One Knight in Product

CPO Stories: Sean O'Neill - Syncron

On this episode, I speak to Sean O'Neill. Sean is the Chief Product & Technology Officer at Syncron, and an executive product leader with a storied career spanning companies like Amazon, Tesco, and GfK. We bond over our shared history at GfK, speak about how Amazon has influenced his product thinking, how it's developed since he moved on, and his approach to portfolio management and right-sizing investments across the product portfolio. We cover a lot, including: * There's no greater crime than building something the universe doesn't need: Sean's ten key product principles that he lists on LinkedIn - first developed at Tesco - all matter, but building pointless stuff tops his list of product sins. * Use the right tool for the job: Amazon shaped Sean's product DNA, but he's clear that context is king - you can't simply transplant Big Tech practices into legacy environments and expect them to work wholesale. * Most companies under-invest in their strategy: When progress stalls, it's usually because teams are spread too thin across BAU work and one-off feature requests. The best product firms align time and capacity to strategic bets (or admit that they're a professional services company). * Adopt a portfolio mindset: Sean's capital allocation framework helps leaders size and re-balance investments, ensuring resources go where they'll have the biggest impact - and revisiting regularly (but not too regularly) to stay honest. * Learn the language of money: Too many product leaders avoid finance. Sean argues that financial literacy isn't optional if you want credibility with the board and real influence on business outcomes. Learn the numbers! Connect with Sean You can connect with Sean on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanon/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanon/]. There you'll find a number of articles, including the one we discuss in this interview: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/you-dont-need-more-engineers-better-strategic-bets-sean-o-neill-s0vze/ [https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/you-dont-need-more-engineers-better-strategic-bets-sean-o-neill-s0vze/] Connect with Sean's "mystery caller" You can connect with special guest interviewer Sterling O'Neill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sterlingoneill/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/sterlingoneill//].

CPO Stories: Georgie Smallwood - Moonpig

On this episode, I speak to Georgie Smallwood. Georgie is Chief Product, Technology & Data Officer at Moonpig - the UK's best-known online gifting and greeting card platform. Georgie has built a global career leading product and technology teams at companies like N26, Xero, and Tier Mobility, before joining Moonpig to help transform a 25-year-old household brand into a modern, tech-driven organisation. In this interview, she talks about what it means to create "moments that matter", how Moonpig balances emotional connection with innovation, and how to lead when you're responsible for product, tech and data all at once. We cover a lot, including: * Making technology more human: Georgie believes technology should make the world smaller, not bigger - by connecting people, not distancing them. At Moonpig, the goal isn't just to sell cards or gifts, but to help people express love and connection through meaningful gestures. * Product with purpose: Moonpig's mission is to be “the world's greatest gifting companion.” Every card printed represents a moment of love, humour, or memory between people. Georgie sees product management at Moonpig as building moments that matter, not just features. * Balancing connection and innovation: Moonpig has embraced AI and personalisation, but Georgie cautions against rushing ahead for technology's sake. Instead, the team focuses on introducing innovation in a way that feels natural and accessible to mass-market users. * Leading product, technology, and data together: As CPTDO, Georgie bridges three major domains. She admits she's not a data scientist or engineer, but focuses on seeking to understand - asking open questions, learning continuously, and leading through consistency rather than control. * On empowerment and leadership: While she values empowered teams, Georgie is pragmatic about balancing autonomy with business realities. She also believes true innovation needs governance, not chaos. Check out Moonpig Check out Moonpig's website: http://moonpig.com/ [http://moonpig.com/], or their careers page: https://www.moonpig.group/careers/ [https://www.moonpig.group/careers/]. Connect with Georgie You can connect with Georgie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georginasmallwood/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/georginasmallwood/].

Nesrine Changuel - We Should All Prioritise Product Delight! (with Nesrine Changuel, Product Coach & Author of “Product Delight“)

On this episode, I speak to my friend Nesrine Changuel, product coach and author of the new book "Product Delight". Nesrine started her career at Bell Labs as a research engineer before moving into product management at Microsoft, Spotify, and Google, where she even held the title "PM for Delight" on Google Meet. Her work focuses on how products can go beyond functionality to create genuine emotional connections with users. Episode highlights: * Why Product Delight is more than just a “nice to have”, and isn't just confetti on your boring app * The three pillars of Product Delight: reducing friction, anticipating needs, and exceeding expectations * The difference between surface delight (like balloons on your Apple Watch) and deep delight (features that serve emotional and functional needs together) * Why delight matters just as much in B2B products as in consumer apps, and why everything is B2H * How to get buy-in from leaders and stakeholders by linking emotional connection to revenue, retention, and referrals * The Delight Grid and Nesrine's four-step model for embedding delight into your product process * The risks of chasing the wrong kind of delight (like Deliveroo's failed Mother's Day campaign or Apple's awkward gesture fireworks) ... And much more. Buy the book You can grab a copy of Product Delight here: * Nesrine's site: https://nesrine-changuel.com/product-delight-book/ [https://nesrine-changuel.com/product-delight-book/] * Amazon UK: https://a.co/d/1J7JLZZ [https://a.co/d/1J7JLZZ] Contact Nesrine * Website: https://www.nesrine-changuel.com [https://www.nesrine-changuel.com/] * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nesrinechanguel [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nesrinechanguel] * Newsletter: https://nesrinechanguel.substack.com [https://nesrinechanguel.substack.com/]

CPO Stories: Katya Denike - Holland & Barrett

In this episode, I speak with Katya Denike, Chief Product Officer at Holland & Barrett, the 150-year-old health and wellness retailer that has become a household name on the UK high street. Having previously worked at McKinsey, Yandex, Ozon, and Beyond 100, she now leads Holland & Barrett's ambitious digital transformation - helping the company evolve from a traditional retailer into a global wellness ecosystem. We cover a lot, including: * Transforming a heritage retailer: Holland & Barrett is delivering double-digit growth through a sweeping digital and cultural transformation, investing in everything from supply chain systems to customer-facing apps. * Global vs local: The company builds strong global digital capabilities (like search and e-commerce infrastructure) while tailoring ~20% of the experience for each market to meet regulatory and customer needs. * High street resilience: Despite doom-and-gloom headlines, Holland & Barrett is thriving by focusing on product-market fit, preventative healthcare, and efficient tech-enabled operations. * The app transformation: Taking the mobile app in-house turned it from a struggling third-party product (<5% of digital revenue, 3-star rating) into a core strategic channel (>30% revenue share, 4.5+ rating). * Internal product management is sexy too: Katya insists that logistics, pricing systems, and data management are some of the most rewarding areas for product managers, enabling everything else to work. * Team structure: Around 100 people in product, design, and research, split between "firm foundations" (core systems) and "omnichannel customer experience", plus a small but mighty product ops team. * Leadership leap: Moving into her first CPO role was daunting, but support from her manager pushed her to take the leap and build a truly independent product function inside the company. * Skills for success: Katya highlights high agency, emotional intelligence, and the ability to navigate crucial conversations as must-haves for product leaders. Check out Holland & Barrett Check out Holland & Barrett's website: https://www.hollandandbarrett.com/ [https://www.hollandandbarrett.com/], or their careers page: https://apply.hollandandbarrettjobs.com/jobs/vacancy/find/results/ [https://apply.hollandandbarrettjobs.com/jobs/vacancy/find/results/]. Connect with Katya You can connect with Katya on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denikekatya/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/denikekatya/]. You can also check out Katya's podcast, Rocking Cribs & Careers. here! https://open.spotify.com/show/3rheb2Q1YuUvdmeYS8ngqA [https://open.spotify.com/show/3rheb2Q1YuUvdmeYS8ngqA].

CPO Stories: Jamie Mercer - TrustedHousesitters

In this episode, I speak with Jamie Mercer, Chief Product Officer at Trusted Housesitters, the global pet care and travel marketplace disrupting two industries at once. Jamie has previously held senior product roles at VoucherCodes, Skyscanner, Student Beans and IVC Evidensia, and now leads product at a scale-up known for putting trust at the heart of its community-driven business. We cover a lot, including: * TrustedHousesitters' unique proposition - a two-sided marketplace mixing travel and pet sitting, where both pet owners and sitters pay a subscription to help create mutual trust and respect. * Scaling through word of mouth - 70-75% of members join via a friend, and how the team are working to amplify that growth while keeping trust at the centre. * Balancing marketplace dynamics - keeping supply and demand in sync, supporting new sitters with no ratings, and using AI and personalisation to build confidence. * Using AI responsibly - from accelerating customer insight analysis to improving customer support, AI speeds up decision-making but always in service of company strategy. * Building empowered product teams - why Jamie invested early in product ops and product marketing instead of hierarchy, and how she's now preparing to scale with Product Directors. * Commercial product management - the importance of PMs with business acumen who can link solving customer problems with driving commercial outcomes. * Executive alignment as the hardest (and most valuable) job - why alignment across the C-suite is the best air cover a leader can provide for their teams. * Lessons from leadership - why some of the hardest decisions are killing months of work, the surprise of soft skills dominating the CPO role, and why leadership still matters in the AI era. Check out Trusted Housesitters Check out Trusted Housesitters' website: https://trustedhousesitters.com/ [https://trustedhousesitters.com/], or their careers page: https://www.trustedhousesitters.com/careers/ [https://www.trustedhousesitters.com/careers/]. Connect with Jamie You can connect with Jamie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamiemercer/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamiemercer/].