Interviews with world-class product leaders and growth experts to uncover concrete, actionable, and tactical advice to help you build, launch, and grow your own product.
Site
RSS
Spotify
Apple
Recent rankings
Latest chart positions across Apple Podcasts and Spotify rankings.
Shared links between episodes and podcasts
Links found in episode descriptions and other podcasts that share them.
Airbnb’s Vlad Loktev on embracing chaos, inquiry over advocacy, poking the bear, and “impact, impact, impact” (Partner at Index Ventures, Airbnb GM/VP Product)
Sunday, September 1, 2024 • Duration 01:37:18
Vlad Loktev spent 10 years at Airbnb, where he started as an IC PM and quickly advanced to lead the core Airbnb marketplace business and then GM the entire homes business, managing over 1,000 people and reporting directly to CEO Brian Chesky. He recently left Airbnb and joined Index Ventures as their newest partner. Vlad was my manager at Airbnb for many years, and is the person I credit most for teaching me how to be a great product manager. Prior to Airbnb, Vlad spent a year at Zynga, where he helped grow Words with Friends to over 14 million daily active users. In our conversation, Vlad shares:
• Insight into Brian Chesky’s leadership style
• Why success as a PM is all about impact, impact, impact
• Why chaos can be good
• Why as a leader it’s OK to let some fires burn
• Why you should learn to “poke the bear”
• Balancing product release speed with quality
• Lessons on prioritization, decision-making, and organizational design
• Advice for founders on building company culture
• Much more
—
Brought to you by:
• Pendo—The only all-in-one product experience platform for any type of application
Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe
How to consistently go viral: Nikita Bier’s playbook for winning at consumer apps (co-founder of TBH, Gas, advisor, investor)
Sunday, August 25, 2024 • Duration 01:38:21
Nikita Bier is one of the most in-demand consumer, social, and growth experts in the world. He’s the co-founder of TBH (sold to Meta for more than $30 million) and Gas (sold to Discord for millions more) and has helped more consumer apps that have hit #1 in the app stores than any other person I’ve come across. He currently spends his time advising founders on growth, product, and design and is an investor and advisor to some of the best consumer tech companies, including Flo, Locket, Eight Sleep, Citizen, BeReal, Captions, and more. In our conversation, we discuss:
• The inside story of how TBH and Gas achieved explosive growth
• Strategies for building viral consumer apps
• Why teens are such a great audience
• Fighting the human trafficking hoax at Gas
• The challenge of creating durable social products
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit
Building a world-class data org | Jessica Lachs (VP of Analytics and Data Science at DoorDash)
Sunday, July 14, 2024 • Duration 01:19:55
Jessica Lachs is the global head of analytics and data science at DoorDash, where she’s built one of the largest and most respected data organizations in tech. In her more than 10 years at DoorDash, she has served as the first general manager, responsible for launching new markets; the head of business ops and analytics; and the VP of analytics and data science. Previously, Jessica founded GiftSimple, a social gifting startup, and started her career at Lehman Brothers as an investment banking analyst. In our conversation, she shares:
• How to structure and scale a high-impact analytics organization
• Centralized vs. decentralized data teams
• How to pick the right metric and aligning incentives
• Advice for data people on how and when to push back
• Lessons learned from building a global data team
• How to foster a culture of extreme ownership
• The role of AI in improving analytics team productivity
• Advice for aspiring data leaders without formal training
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit
LinkedIn’s product evolution and the art of building complex systems | Hari Srinivasan (LinkedIn)
Sunday, July 16, 2023 • Duration 01:04:48
Brought to you by Miro—A collaborative visual platform where your best work comes to life | Brave Search API—An independent, global search index you can use to power your search or AI app | Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
—
Hari Srinivasan is VP of Product at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, where he oversees LinkedIn Recruiter, LinkedIn Jobs, and LinkedIn Learning. He’s also a frequent guest lecturer at Stanford University. Previously, he served as the CEO and founder of We Created It, which was acquired by LinkedIn in 2014. Hari has a passion for building products, with experience ranging from creating the first U.S. hybrid SUV to developing a No. 1 app and writing a beloved children’s book. In today’s episode, we discuss:
• LinkedIn’s unique business model and org structure
• How to optimize your LinkedIn experience and improve your chances of getting a PM role
• How to adapt to a skills-first talent market
• The story of Hari’s failed first product review, and how he pivoted for success
• Strategies for building and maintaining complex systems
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit
M&A, competition, pricing, and investing | Julia Schottenstein (dbt Labs)
Thursday, July 13, 2023 • Duration 01:00:50
Brought to you by Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security | Superhuman—The fastest email experience ever made | AssemblyAI—Production-ready AI models to transcribe and understand speech
—
Julia Schottenstein is a product lead at dbt Labs, a data transformation company, and an active angel investor in data and infrastructure startups. She first got excited about dbt in 2019 when she was a VC at NEA and decided to make the leap from investor to operator by joining dbt Labs. She also co-hosts the dbt Labs Analytics Engineering Podcast, a show about data trends that impact analytics engineers’ work. In today’s episode, we discuss:
• Advice for founders hoping to improve their M&A outcome
• How to strategically think about competition
• How to determine your paid features and have willingness-to-pay conversations
• Why Julia lives by “worse is better” and “tech debt is a champagne problem”
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit
How to ask the right questions, project confidence, and win over skeptics | Paige Costello (Asana, Intercom, Intuit)
Sunday, July 9, 2023 • Duration 01:03:20
Brought to you by Brave—The independent, global search index you can use to power your search or AI app | Attio—The powerful, flexible CRM for fast-growing startups | Round—The private network built by tech leaders for tech leaders
—
Paige Costello is a beloved product leader with a reputation as a remarkable coach and mentor. She is currently the Head of Core Product at Asana, where she leads the group responsible for Asana’s web, desktop, and mobile apps. Prior to that role, she served as the Director of Product at Intercom and, before that, as a Group PM at Intuit, where she kickstarted her product career through their renowned APM program. In today’s episode, we discuss:
• The unique product development process at Asana and how it’s evolved
• The double-diamond framework
• Conscious leadership training, and why every Asana employee learns it
• How to demonstrate confidence and earn trust from skeptics
• Why curiosity and openness may be the most important PM competencies
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit
Building minimum lovable products, stories from WeWork and Airbnb, and thriving as a PM | Jiaona Zhang (Webflow, WeWork, Airbnb, Dropbox)
Sunday, July 2, 2023 • Duration 01:07:32
Brought to you by Brave Search API—An independent, global search index you can use to power your search or AI app | Miro—A collaborative visual platform where your best work comes to life | Superhuman—The fastest email experience ever made
—
Jiaona Zhang (JZ) is a product leader with a strong background in consumer products and extensive hiring and management experience. She is currently SVP of Product at Webflow as well as a lecturer at Stanford, where she teaches a graduate-level course on product management. Before Webflow, JZ was Head of Product for the Homes Platform at Airbnb and has also led product teams at Airbnb, WeWork, and Dropbox. In today’s episode, we discuss:
• Building a “minimum lovable product” rather than a minimum viable product
• How to create better roadmaps through storytelling
• Top lessons from Dropbox, Airbnb, WeWork, and Webflow
• The importance of setting ambitious OKRs
• JZ’s first 90 days playbook: how to succeed in a new role
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit
Lessons from scaling Ramp | Sri Batchu (Ramp, Instacart, Opendoor)
Sunday, June 25, 2023 • Duration 01:17:18
Brought to you by Attio—The powerful, flexible CRM for fast-growing startups | Coda—Meet the evolution of docs | Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
—
Sri Batchu currently leads growth at Ramp, the fastest-growing SaaS business (and fintech business) in history. Previously, he led growth strategy and operations at Instacart and was one of the first 50 employees at Opendoor, where he built, scaled, and managed a variety of business teams, including analytics, sales, and pricing. During his time there, the company grew from $100M to $5B+ in revenue and to 1,500+ people. In this episode, we discuss:• The surprising tactics behind Ramp’s unprecedented early growth• A breakdown of Ramp’s current growth org and growth channels• Why you need to be “failing conclusively”• Ramp’s unique approach to metrics and measurement• Examples of Ramp’s “secret sauce”: a data- and technology-driven approach to everything• Why Sri prioritizes employee autonomy and flexibility over hours worked• Why team structure is a red herring for growth teams, and what Sri focuses on instead• How to set good North Star metrics, and why you should have more than one• Why Sri prefers payback periods over CAC for measuring investment ROI
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit
Building high-performing teams | Melissa Tan (Webflow, Dropbox, Canva)
Sunday, June 18, 2023 • Duration 01:14:41
Brought to you by AssemblyAI—Production-ready AI models to transcribe and understand speech | Mixpanel—Product analytics that everyone can trust, use, and afford | Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
—
Melissa Tan is an advisor, investor, and growth expert. She’s worked with fast-growing startups like Dropbox, Canva, Grammarly, and Miro, and for the past 2.5 years has been the Head of Growth at Webflow. There, she led the company's self-service business across Product, Marketing, and Growth, in addition to leading the charge on pricing and packaging. Prior to Webflow, she was Head of Growth for Dropbox’s B2B product, where she played a pivotal role in propelling their growth. In today’s episode, we discuss:
• Attributes of high-performing teams
• Tips for developing talent and seeking a mentor
• How to create a strong culture of ownership
• Frameworks for hiring PM and growth talent
• Common pitfalls companies face when implementing growth strategies
• Lessons from scaling Dropbox
• The DACI framework for increasing team velocity
• How to actually embrace first-principles thinking
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit
Leveraging growth advisors, hiring well, mastering SEO, and honing your craft | Luc Levesque (Shopify, Meta, TripAdvisor)
Thursday, June 15, 2023 • Duration 01:20:24
Brought to you by Mixpanel—Product analytics that everyone can trust, use, and afford | Attio—A powerful, flexible CRM for fast-growing startups | Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments
—
Luc Levesque is Chief Growth Officer at Shopify and has advised companies like Canva, Twitter, Pinterest, and Patreon on growth and product strategy. Previously he served as an executive at TripAdvisor, where he built and led the growth team that helped it become the world’s largest travel site. Luc was then recruited by Mark Zuckerberg to Facebook, where he was an executive and held senior product and engineering leadership roles. In today’s episode, we discuss:
• Why you need to become world-class at hiring
• Tips for finding a great growth advisor and assessing their impact
• Why truly great companies focus on impact
• Common mistakes to avoid when building a growth team
• The importance of passion and continuous self-improvement
• Signs your company should explore SEO as a growth channel, and strategies to do so
• Why Mark Zuckerberg personally recruited Luc and what it taught him about the recruiting process
Discover shows related to Lenny's Podcast: Product | Career | Growth, based on actual content similarities. Explore podcasts with similar topics, themes, and formats, backed by real data.
