How It All Began: A Childhood Rooted in Product Considering
Nicole: Welcome, Sahara. Let’s begin along with your journey into Product Administration.
Sahara: “I really feel like I’ve been in Product Administration since I used to be a toddler! My mother and father owned a café, and as an entrepreneurial household, we children all pitched in. My job was creating the menu—from the bodily trifold to the show over our deli—and enabling their on-line presence. This was again when the web was simply rising for small companies. I noticed firsthand how content material and design selections may converse to customers, entice conduct, and assist develop the enterprise.
In faculty, I majored in Media Research, specializing in find out how to drive client conduct and buying energy by segmenting and displaying gadgets in strategic methods. After graduating, I turned a guide and enterprise analyst, gathering consumer necessities, prototyping, and validating options to satisfy prospects’ wants and drive enterprise objectives. My enterprise acumen got here from venture administration—managing sources, budgets, and aligning them to actual income metrics.”
Making the Leap: From Venture Administration to Full-Fledged Product
Nicole: I like that you simply noticed one thing intriguing and simply went for it. After your guide expertise, how did you transition into an official Product function?
Sahara: “Whereas working at Marriott, I used to be within the room with leads throughout World Operations and Digital, dissecting every step of the traveler’s expertise—from reserving to pre-arrival to departure—and brainstorming how know-how may ease their journey. It lastly clicked: I’d gathered consulting, enterprise, and user-centric abilities. I requested the director of Digital Cell & Visitor Companies for an opportunity to maneuver into Product. That leap led me to ship industry-leading merchandise at Marriott, Cvent, MLB, and now OfficeSpace.”
Loving the Position: Bridging Person Wants and Enterprise Outcomes
Nicole: Product Administration blends creativity, enterprise, and venture administration. What do you’re keen on most about it?
Sahara: “Being on the forefront of bridging user-centric ideas with enterprise aims. In PLG (product-led development) organizations, we’re driving product performance that delivers actual enterprise outcomes, ensuring there’s sustainable development. I thrive on collaborating throughout gross sales, advertising and marketing, and providers to uncover challenges, suggest options, and measure impression. PM doesn’t simply develop you professionally—it builds your problem-solving mindset in each a part of your life. (My trip planners can attest to that!)”
Challenges in SaaS and B2B: Prioritization and Alignment
Nicole: What do you discover most difficult in Product Administration?
Sahara: “In a SaaS B2B atmosphere, the amount of requests might be overwhelming. Everybody needs on the roadmap—senior management, purchasers, and inner stakeholders. Every group has its personal aims. Our job is to collect, validate, and prioritize these inputs objectively. We watch market tendencies by studying publications and scanning competitor strikes. Instruments like Gainsight or Pendo assist observe platform utilization, churn dangers, or enlargement alternatives. We additionally rely closely on insights from client-facing groups: gross sales, help, skilled providers.
Finally, you want KPIs and frameworks to weigh these alternatives. We do discovery with purchasers—validating use circumstances, reviewing prototypes—and produce all of it again to inner groups. Transparency is large. We share what we discovered, the way it formed MVP scope, and the incremental worth we count on. At OfficeSpace, we even have a CRAFT assembly—Cross-Practical Roadmap Alignment and Suggestions—the place gross sales, advertising and marketing, shopper providers, and enablement come collectively to refine resolution choices and prep go-to-market motions. Everybody sees how we arrived at sure priorities, fostering belief and readability.”
Constructing a Product Staff: Key Traits of a Nice PM
Nicole: You’re Vice President with an entire crew reporting to you. What qualities do you search when hiring a Product Supervisor?
Sahara:
- Ardour for Drawback-Fixing
“PMs have to get to the basis of consumer challenges whereas conserving that finish objective in thoughts. Every persona has duties they need to accomplish, and the PM should empathize with their frustrations and objectives.” - Curiosity
“It’s straightforward to get siloed by focusing solely on the product line or referencing a slender set of apps. The very best PMs analysis their area and broader tendencies, brainstorming progressive options. They’re by no means carried out studying.” - Progress Mindset
“Your product would possibly flop—perhaps it doesn’t resolve the consumer’s precise drawback. For those who can study from that, fail quick, then iterate, you’ll achieve success.” - Collaboration
“We continually work together with numerous stakeholders—gross sales, advertising and marketing, dev. A PM should encourage consolation and confidence, bridging a number of departments.” - Enterprise Acumen
“PMs should converse eloquently about enterprise outcomes. We measure success and hyperlink it to income, retention, or strategic aims, guaranteeing stakeholders see the larger image.”
Recommendation for Ladies in Product: Develop Your Community
Nicole: For ladies particularly, any recommendation for these wanting to interrupt into or develop in Product Administration?
Sahara: “I get requested this lots. I inform ladies to develop their community—don’t keep siloed in your group or fast circle. You’ll achieve new insights and broaden your management fashion by attending {industry} occasions, becoming a member of communities, and connecting with friends. Being in skilled growth teams or communities particularly for girls is empowering—it provides you a secure area to check concepts, get constructive suggestions, and construct confidence.
And also you’ll discover it helps you step out of your consolation zone, forging a community that fosters studying and development. There’s a lot alternative when you begin wanting past your day-to-day bubble.”
Nicole: Any final ideas for our Product Administration viewers?
Sahara: “No matter whether or not you’re in B2B or B2C, it’s essential to index in your client. As Product Managers, we’re on the epicenter, studying the enterprise challenges and consumer challenges. Doc these insights and share them. It advantages pitch decks, QBRs, advertising and marketing collateral—everybody within the group. Finally, you’re ensuring every division can delight the purchasers. We wish them to really feel that we’re stunning them with next-level experiences. That’s the enjoyable half!”
February 26, 2025
