Discovery Digest Volume VI
A list Interesting Posts, Articles, & Tools the P2P Team Discovered This Week
Part of the job of a Product Manager is to keep their ears to the ground. You must be aware of innovations, changes, and new tools in the technological landscape to avoid falling.
Every week I find myself bookmarking tweets, saving articles, and exploring new methods to do my job.
Discovery Digest has become the new P2P series to spread wealth. In it, we'll share the best or most interesting news, developments, and tools that have captivated our attention.
The Ben and Marc Show
I’m a dabbler in the All-In Podcast. While some of their takes have me scratching my head, they're a good barometer for the headwinds of tech. It’s fun - I just would not look to Jason Calicanis to grow my knowledge. I view it as Tech News and insights into the typical VC investor persona.
My true feelings were revealed when the author Just Murphy articulated the exact criticisms I share about the show in the following tweet.
A sound criticism alone is not worth a Discovery Digest shoutout. What caught my attention was in the second half of the tweet. Juxtaposed against the All-In podcast with something I hadn’t heard of prior - The Ben and Marc Show.
Ben and Marc, it turns out, are 16z’s co-founders
and Ben Horowitz!I immediately gave it an immediate listen, starting with their recent episode - Build Your Startup With AI.
Spoiler - it’s fantastic. I couldn’t hit subscribe fast enough. To understand why, you must know the men behind the podcast.
Marc Andreesen programmed the first ever internet Web Browser - Mosaic. This, in essence, gave birth to the modern internet era. Mosaic would change its name to Netscape, where a young Ben Horowitz would join as a Product Manager. They succeeded in their mission of opening up the Internet to the masses. Both Andreesen and Horowitz would go on to found more companies until they amassed such wealth they started the Venture Capital Firm a16z, famous for the phrase Software is Eating the World.
They are legends in the technology space. Ben Horowitz authored my number 1 most recommended book for Product Management - The Hard Thing About Hard Things. (A book also featured on the P2P Product Management Syllabus).
Marc Andreessen in recent years had started making Joe Rogan appearances. He penned the famous essay Why Software is Eating the World. The more I hear him talk, the more sense I’m able to make of the world.
I consume all content produced by these 2. Given their recent history with media, they all but telegraphed a podcast was coming. a16z has a long history of going direct to the audience with their portfolio company’s brand marketing efforts. Hell, they’re the primary investor behind Substack! This podcast is simply an example of a16z’s founders practicing what they preach.
I highly recommend you subscribe. I will be powering through their backlog in the coming weeks. Stay tuned.
Even Amazon Can Screw Up a Feature Launch
Amazon is a giant in the tech industry. It still feels like magic when I take out my phone, press 2 buttons, and in 24 hours the object of my desire arrives. I’m endlessly amazed.
Part of the secret sauce of Amazon is the incredible logistics network. Next-day delivery has been the norm in major metropolitan cities for years. Even small businesses can tap into the vast network with Fulfilled by Amazon.
Amazon has a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 73! That’s unheard of in the world in the world of software. People love Amazon at an unprecedented level for a company of its scale - myself included.
But even Amazon can screw up a launch…
Recently, they introduced Next Day Overnight Delivery where your package arrives in the 4 AM to 8 AM window. They thought - customers will love this! They’ll wake up. and their package will be right there!
This is great for people with houses with stoops, or apartments with doormen. You wake up, and BAM - there’s your order! Like magic.
Where it fails is the City Apartment where one must buzz in. This would be my metropolitan apartment.
In v1 of the Next Day Overnight roll-out, key items I ordered via the Mobile App only had the option for delivery in the 4-8 AM window. Not thinking too hard about ordering is part of Amazon’s convenience - so I sent in my fresh order of Outright Bars without thinking too hard about the delivery window.
What proceeded Next would make Jeff Bezos roll over in his blue origin space shuttle…
The delivery driver wanted instructions on how to deliver, so they started messages - at 5 in the morning. Naturally, I did not respond.
Unsure, they rang my apartment buzzer at 5:30. This may my Belgium Malinois pup mixed pup lose her god d@mn mind. She’s barking, the door is buzzing and Mrs. Belt (Very much not, a morning person) starts screaming WHO THE H3LL IS THIS?
I nexg have my demanding we cancel Amazon Prime - with this being one step over the line. We’re too bought into to consumer culture, and this is the sign we need to change.
Needless to say, it was not a fun morning.
I poorly rated the delivery on Amazon, so they would have the quantitative feedback. They gave me a $10 credit for my troubles.
More importantly, 2 weeks later, the option to opt out of overnight delivery exists once more on mobile.
They iterated quickly - which is why they are Amazon, but they we’re playing with fire on this one. (For the curious reader - no, I did not cancel Amazon Prime. Its glorious)
How Layoffs can Actually be Your Big Opportunity
Layoffs suck.
They spawn a sense of dread over everyone at the company. The masses become uneasy. Will there be another? Am I at risk? Is my company a loser?
Its chaos. But. As Littlefinger famously uttered:
Many a Product Manager, including yours truly, got their start in Product due to the dismissal of another PM.
It makes complete sense when you think about it financially. PMs are expensive. When one isn’t delivering the goods, and a company’s financials start to look iffy, they are a natural target.
When a PM is relieved of duties though, their workload remains so long as the company intends to maintain their product.
This puts a product org in a conundrum.
PMs are highly leveraged, typically without free time to absorb another product. That entails understanding the architecture of a whole new application. Developing relations within said business model, and understanding the dynamics of an entirely new engineering team behind it.
It’s a heavy lift. It’s especially difficult after a round of layoffs. The Product Org must decide who absorbs ownership of this work, so that the trains keep running in time.
The answer could be you.
I’ve seen it happen over and over. A PM out of favor is relieved of their duties. Their product ownership is given to a well-regarded employee on another team who’se been angling for a transition into product.
This helps the company in several ways.
The first benefit is that at least this individual is aware of how the business functions. This saves ramp-up time for a PM. Secondly, it’s cost-effective. Instead of having to hire an expensive PM on the open market, with months to onboarding included, the company gets a cheaper resource from a less highly paid team to step into the role.
It’s very much a prove-it situation for whoever is given a chance. The challenge for the individual getting a break is they in all likelihood will not be able to drop all the work of their current team.
If this is you, in effect you’ll be working 2 jobs. This is the tax you pay to become a Product Manager. Power through, update your resume, and get those applications out! Once you are acting in the role part-time, you’re in range for another company to hire you as a full-time PM. This would include a large pay raise as you get onto the Product pay scale.
Another PM’s downfall is your onramp. Stay focused, be ready, and you too can grab those 6 figure remote salaries, building the future.
Want to transfer to a Product role where you work today? No need to go it alone.
Sign up for a P2P consult and let bowtiedwhitebelt, an active Product Hiring Manager be your guide.
Having helped themselves and countless others land their first product role, you’ll spend the hour developing an optimized strategy and specific list of actions towards success and a better future.