Prepared by Paul Ortchanian for
Founder Institute
11.09.17
Great companies are built on
great products.

P.2
￣
CEO……………………………………….We need to do this!
Product Manager…………………..We need to do this, here’s why!
Product Designer………………….We have to do this, here’s what!
Product Developer…………………We have to do this, here’s how!
Project Manager…………………….Who works on it and by when

P.3
￣
WHY
WHAT
HOW

P.4
￣
The WHY
Product Manager
It’s *MY* job to make them care. it’s *MY* job to make ME care.
and it’s *MY* job to Sell the Goddam Dream... Every. Fucking.
Day.

P.5
￣
The WHAT
Product Manager & Designer (UI/UX)
There are two ways of constructing a software design: One way
is to make it so simple that there are obviously no deficiencies,
and the other way is to make it so complicated that there are no
obvious deficiencies. The first method is far more difficult.

P.6
￣
The HOW
Product Developer
I don’t spend my time pontificating about high-concept things; I
spend my time solving engineering and manufacturing
problems.

P.7
￣
The WHEN
Project Manager
We have the right team to make this product launch happen. I’ll
flags and escalates any issues that appears to be at risk for
either a budget overrun or a schedule slippage. We’ll update our
marketing communications by [enter date]. I’m coordinating
the timing for sales training.

P.8
￣
In the beginning, everyone will talk about scope,
and budget, and schedule, but in the end,
nobody really cares about any of those things.
The only thing they care about is this:
People will love your software, or they won’t.
So that’s the only criterion to which you
should truly manage.
—Joseph Kleinschmidt, CTO, now a CEO

P.9
￣
Share the Big Picture
*YOUR* job to Sell the
Goddam Dream…

P.10
￣
Chart the product strategy, make sure it’s aligned and
supports the company's business strategy.
Clarify objectives and priorities, and help focus efforts
around them.
Making a difference…is the biggest motivator for engineers.
Connect the vision with the team’s work. What you are in
charge of is mapping out the steps that your team is going
to take to fulfill your product vision.
Product Manager *YOUR* job to Sell the Goddam Dream... Every. Fucking. Day.

P.11
￣
Research
“Research is the center around which all of the other dynamics
of product management find their orbit. To overlook research is
to overlook the lifeblood of product management.”
Product Manager *YOUR* job to Sell the Goddam Dream... Every. Fucking. Day.

P.12
￣
Do you need a faster horse?
“Don’t ask customers what features they need; understand what
problems your customers (and potential customers) experience
so your team can design a brilliant solution.”
Product Manager *YOUR* job to Sell the Goddam Dream... Every. Fucking. Day.

P.13
￣
Do you, team members and The CEO understand how the
product will benefit the organization in the next three years?
Product Manager *YOUR* job to Sell the Goddam Dream... Every. Fucking. Day.

P.14
￣
Product Roadmap
an annoyance that must be changed constantly.

P.15
￣
A product strategy which is aligned and supports the company's business strategy
The mission
Strategies
Objectives
The Intermission
The releases
To make the WHY and WHAT
transparent to team members and the
CEO.

P.16
￣
1- Hypothesis
If we do build or provide said thing then these people will get
some desirable outcome. We’ll know when an actionable metric
is met.
Intermission

P.17
￣
2- Value proposition
Centering on unique value proposition is a strong method for
ensuring the team stays focused on what matters.
Intermission

P.18
￣
3- Problem to be solved
This should be straightforward because you studied the market
& competitive landscape. You live & breath metrics and
understand your prospective buyers & users.
Intermission

P.19
￣
4- Why the project is valuable
A paragraph centered around the customer, the problems they
face and how your solutions will solve it. The top 3 - 5 business
drivers and what the initiative will try to do over the next 3 - 12
months.
Intermission

P.20
￣
5- Strategic Importance
New Revenue: New income that is projected to be generated;
Incremental Revenue: Additional income from existing
customers by now being able to charge for an upgrade or
additional services;
Retained Revenue: Income that’s not lost because customer
churn is reduced through reliability, usability or functionality
improvements.;
Cost Savings: Any type of operational efficiency that is gained
inside the company.
Leverage assets: Transformational idea for future growth or
profit
Intermission

P.21
￣
6- Success criteria
These key performance indicators stem from your in-depth
knowledge of the current product metrics. They should be
expressed as clear targets (ex: Increase total number of login
from 3000/day to 10,000/day).
Intermission

P.22
￣
What’s next?

P.23
￣
Product management is about about saying the same thing
over and over again to make sure people understand it.
Intermission

P.24
￣
So go ahead and repeat your strategy, give people the
information they need and fine-tune. Repetition promotes
alignment among diverse groups within your organization,
clarifies objectives and priorities, and helps focus efforts around
them.
Product Manager *YOUR* job to Sell the Goddam Dream... Every. Fucking. Day.

P.25
￣
Value/Effort = Priority

P.26
￣
We need to evaluate every opportunity on its business value and
its relative complexity.
I have a draft set of priorities. Would you help me refine it?

P.27
￣
Value versus complexity Quadrant
High
HighLow
Complexity / Effort / Risk
Business
Value

Thank you
paul@reflektions.com