Strong Product People

2. Define PM responsibilities, skills, and know-how that matter to you. This

What I want new PMs to do is: Describe the situation/problem. Describe solutions. Ask for advice on which solution to pick, or even better, explain what they will do/which solution they’ve picked. Offer a veto option and advise on deadline (If I am totally against the proposed solution, I can withhold my veto until this deadline.).

Step 5: Check out. At the end of your (first) session, you’ll want to seal your agreement on what your PM will be accountable for when you have your second follow-up session.

3. Add company values and other company-wide factors. These

Write down five characteristics of the worst colleague you could ever imagine. Collect the characteristics then dot vote on them (which ones are the worst—the ones driving everyone nuts!). Pick the top 10 and ask the team to come up with the contrary positive characteristics. Let the team discuss which ones of the 10 characteristics are most import

Acknowledge the conflict—this builds common ground. “We agree to disagree.” Listen to the other person(s). Acknowledge similarities. Admit mistakes. Focus on the present—it’s not important to figure out who is right and who is wrong. It’s important to ask, “Where do we go from here?” Stick to the issue and focus on behavior, not personality. Be wil

Step 1: Check in. Start building a connection by asking some personal questions and getting in the listening zone. Questions like: What have you been reading lately? Been anywhere for the first time recently? What have you been excited about lately? How have you been feeling since our last 1:1? Why?

Tuckman found that team chemistry is fragile—even small changes to a team’s setup requires them to go through the four stages all over again. This is, of course, both superinefficient and difficult for the members of the team.

My manager provides the autonomy I need to do my job (i.e., does not “micromanage” by getting involved in details that should be handled at other levels). My manager consistently shows consideration for me as a person. My manager keeps the team focused on priorities, even when it’s difficult (e.g., declining or deprioritizing other projects). My ma

thought about what the needs of the company/organization are? Find a solution. They found some good problems to solve? Great! Can they partner with the team and stakeholders to come up with some possible solutions and an experiment for testing which of them is worth building? Do some planning. No matter if you are a fan of good old roadmaps, or you