I launched Austin VOP (Voice of Product) to learn from product leaders in Austin and bring these expert insights to the broader Austin product community. I have 5 lessons to share from 15 Austin product leaders. Product managers are linchpins in the success of tech companies. Through these interviews and articles on austinvop.com, I hope to encourage collaboration and learning. My thesis is, that by making the product community stronger, we can help make our technology company ecosystem in Austin thrive.

1. Austin VOP
5 Lessons from
15 Product Leaders
Reza Shirazi, Austin VOP
Product Camp Austin 19 - August 2017

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3. Austin VOP
About
Reza Shirazi
Founder & Principal Consultant
Rezonate Group
Product | Strategy | Agile
Austin VOP
Austin Voice of Product
Austinvop.com
Interview product leaders to share
insights and learning
My goal is to build a stronger tech &
product community in Austin

4. Austin VOP
5 Lessons
1. Path to Product Management
2. How do you learn & grow
3. Advice for aspiring product leaders
4. Building a stronger tech & product community in Austin
5. Favorite product

5. Austin VOP
12 B2B - 2 B2C | 9 Small - 2 Medium - 3 Large
1. Mike Alexander - ePatientFinder
2. Dan Corbin - Return Path
3. James Davison - NEXD
4. Alykhan Daya - TAVHealth
5. Mike Ditson - Alchemy Systems
6. Tim Gasper - Bitfusion
7. Teri Harwood - AgileAssets
8. Sam Heywood - Cloudera
9. John Liska - Dun & Bradstreet
10. Azim Panjwani - Vyze
11. Michael Senftleber - Spredfast
12. Rob Shepler - athenahealth
13. P.J. Tanzillo - Favor
14. Jason Whitson - Medici.md
15. You!
11 2 3 4 5
6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14 15

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50% - 50%
Technical path: “I wanted a role where I had one foot in the technology realm, but was closer to the
user or business problems.” Rob
Non-technical path: “The combination of business background and technical experience has served
me well in my product roles.” John
1. Path to Product - Technical vs.
Non-Technical

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Quick Activity:
What was your Path to Product?

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2. Learn & Grow
1. Learn technology / Use technology
2. Marty Cagan (SVPG)
3. Gaining industry/domain knowledge
4. Learning from outside the tech industry
5. Product Camp
“When I seek inspiration, it is from design conferences or product conferences like
Product Camp Austin.” Azim
“I digest what I read and connect the dots on how it applies to my context. There is no
one way of doing things for something as complex as a digital product.” Jason

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Quick Activity:
How do you Learn & Grow?
Write down one thought leader you
follow or activity you do on a post-it

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3. Advice for aspiring PMs
1. Build Trust
“Never be full of sh*it. Your team needs to trust your judgement and they won't
if you are full of sh*t.” P.J.
2. Hone your soft skills: Influence and Listening
“Similar to Akido, you have work with [your stakeholders’] energy and move it
in the direction you need.” Mike A.
“You don’t want to be the smartest person in the room. It is so much more
important to be the best listener.” Alykhan
3. Understand the problem/Know your customer
“If you don’t spend time with your customers, you are basically running a
backlog for someone else.” Sam

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4. Austin Tech & Product Community
- Open & collaborative network
- Creative culture and vibe
- Quality of life in Austin
- More laid back
“Austin is small enough to get involved, grow your network, and learn from those that
are more experienced than you.” Dan
“I like our underdog mentality. We are scrappier!” Tim

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4. Austin Tech & Product Community
1. More and bigger startup successes
2. A stronger product community
3. More UX skills and B2C companies
“We need more large exits, particularly where the capital came out of Austin.” James

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Quick Activity:
Building a stronger product community in Austin
Write down one idea on a post-it for
how we can build a stronger product
community in Austin

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5. Favorite Product
Tech (8)
● AirPods
● Roku (2)
● Playstation
● Eat This Much
● Goodreads
● Expensify
● Redfin
“They really nailed the personas and
design.” Mike D. - Expensify
Non-tech (6)
● Dodocase for iPad
● Fender Rhodes piano
● Zebra Telescopic pen
● Vitamix blender
● 5th & Lamar shirts
● Rega RP1 turntable
“A good product should do one thing
and do it well.” Michael - Zebra pen

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Quick Activity:
What is your favorite product?

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Thank you
austinvop.com
reza@austinvop.com