Justin Watt
About: Whereas attending college for psychology, Justin ventured into challenge & product administration the place he took half in inner merchandise creation for Shaw and IBM. He labored on tasks with MetaLab on the facet beginning in 2012 and formally joined the crew in 2015 the place his formal title is Venture Supervisor, which at MetaLab consists of product administration as a spotlight. He’s labored on and launched merchandise for Fortune 10 firms and startups. When not doing this, he’s an enormous fan of working, music festivals, and steady studying in all issues product administration.
About MetaLab: MetaLab is an company specializing in constructing world-class digital merchandise for firms large and small. They give attention to A+ design and accomplice intently with their shoppers in technique, product administration, design, and growth. Some notable work from the previous few years consists of Slack, Notarize, Coinbase, and Sudo with many new, thrilling merchandise coming in 2016.
On the internet:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/wattjustin/
AMA Particulars:
Date: Tuesday, March 29
Time: 11AM PT / 2PM ET
Location: #ama channel
To affix in on the Q&A, try our Product HQ neighborhood!
Choose questions and solutions from the AMA:
How do you retain individuals motivated who work ONLY on company work?
We hold groups motivated with numerous freedom and the understanding that they’ll transfer to totally different tasks over time. They’re not saddled with one and so they have numerous autonomy to each do the work they know they need to do together with elevating their hand after they need to dig into one thing else.
How do you distribute fairness/incentives to workers in order that they really feel they’re a part of the crew when doing mundane stuff?
Fairness and incentives are available many kinds for us. The mutual respect all members of the crew has blown me away, so there’s an inherent need to really feel a part of a crew. Outdoors of this, the groups in any respect ranges have a HIGH stage of enter into merchandise, so all of us really feel like we’re constructing one thing collectively. This creates numerous engagement and ends in very low workers churn right here.
So that you don’t really feel that there’s a misalignment of motivation? If I’ve a crew of three builders – we personal the product and eat sleep and breathe getting issues completed vs a consulting agency with it’s personal agenda and optimization methods round making as a lot cash as doable?
This may increasingly sound too pie within the sky, however we rent individuals who need to construct cool stuff. That’s the place we differentiate between a consulting agency and product accomplice. We are inclined to work on merchandise that the crew is impressed by and needs to work on. This removes a lot of the misalignment of motivation. We put the product first, all the things else second on the subject of the work.
What’s your high tip for a challenge supervisor?
Ruthless prioritization. Particularly in an company setting: you haven’t any alternative however to continually reprioritize your to-dos. There are solely so many hours in a day.
What’s your high interview query to ask junior to mid-level builders interviewing for a task in your crew?
“What requests make you essentially the most annoyed and essentially the most uncomfortable from these exterior of your developer teammates?” I discover this tells you numerous about how they take care of strain, conflicting priorities, and the way they interact with their work. It’s one in every of many favourite inquiries to ask devs, however I discover that is one query that tells you numerous.
How a lot time do you spend on anyone product and the way do you go about addressing their particular person KPI’s?
PMs listed here are on not more than 2 tasks. I’m presently on 2 and I’d say it’s a few 60/40 break up. One requires extra product work because it’s a V1 product in order many right here know: that’s an even bigger endeavor in some ways. We measure our success by our shoppers’ success. We accomplice closely at a product stage so we share analysis, efficiency metrics, product KPI’s and so on. Begin and use that as a crew to make merchandise higher. Our objective is to accomplice with our shoppers for a long run and in reality, we are saying no to many who need a “one and completed”.
I presently work in a digital company. How is PM work totally different in an company surroundings vs non-agency?
I’d say company vs non-agency is the competing priorities. We work on this by getting our groups closely embedded with our shoppers and making all of it really feel like one crew. Outdoors of this, I discover the distinction is tempo: company work is WAYYYY sooner shifting than non-agency work.
What makes an important consumer?
A terrific consumer is somebody who treats you as a accomplice, not a vendor. We do our greatest work after we collaborate as an alternative of getting prescriptive work fed our approach. Whereas we respect the shoppers as we try to work cultural matches solely, we at all times get pleasure from working as a accomplice greater than something.
How do you differentiate challenge administration vs. product administration work at MetaLab?
They’re a really blended position presently. Venture facet of the position is chargeable for timelines and budgets and resourcing. Product facet is chargeable for roadmap, options, and technique. We now have a method division so it’s not a solo present the place persons are unfold too skinny; it’s positively a crew sport.
What can smaller companies ($1mm income) do to extend income? (exterior of elevating charges) – additionally, do you suppose it’s higher to give attention to month-to-month retainers or one-time jobs?
Smaller companies can give attention to pursuing shoppers that will probably be very long time companions and have a product you need to develop with. The income comes out of that. I firmly consider one-time jobs are one to avoid. If the “one-time” job is a method to construct a relationship in order to proceed working collectively, that’s nice. But when the intention is merely to do one thing and transfer on, it dilutes the funding your crew has in engaged on the product.
What was it wish to work with Slack throughout the design course of? What design rules did they struggle for?
I wasn’t working immediately with MetaLab when Slack was being born, however I first met Andrew in 2012 and have completed some work on the facet with him since that point. I’ll say that the groups principals on that challenge carry over to all of our tasks: serve the supposed consumer first.
We’re not robots and Slack doesn’t deal with individuals as such. It has a “life” of its personal (aka character) identical to the those who use it. Subsequently, it creates that connection and it’s grown from there.
The place do you see your self in 5 years?
Main a crew of Product Managers. I really like engaged on product and in search of out new methods to deliver “outdated” methods of doing issues into the twenty first century. http://metalab.co/tasks/notarize/ is one in every of my most fav latest examples of this.
Are there another industries or particular verticals that you simply’ve personally been fascinated about on the subject of bringing “outdated” methods of doing issues into the twenty first century?
Autos are fashionable within the grand scheme of issues, however my god the ergonomics, GUI’s, and UX of these GUI’s are so…dated. That’s one thing I’ve a eager curiosity in. Outdoors of that, issues which might be managed by antiquated firms with antiquated methods of doing issues is an enormous curiosity. I look to looking out, reviewing, signing for, and dwelling in a rented residence/rental a HUGE alternative. The methods wherein you possibly can streamline that course of, make it simpler for each renter/rentee (not a phrase, however going with it) all through the entire course of from shifting in to shifting out is one thing I’d love to resolve for.
What’s your method to constructing a roadmap with a consumer? Even after we keep actually versatile, the consumer tends to need some kind of agreed-upon characteristic set very early within the course of. How do you steadiness that?
We normally get all the intentions out of the best way first after which from there: who’re the supposed/objective customers? What does success on this product appear to be? and so on… As soon as everyone seems to be on the identical web page there, I discover it’s a lot simpler to get buy-in on a product roadmap that serves these wants. There are at all times competing priorities – you simply need to be proactive about that vs. reactive. Board members, competing stakeholder concepts, and so on. all need to be accounted for. It’s a balancing act, however I discover that defining the consumer and success first are keys to roadmap success.
We use the technique time collectively to both reinforce a characteristic request or make it clear that’s not a superb/excessive precedence proper now. Inquiries to a consumer/stakeholder akin to: what’s the enterprise worth for this characteristic? does it resolve an issue for the supposed consumer? is it differentiated or aggressive out there? is it a constructing block to a serious, future characteristic?
Questions like this have a tendency to permit the consumer to determine for themselves if a characteristic they need is certainly a characteristic they want.
We are inclined to assign “Enterprise Worth” and “Technical Complexity” rankings to product options. That approach, it’s clear if one thing is 4/5 worth and 1/5 tech complexity, we are able to all agree that we pursue that. If it’s 1/5 biz worth and 5/5 tech complexity, it tends to be simple: “let’s not do that proper now”
Tech feasibility is an enormous one. I’ve learnt the lesson the very exhausting approach: engineering groups must be concerned not less than considerably on the technique/product roadmap section to outline if a characteristic (even at a excessive stage) is possible within the launch timeline.
How do you monitor worker hours/work?
Harvest is our go-to for that. We respect the time that the consumer has paid us for and we respect the autonomy that we try to supply workers so we work to steadiness these.
How usually do you might have inner workshops regarding product and technique? Who’s concerned and are these recurring occasions?
We are inclined to do numerous inner, casual data sharing on Slack. We now have a complete analysis channel in Slack the place PMs, Technique, and design leads submit issues usually and share ideas round product & technique there. As for precise workshops: that’s one thing we’re engaged on implementing. The crew has greater than doubled within the final 6 months, so it’s one thing we consider to be important however simply have to search out the time to make occur.
I admire the template of questions you might have given for speaking to a consumer/stakeholder. How have you ever gone about dealing with intense disagreement over technique? Physique language, or different stakeholders to again you as much as come to thoughts or communication kinds?
Due to the best way we try to border these questions (we’re working to construct an important product vs. turning it into an us in opposition to them method) I discover that the stakeholders are inclined to take it properly. When it’s clear that the intention of the query is to serve their product greater than the rest, it dilutes the depth of the dialog. There have been events the place you simply know that there are specific hills you don’t have to die on however I consider that goes for everybody working in product, all over the place.
When shoppers rent your crew to go in and assist with product, what’s the large ache level or want that they’re experiencing which leads to their determination that it’s time to get critical about having company assist? In a approach, what’s the drawback that Metalab, as a product, is tackling? How did work with firms like Slack come about?
Q2: Most work we do is referral from nice companions we’ve labored with up to now together with that challenge. As for the opposite questions: There are such a lot of solutions to that, to be sincere. Generally it’s that the consumer doesn’t have the sources/capability to do the product work within the timeframe they need to get it completed, generally it’s that they’re new to the patron product trade however have an important thought and wish help with product and execution of getting that to market, and generally it’s as a result of they’ve a big crew and we assist that giant crew with advanced wants type out what makes the most effective product. I wouldn’t say there’s a regular cause, however a mixture of all of these.
In case you might suggest as much as 3 books/thought leaders to comply with/articles for somebody new to the world of PM, what would they be?
Guide-wise, I’m an enormous fan of: Hooked & On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. Sure, a guide on writing by Stephen King. That doesn’t appear vital however with the quantity of written communication {that a} PM has to do, that is a vital learn. As for articles, I’d level individuals to medium.com and kind in “product supervisor”. There’s a wealth of sources and I feel it’s extra about what resonates with every PM. There isn’t any clear, one approach to do issues. Each scenario we’re put in as PMs is totally different so I feel it’s discovering what works for you and studying from others alongside the best way.
That’s a obscure reply, however it feels as many are searching for that one article or guide or particular person to information them when it’s a group of steering and insights from many various areas and making use of it in a approach that works for you and your position and your crew.
At Meta Lab – you probably did end-to-end product growth – so shoppers primarily come to you with an thought behind a serviette? what do you cowl within the first assembly?
It actually relies on the stage the consumer is at. I’ll put it this manner: with my two present tasks, one is a Fortune 10 and one is a startup launching V1 of their product. Each needed to begin with a dialogue round: who’s the product for? what issues are they making an attempt to resolve? and what excites them in regards to the prospects of their thought/product? From there, you might have a good suggestion of what they need and what they’re making an attempt to realize. Then the product is fleshed out from there.
So irrespective of the dimensions of the challenge & consumer, it relies on the stage the product is at and understanding what the targets are.
How do you’re employed with founders or executives who’ve a powerful private opinion about product/characteristic, however it’s not based mostly on consumer analysis/suggestions, solely on their intestine?
Illustrating very tactfully and respectfully why idealism and guts are proper far much less usually than analysis, consumer interviews, suggestions from goal teams, and so on.
Everybody has seen The Social Community and thinks, “His intestine was proper! Mine will probably be too.” However illustrating why that’s the exception, not the rule is essential.
Not that each one of our shoppers suppose that, however in all features of product growth, exhibiting why analysis, information, and focused suggestions are the best way to go is crucial I discover.
Somebody who has a mature product and traction/DAU’s to assist their guts findings up to now is a distinct story, however once more, that’s the exception, not the rule
And I discover with exec stage, pure bullet factors of findings are key. Give all of them the dates, however they need the outcomes, not the context of it. That’s purely private expertise, however helps promote the concepts higher I discover.
Each startup workplace wants a poster giving a 10-second explainer on affirmation bias and keep away from it.
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