The Product Experience

In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily and Randy speak with Faith Forster about the art of aligning product work with commercial outcomes. From redefining velocity as a function of customer value to implementing impact models that quantify ROI, Faith outlines practical frameworks to help product teams think commercially without compromising user value.  She also explores the evolving role of AI in product development, the necessity of syncing planning cycles with business units, and why happy teams are the cornerstone of faster, better delivery. Key takeaways * Velocity = Value: Product velocity isn't about coding speed—it's about reducing time to customer value to improve ROI and lower opportunity cost. * Impact Modelling: A disciplined approach to estimating commercial outcomes before development helps product teams understand and justify their work. * AI Integration: Teams are expected to primarily use AI tools within three months to boost delivery speed and build organisational capability. * Viability from Day One: Pricing and revenue potential must be considered from the outset—not after feature completion. * Cross-Functional Alignment: Successful planning requires synchronising product cycles with finance, sales, and marketing calendars. * Happy Teams, Better Results: Reducing friction between design, engineering, and product roles directly impacts delivery speed and feature quality. Chapters 00:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ_FHVVyxYc] – Redefining velocity: Why speed isn’t just about code 01:05 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ_FHVVyxYc&t=65s] – Faith’s journey from Dex to Legal 03:02 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ_FHVVyxYc&t=182s] – Introducing the commercial value talk 04:51 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ_FHVVyxYc&t=291s] – Understanding the P&L from a product lens 08:07 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ_FHVVyxYc&t=487s] – Why team cost-awareness matters 10:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ_FHVVyxYc&t=600s] – Building better impact models 12:25 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ_FHVVyxYc&t=745s] – Increasing ROI through value velocity 16:37 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ_FHVVyxYc&t=997s] – The AI imperative: Adoption, anxiety, and acceleration https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZ_FHVVyxYc&t=1258s Our Hosts Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant [http://outofowls.com]. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles [https://www.cpo.social/]), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether [http://www.pita.social/]) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19 [https://outofowls.com/book]. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily and Randy sit down with Moshe Mikanovsky—product coach, educator, and host of the Product for Product podcast—to explore what makes an effective product management toolkit. From identifying the real problems in your workflow to choosing and implementing tools that stick, Moshe outlines a pragmatic, user-centric approach to tool selection. Chapters: 2:59 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=179s] – From Engineering to Product Management 5:25 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=325s] – Why Choosing Tools is Hard 8:11 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=491s] – Elements of a Product Stack 10:49 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=649s] – From Roadmaps to Analytics 14:01 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=841s] – A Framework for Selecting Tools 18:01 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=1081s] – Comparing Tools Beyond Features 21:18 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=1278s] – Test and Validate Your Tool Choices 26:01 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=1561s] – Why Implementation is Critical 28:04 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=1684s] – What’s Changing in Product Tools 29:26 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=1766s] – AI and the Future of Product Management 32:01 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=1921s] – Keeping Your Stack Modern 34:29 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=2069s] – Making the Case for Budget & ROI 37:23 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=2243s] – When ROI Forces a Change 38:45 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=naPDpDvKUlM&t=2325s] – Final Thoughts & Listener Call to Action Featured Links: Follow Moshe on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikanovsky] | Moshe's Product Manager Toolkit [https://miro.com/miroverse/product-manager-toolkit/] | PostHog [https://posthog.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Brand-Campaign-UKDEFR&utm_content=pure-brand&utm_term=posthog&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22663605728&gbraid=0AAAAACflbF_Bhh1Q4IagnlCybVxiNag8P&gclid=CjwKCAjw9uPCBhATEiwABHN9KwiUR0m6-ulXdVXp85nURXpjw0ooe2377-R6BOxY1y8Ob0COPo0oBRoC4bkQAvD_BwE] Our Hosts Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant [http://outofowls.com]. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles [https://www.cpo.social/]), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether [http://www.pita.social/]) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19 [https://outofowls.com/book]. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

Transformations are hard, and too often, they fail to deliver on their promise. In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily and Randy speak with Jen Swanson, CEO of Tuckpoint Advisory Group, to unpack why transformation initiatives falter and what it truly takes to succeed. Key Takeaways — Transformation requires intentionality: Real transformation isn't accidental or surface-level; it must be deliberate, comprehensive, and backed by leadership. — Avoid ‘transformation theatre’: Pretending to change—without restructuring ownership, processes, or collaboration—is worse than doing nothing at all. — Start with honest orientation: Knowing your starting point is essential before plotting a path forward. — Executive involvement is non-negotiable: Transformations can’t be delegated. Leadership must model the change and communicate relentlessly. — Product-led is about mindset, not just teams: Everyone should operate within the product model, but not all need to be on product teams. — Pace matters: Organisations must assess their capacity for change and determine the right balance between ambition and sustainability. — Give grace for the learning curve: People need space to be bad at new things before they get good—psychological safety is essential. Chapters 0:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74] – Introduction & the myth of sneaky transformations 1:01 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=61s] – Jen’s background and path into product 2:53 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=173s] – What transformation really means 5:53 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=353s] – Defining honest orientation 8:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=480s] – What is transformation theatre? 12:09 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=729s] – When real change feels fake 13:04 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=784s] – The importance of executive commitment 16:04 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=964s] – Why transformations fail 19:11 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=1151s] – Common catalysts for transformation 22:06 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=1326s] – Product-led vs product thinking 25:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3Uc9MeGe74&t=1500s] – Who’s in the op Our Hosts Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant [http://outofowls.com]. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles [https://www.cpo.social/]), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether [http://www.pita.social/]) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19 [https://outofowls.com/book]. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

What does it mean to build world-class products in the age of AI? In this episode, Randy Silver talks to Ezinne and Oji Udezue, co-authors of Building Rocketships, a playbook for building high-growth companies in today’s fast-evolving tech landscape. Together, they unpack what product looks like now, how AI changes collaboration, and why ambition, clarity, and disciplined execution matter more than ever. Key takeaways — Building world-class products starts with clear ambition and choosing big, meaningful problems — AI isn't replacing PMs, it's changing the way product work gets done—especially in how we collaborate — Vibe coding enables faster iteration and clearer communication through prototyping in code — The product manager’s job is to lead teams and help the organisation build the right thing, not just anything — Clarity, focus, and leadership buy-in are essential to successful transformation, even in legacy organisations — Product teams need to shift from writing specs to orchestrating systems that drive customer and business outcomes — Every product person should master the full arc: solving today's problems, helping customers succeed, and spotting future opportunities Chapters  0:00 The "should PMs code?" debate 1:54 First product roles and how the book came to life 4:49 The mission behind Building Rocketships 7:13 Why the book is for leaders and their partners 10:01 Differences between world-class teams and everyone else 13:35 What ambition really looks like 17:10 How clarity transforms legacy companies 23:10 AI, vibe coding, and the new spec: working prototypes 30:10 Redefining the product team’s role in the AI age 35:02 What skills PMs actually need to thrive now 42:54 The one mistake PMs can't afford to make Featured Links: Follow Ezinne on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ezinne/] | Follow Oji on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ojiudezue/] | ProductMind [https://www.productmind.co] | Buy their new book [https://www.productmind.co/building-rocketships-book] 'Building Rocketships: Product Management for High Growth Companies' Our Hosts Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant [http://outofowls.com]. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles [https://www.cpo.social/]), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether [http://www.pita.social/]) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19 [https://outofowls.com/book]. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

This week on The Product Experience, we revisit a great conversation with Todd Green, now President of King – the studio behind Candy Crush. Todd shares how he thinks about building products that are not only globally successful but enduringly fun.  Todd takes us behind the curtain on what it really takes to build for mass audiences, create fun at scale, and grow empowered product teams. Key takeaways * Fun can’t be optimised: Building successful games (or products) requires capturing something visceral. Metrics help, but “fun” starts as a feeling, not a number. * Audience motivation matters more than demographics: Instead of targeting by age or gender, King focuses on why people play – whether it’s for calm, connection or challenge. * Legacy products need product management too: The real work starts when a product survives beyond launch. King invests heavily in balancing new features with legacy complexity. * Good product leaders own the business: At King, product leads (executive producers) are responsible for P&L – it's a full-stack role across delivery, team, and outcomes. * Sharing insights is a team sport: King has full-time roles and informal networks dedicated to transferring learning between game teams. * Ethical responsibility is core: King prioritises player wellbeing and long-term satisfaction – not just engagement – as a business principle. * Building great managers is a product in itself: Todd sees first-line manager development as one of his top priorities for sustaining culture and performance. Key chapters  *  00:00 – Intro and Todd’s promotion *  01:40 – Todd’s media roots and time at Fremantle *  06:15 – Digital bibles and global format sharing *  10:50 – Lessons from the Susan Boyle YouTube moment *  13:40 – Shifting to King and the discovery of fun *  18:30 – Motivations beyond boredom *  22:45 – Building for a massive, diverse audience *  26:40 – The product structure at King *  30:10 – Keeping Candy Crush fresh after years at the top *  35:05 – When to launch a new game *  38:50 – Ethics and responsibility in game design *  42:20 – Why qual and quant both matter *  45:10 – How King shares knowledge across teams *  48:00 – The hiring landscape and talent challenges *  51:00 – Growing new managers and inclusive leadership *  54:10 – Closing thoughts and Todd’s reflections Our Hosts Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant [http://outofowls.com]. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles [https://www.cpo.social/]), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether [http://www.pita.social/]) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19 [https://outofowls.com/book]. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.