Tradeshow talk

The topic of trade shows (conferences, conventions, etc.) seems to be on a lot of people’s minds lately. They (the trade shows) have become a fundamental part of many industries, especially for industries steeped in technology. However, in many ways they seem to be losing their mindshare if not their value all together. Art Petty [...]

Podcast: The New Rules of Marketing and PR

A few months back I wrote a post about the best-selling book The New Rules of Marketing and PR by David Meerman Scott. David is a thought leadership and viral marketing strategist. He has written several ebooks that have been downloaded hundreds of thousands of times. He teaches people how to get noticed online through [...]

Five factors of leadership

I’ve stated before that product managers have to be leaders (in the true sense of the word) because they have the responsibility on their shoulders to get products out the door on time, with high quality and under budget. The kicker – and the reason they must be leaders – is the people they rely [...]

When the game is on the line

I just finished watching the end of an NBA playoff game. The home team was ahead but the losing ground. I watched the leader of the team (a point guard) take over, make the plays and win the game. He made a few mistakes (missed two free throws) but ultimately did what he needed to [...]

Leadership and product strategy

Though the role of product manager differs from one company to the next, most product managers I know believe they drive the strategy for their products. I suppose in most cases they do. Strategic product managers spend time understanding the market and directing product activities toward meeting those activities. CEOs and other executives don’t always [...]

Tell a great story

I recently had lunch with a friend who made an interesting comment that CEOs are looking for people who can coach them and help them to tell a good story. He had recently read an article that criticized the overuse (or abuse) of PowerPoint, which has lead to more mundane presentations and unexciting seminars. What [...]

Leadership webinar

I want to thank the folks at Ryma for letting me give a webinar as a part of their Product Management View series. The webinar goes from 12:00 – 1:00 PM EDT this Wednesday, April 2. Click here to register.
Drop me a comment and let me know what you think.
Update — The folks at Product [...]

New Rules of Marketing

One of the great new books to come of age is The New Rules of Marketing and PR by David Meerman Scott. David writes and excellent book comparing and contrasting the “old rules” of marketing with the new. He writes with compelling explanations about how new technologies have changed the marketing / PR profession from [...]

Three reasons to visit customers

It goes without saying that professionals—in any industry—want to understand the market in which they sell, and the people who are buying their products or services. They want to know what drives business.
This idea comes up quite often, especially among product managers. In a recent post about hiding behind personas, Steve Johnson poses the following [...]

Help for product managers

I’ve noticed throughout my career as a product manager there are times when I have questions about what to do in certain situations, but am not sure who to ask. I recently found a new blog by Jeff Lash called Ask a Good Product Manager . Jeff wants to “make it easy for a product [...]