In this seventh and final episode of our Resource Allocation mini-series, we're answering the question that's always on our minds, even when we're making the best decisions we can with limited information, time, and people: what else could go wrong?

In the sixth episode we discuss: How do you think about identifying who is best suited to which type of product in each lifestage?  We answer these questions:

• How do you approach having those conversations with the individuals you’re considering pairing with these products for their current lifestage? 

• What reactions might you experience from teams and individuals based on the attention paid to what they’re working on vs other teams’ products in your company?

• How permanent should you and your teams expect these “resource allocation” assignments to be? 

Are you a product leader who is dreading the prospect of reorganizing your teams?

Are you not sure where to start and how to keep it under wraps to minimize disruption to your teams?

In this episode, I share my rule of thumb for making the initial draft of the resource allocation.  I ask for feedback from one of the world’s experts on this topic,  Barry O’Reilly.

In this fourth episode, we’re going to discuss the resource allocation decisions product leaders face for the Explore and Invest products in their portfolio. We’ll answer:

• What are the considerations for leaders as they are allocating resources to Explore stage products?  

• How big should an Explore team be?

• How much time should they allocate to explore an idea?

• What are the roles on the team and goals for the team working on an Explore stage product idea?

• Should they be dedicated to a specific innovation idea or explore a lot of hypotheses?

• How do you know a product is ready to scale and for significant resource investment?

Are you a product leader seeing growth plateau for some of your most adopted products? 

Are you struggling to reallocate resources away from legacy products and onto new growth opportunities?

Are you being asked to do more with less?

We discuss how to allocate teams and time to products at the end-of-life or sunset stage by answering these questions:

• What factors should product leaders consider when allocating individuals to a product being Sunset?

• How can you keep individuals working through a sunsetting product motivated by pairing them with an Explore product?

• Is it better to use full-time employees or contractors on the team sunsetting the product?

• How do you effectively communicate the decision to sunset a product to the impacted employees?

In this first episode, we'll tackle three key questions about setting the stage for resource allocation decisions:

1. When is it time to reconsider how people and time are dedicated to products and initiatives?

2. How do you identify which products and initiatives deserve resources?

3. Who should create the initial view of the product portfolio and allocated resources?

Introducing a 7-episode mini-series of the Fearless Product Leadership podcast in which we'll tackle the question: How do you make resource allocation decisions for products and teams?

I’m speaking with my friend and partner, Teresa Torres, author of the new book, “Continuous Discovery Habits” as we answer the question “How do you nurture product discovery as a leader?”

In this episode, our product leaders share the defining moments that influenced how they recognized how better people practices in their teams could dramatically improved how they create and improve product experiences for their companies and customers.

In this episode, Part 1 in a two-part miniseries, we learn defining moments from five deeply experienced product leaders. They reflect on a learning that dramatically improved the way they approach the process part of their role.

“Nail it, then scale it” is a common—and catchy—refrain within the product world. But what exactly does it mean to “nail” your product? What happens if you move too fast or too slow when rolling out a new product or feature? In this episode, we learn from six deeply experienced product leaders who understand the delicate nature of timing product releases.

Product leaders cannot create great products to delight customers and execute a company strategy without a strong, capable team. But many product leaders struggle to find the right people on their team and often forget everything they know about building great products and use traditional, mostly ineffective recruiting and hiring practices. That’s why in this episode of Fearless Product Leadership, we’re answering the question “How do you hire the right product managers?”

Are you a product leader whose team struggles to make decisions efficiently? There are a number of underlying reasons why teams move slowly when they need to make product decisions. In this episode, we learn from five deeply experienced product leaders who have developed effective questions and frameworks to accelerate decision-making on their teams.

Are you a product leader who isn't sure how you should be evaluated? Are you trying to define corporate and professional goals for you vs your team or the company? In this episode, we learn from deeply experienced product leaders who’ve held the product leader role at multiple companies how they measure their success as a product leader.

(3 of 3 in Alignment miniseries)

In the third and final episode Alexandra Jamieson and Bob Gower, authors of the book “Radical Alignment: How to have Game-Changing Conversations That Will Transform Your Business and Your Life.” react to the practices our product leaders use and share their best advice on how to achieve that much needed state of alignment.

(2 of 3 in Alignment miniseries)

Are you a product leader struggling to effectively align your leaders and teams on critical decisions? In this second episode of a 3-episode miniseries on alignment, 5 experienced product leaders share their best techniques on how they align their organizations on critical decisions.

(1 of 3 in Alignment miniseries)

Are you a product leader struggling to effectively align your leaders and teams on critical decisions? In this first episode of a 3-episode miniseries on alignment, 3 chief product officers share why they align their organizations on critical decisions.

Are you a product leader struggling to effectively collaborate with other customer-facing teams in product discovery?  In this episode, 6 experienced product leaders share their best tips and techniques on how they work with sales, support and other customer-facing teams to learn from customers and manage expectations to create success for customers and their companies.

With more companies understanding the value of good product management and a shortage of deeply experienced candidates, finding a product leader to lead the function can be challenging.  In this episode of Fearless Product Leadership, we learn how to assess potential product leaders from seasoned product leaders themselves when they answer the question “What is your best interview question for product leaders?”