Config 2024: Product management: half art, half science, all passion (Dare Obasanjo, Meta)

Summary

In this insightful talk, Dario Banjo, a product manager at Meta, explores the dual nature of product management as both an art and a science. He delves into the importance of strategy, execution, and storytelling in product management, emphasizing the need for a durable competitive advantage and effective communication of the product's narrative. Banjo also addresses common misconceptions about the role, advocating for a passionate and creative approach to turning customer needs into successful software solutions.

Takeaways

• 🎨 Product management is described as 'half art, half science, all passion', emphasizing the balance of creativity, methodical processes, and personal investment in the product.
• 🛑 The speaker, Dario Banjo, initially questioned what a product manager should discuss at a design conference, highlighting the need for relevance and context in communication.
• 🌟 The talk references Brian Chesky's keynote, pointing out that even successful CEOs can have misgivings about company structure, especially during crises like the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 🚀 Chesky's quote about focusing on shipping things the team is proud of underscores the importance of pride and ownership in product development.
• 🔥 The audience's applause at the idea of eliminating product managers suggests a common frustration with ineffective product management roles.
• 🤔 Dario ponders why people might be against product managers, concluding that 'bad' product managers lack vision, strategy, and respect for other disciplines.
• 🛠 A good product manager's role is to ensure the team is engaged in the highest impact activities to achieve its goals, focusing on driving strategy, execution, and storytelling.
• 🎯 Product strategy should be unique and provide a durable competitive advantage, which is tested by its difficulty to copy and the creation of structural advantages.
• 📊 AB testing is not a strategy but a method to optimize a product once a strategy is in place, as illustrated by the Airbnb example.
• 📈 Execution is measurable and focused, with the importance of setting SMART goals and being ruthless about measuring results against them.
• 📖 Storytelling is crucial for a product's narrative, serving multiple audiences and explaining the product's purpose and benefits through a working backwards process.
• 🏆 The importance of caring about the product, problem space, customers, and team is highlighted as a driving factor for a product manager's success.

Q & A

What is Dario Banjo's role at Meta?

Dario Banjo is a product manager at Meta, supporting teams that work on ads monetization and various ad products, as well as the in-app browser use in Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger.

What is the title of Dario Banjo's talk?

The title of Dario Banjo's talk is 'Product Management: Half Art, Half Science, All Passion'.

What did Dario Banjo learn about Brian Chesky from his previous talk?

Dario Banjo learned that Brian Chesky is the only designer CEO in the Fortune 500 and that he had started having reservations about the company's structure and operations before the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to an existential crisis for the company.

What is the definition of a product strategy according to Dario Banjo?

A product strategy is defined as the unique steps a team takes to achieve its goals in a way that provides a durable competitive advantage.

What is the importance of creating a durable competitive advantage in a product strategy?

Creating a durable competitive advantage ensures that the strategy is not easily replicated by competitors, thus providing a long-term edge in the market.

What is the example Dario Banjo provided to illustrate a lack of a durable competitive advantage?

Dario Banjo used the example of Sidecar, an early ride-sharing service that did not have a unique advantage, which led to it being easily copied by competitors like Lyft and Uber.

What is the primary role of a product manager according to Dario Banjo?

The primary role of a product manager is to ensure the team is engaged in the highest impact activities to achieve its goals, which involves driving strategy, driving execution, and participating in storytelling about the product.

What is the significance of execution in the context of a product strategy?

Execution is significant because it is measurable and focused on short-term actions that enable the achievement of the strategy. Without perfect execution, it is difficult to determine if the strategy itself was good or not.

What is the 'working backwards' process used by Amazon PMs for crafting narratives?

The 'working backwards' process is a tool used by Amazon PMs to craft narratives by first defining the product's name, intended customer, the problem it solves, the benefits to the customer, and a quote from the customer.

Why is storytelling important in product management?

Storytelling is important because it helps explain why the product matters, how it solves user and business problems, and what the product is or does, thus resonating with various audiences such as the team, company leadership, customers, and partners.

What does Dario Banjo emphasize as the three key components of good product management?

The three key components of good product management, as emphasized by Dario Banjo, are strategy, execution, and storytelling.

How does Dario Banjo differentiate between art and science in product management?

Dario Banjo differentiates by stating that product management is half science because it involves a body of knowledge and repeatable processes for strategy, execution, and storytelling. It is half art because it requires creativity in understanding customer needs and crafting compelling narratives.

What is the role of passion in product management according to Dario Banjo's talk?

Passion plays a crucial role in product management as it drives the product manager to care deeply about the product, the problem space, the customers, and the team, which is essential for success.