Most product teams plan for success, which makes sense until you realize that planning only for success is […]
The Premortem: Your Product’s Autopsy Before Launch
Context Engineering for Non Engineers
Context Engineering for Non Engineers “Prompt engineering is dead,” the podcast guest said. “Context engineering is everything now.” […]
Why Your Brain Matters More Than Your Grade
I’m teaching CS177 Human-Centered Product Management in the fall. AI will be a core part of their work. […]
Why I’m Thrilled My Kid is Going to Sarah Lawrence (And You Should Want a Liberal Arts Degree Too)
When I tell people my kid is heading to Sarah Lawrence for a liberal arts degree, I get […]
Building Product Sense: Why Your Gut Needs an Education
When AI researchers started obsessing over “taste” last year, I had to laugh. They’d discovered what product people […]
OKR Dash
Ever worked with a CEO who wanted more than Outcome confidence—who needed to see the day-to-day heartbeat of […]
Free Worksheet for Missions
I’m going to share some worksheets from a OKR and More Workbook I’m writing. I’d love feedback! If […]
Sketching With AI: Why Physical Thinking Still Matters in the Age of Generated Everything
Last week, I watched a product designer spend 45 minutes crafting the perfect prompt for DALL-E. “Make it […]
Student-Created Rubrics: Preparing Designers for Real-World Quality Decisions
What’s a Rubric, and Why Should We Care? A rubric is basically a scorecard for quality used by […]
The Counterintuitive Hiring Strategy for the AI Era: Getting Maximum ROI from Minimal Headcount
Let’s be honest about where we are. Hiring freezes everywhere. Headcount reductions masquerading as “AI optimization.” An administration […]
How to Hire a Real UX/Product Designer
One of the biggest hiring mistakes I see over and over: teams looking for a UX/UI designer and […]
Prototypes, Turf Wars, and Vibe Coding: Who Does What Now?
Designers and PMs have always stepped on each other’s toes, especially when it’s a user-centered PM and a […]
The Recovery OKR: Goals for Healing After Burnout
We usually think of OKRs as tools for growth: ambitious, aspirational, designed to push us beyond what we […]
Developing Product Sense: How to See the Forest and the Trees
Every quarter in my Stanford Product Management class, the same question comes up: “How do I build product […]
What I’ve Learned from 15 Years of Doing OKRs
Fifteen years ago, I began experimenting with OKRs, starting at Zynga and then as I worked with startups […]
We Did This to Ourselves
The Chicago Sun-Times summer reading fiasco made the rounds online, drawing quick-fire reactions from across the spectrum. Most […]
Metrics Are Easy—Impact Is Hard
Metrics are the corporate world’s comfort blanket: soft, familiar, and dangerously good at lulling us to sleep. We […]
Default Mode Is a Decision—Just Not Yours
You ever look up from your desk, your inbox, your endless errands, and think—“Wait, how did I end […]
Why Use Personal OKRs
Back in 2012, I stumbled onto Objectives and Key Results not as a corporate mandate, but as a […]
How to Use GenAI with OKRs (Without Letting It Think for You)
There’s a dangerous temptation with AI right now: outsourcing your thinking. Don’t. Your brain is still your most […]
AI Won’t Take Your Job—But Someone Who Uses It Better Than You Will
I’m About to Make Some Predictions About AI, Which Is Probably the Dumbest Thing I Could Do. But […]
When (and When Not) to Use AI in Digital Product Development
In Co-Intelligence, Ethan Mollick points out that we often turn to AI for a first draft to escape […]
Why Qualitative Data Belongs in Your Key Results
Check out my self-serve class on OKRs! When it comes to measuring success, people tend to gravitate toward […]
AI Can Synthesize Data for You—But Should It?
AI is fantastic at synthesizing data. It can process vast amounts of information, surface trends, and summarize research […]
From Jobs to Careers to a Calling
There was a time when I thought I’d be a painter. I went to art school, spent hours […]
Manage your Life Like You Manage a Product: Explore, Expand, Exploit, Exit—and Reflect
“Life doesn’t follow a straight path” is a cliché, but as my mama always says, “They’re called truisms […]
Continuous Reflection: Driving Success Across the Product Lifecycle
Every product has a lifecycle, and every company navigates it differently. Some ideas take root and grow into […]
Strategy is Not War; It’s Gardening
When most people think of strategy, they think of war. And it’s no wonder—our history books, leadership courses, […]
Decoupling OKRs: It’s Time to Let Go
OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) are supposed to make everything faster, clearer, and more focused. And when you’re […]
Agile, Lean Startup, and OKRs: Cinderella’s Glass Slipper
Agile, Lean Startup, and OKRs weren’t created by sprawling corporations. They were developed by small teams trying to […]