zero Gravity, and in this episode, she shares her focus on creating products that bring a positive impact to the world, and the importance of clear product principles.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri welcomes Ryan to the show to discuss product strategy, communication, and innovation within a company. Ryan has over 15 years of diverse technology and product development leadership experience and currently serves as the Chief Product Officer at CallRail.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Anthony Maggio, Head of Product and VP at Airtable. Join them as they discuss combating challenges within the digital supply chain, addressing strategy drift, and how Anthony is spearheading Airtable’s newest: Airtable AI.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Amy Edmonson, professor at Harvard Business school and author of the new book: “Right Kind of Wrong: The Science of Failing Well.” Join them as they discuss the science of failing well, what is psychological safety and the distinction between leadership and leaders.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Mark McNally, a venture innovator who founded Nobody Studios, a startup incubator on the path to creating 100 compelling companies in the next 5 years. Join them as they discuss the fundamentals of building successful companies, the importance of culture, and the role of venture studios in supporting founders.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Stephen Bungay, author of The Art of Action and former Director of the Ashridge Strategic Management Centre. Join them as they explore Stephen’s approach to strategy execution. They discuss the common struggles in strategy execution and how to overcome them in your product management team.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Margaret Jastrebski, the SVP of Product at Tegus. Join them as they explore what it means to be a leader today. They discuss Margaret’s role at Tegus, the power of alignment within an organization, understanding sales and marketing, and the importance of a vision for execution.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Jacob Morgan, author of “Leading with Vulnerability.” Join them as they explore what it means to be a leader today. They discuss Jacob’s personal journey to vulnerability, balancing vulnerability and competency, the importance of being self aware and many actionables to be a better overall leader.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Alex Wettrelos Chief Product Officer at Sunday. Join them as they explore the challenges of rapid scaling and then descaling during the 2022 tech-crisis. They discuss how Sunday, a fintech company innovating payment methods across the hospitality industry, went from an idea on a slide deck to 450 employees with $124 million of seed funding. They also touch on the differences between product management in Europe & the US.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Aaron Smith joins Melissa Perri. Together, they discuss Aaron’s best practices he learned from his time at Amazon, key leadership principles, creating a culture of accountability, and the destiny creator mindset.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Darren Wilson, Chief Product Officer of Soul Machines. Join them as they explore Darren’s journey to CPO of Soul Machines, a company that produces digital humanoids. They discuss the challenges of building digital avatars, keeping up with AI technology, and leveraging user feedback to shape product strategies.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Matt DiBari joins Melissa Perri to discover the secrets of product management in high growth companies. Together, they discuss effective user research, the different mindsets in B2B & B2C, essential skills in high growth companies, and breaking into product management.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Mercedes Chatfield-Taylor, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer at Artico Search, joins Melissa Perri. Together, they discuss navigating the hiring landscape for Chief Product Officers, the importance of technical expertise and commercial acumen in today's market, and what the difference is between a Head of Product and a Chief Product Officer.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Tim Armandpour, Chief Technology Officer at PagerDuty, joins Melissa Perri to explore leadership qualities, product & technology roles, their challenges, and the importance of an overarching company vision. They discuss user-centricity, product-market fit, and aligning teams.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Craig Saldanha, Chief Product Officer at Yelp, joins Melissa Perri to explore user research, two-sided marketplaces, and the concept of the flywheel. They discuss future-proofing the business, building customer trust, and Yelp’s importance as a platform for reviews and recommendations.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Paolo Lombardi joins Melissa Perri to explore founding the TechPeaks startup accelerator—they discuss the unique aspects of the program, including its focus on attracting international entrepreneurs and promoting collaboration, and the importance of planning and preparation.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Jon Sadow, Co-Founder & Chief Product & Technology Officer of Scoop Technologies. Join them as they discuss Scoop’s journey from a carpooling application to a software company supporting hybrid work and workplace management. They explore the dramatic impact of COVID, pivoting the business, and the benefits of embracing flexibility. They also touch on the importance of building relationships and forging connections in remote and flexible work environments, as well as the future of work and the possibilities for innovation and improvement in remote and hybrid work environments.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Leah Tharin, Interim Chief Product and Growth Officer, GotPhoto. Join them as they explore the different types of growth strategies and when to use them, as well as the importance of aligning sales and product teams. Leah also talks about the power of data-driven strategies in bridging sales and product teams and how aligning with customer success fuels product-led growth.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Mauricio Monico, Chief Product Officer at Wish. Join them as they discuss marketplace dynamics and turnaround strategies. They deep-dive into Mauricio’s extensive product management expertise and wisdom gained from his previous roles with Microsoft, eBay, Facebook, Google, and various startups. They also touch on Mauricio’s time with Indigo Ag, a company focused on agricultural sustainability, during a big turnaround.

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Jean-Manuel Izaret, Global Leader of Marketing, Sales, and Pricing Practice at Boston Consulting Group. Join them as they discuss strategic pricing and its importance in the technology industry. They explore different pricing models and strategies, including segmenting users and offering different pricing options based on the value received. They also touch upon the challenges of pricing AI models and the concept of fairness in pricing.

In this episode of Product thinking, Jeff Gothelf and Josh Seiden join Melissa Perri to talk about their exciting new book on OKRs (Objectives and Key Results). They tackle common mistakes made when implementing frameworks like Lean UX, and how OKRs can solve this. Plus they share all the insights they’ve learned over the last 10 years since their first book, Lean UX. Tune in to discover how OKRs improve your business, business unit, or team’s overall focus and alignment.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Kate Leto, an Executive Coach for Product Leaders, joins Melissa Perri to unveil the value of coaching skills for product leaders and how to incorporate coaching into the workplace. They explore the difference between coaching and mentoring, how effective coaching nurtures successful product leaders, and how to master the art of coaching in product management.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Tommy Richardson, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Litmos, joins Melissa Perri to unveil what it’s like to move from an operating role as a C-Suite executive to a board role and how to position yourself to work with Private Equity and VC firms.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Quincy Hunte, Global Transformation Product Leader at Amazon Web Services, joins Melissa Perri to dive into the world of product management, operations, and transformation. They explore key components such as decision-making, product leadership, innovation, and outcome-based funding.

In this episode of Product Thinking: Joshua Kerievsky, Founder and CEO of Industrial Logic, joins Melissa Perri to discuss the evolution of Agility in business. Josh talks through his fantastic new book ‘The Joy of Agility’ and the six mantras he’s identified in the implementation of Agile working into business strategy, and the case studies he discovered and learned from along the way.

In this special episode of Product Thinking, host Melissa Perri takes a look back at what we have learned from some of our top guests across product management, operations, and leadership.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Hiten Shah, Co-founder and CEO at Nira, joins Melissa Perri in the evolution of growth hacking and product management in the SaaS world. Hiten unveils the true purpose of growth hacking, modern marketing misconceptions around growth hacking and product-led growth, as well as the challenge of reconciling differing interpretations of the term Minimum Viable Product (MVP) in agile and business startup contexts.

In this episode of Product Thinking, Kelsey Ruger, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Hello Alice, joins Melissa Perri to discuss the importance of supporting small businesses. They dive into the triad of tech, UX, and business strategy; key insights for mastering product management in startups; and how to empower small businesses for entrepreneurial success.