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ADPList’s Newsletter
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This 1 skill gets you fired or promoted
- Managing up is the one skill that can be the sole reason why you fail or succeed in your career.
- Managing up is managing your relationship with your manager and shifting from a passive approach to an active one.
- Reliability and transparency in a VP, PM, engineer or designer is considered to be more valuable than those who consistently deliver exceptional work.
- Reducing the chance of bad outcomes is a daily struggle for someone who is not naturally well-organized.
- It’s important to be selective with the number and importance of promises made to avoid disappointment and to meet expectations effectively.
- Managing upwards is essential to enhance performance and not to exploit the relationship for personal gain.
- Managing upwards can help strengthen your working relationship with your boss that will eventually make you better at your job in general.
- Managing upward is moving from tactical to strategic where being intentional about your actions will help you get the results you’re looking for.
- The key issue that sometimes leads to termination is the lack of proactive problem-solving when faced with challenges even if it's not your fault.
- Being reliable and effectively managing upwards is a vital but underestimated skill across all levels in the workplace.
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Lenny's Newsletter
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You don’t need to be a well-run company to win: Surprising lessons in product leadership and AI strategy | Tamar Yehoshua (President at Glean, ex-CPO at Slack, VP at Google, VP at Amazon)
- Tamar Yehoshua, President of Glean, was previously CPO at Slack, VP at Amazon, and VP at Google where she worked on search, identity, and privacy. In this podcast, she discusses strategies for staying ahead in a rapidly evolving tech landscape, strong cross-functional relationships, the impact of AI on product management, and lessons learned from leaders like Jeff Bezos and Stewart Butterfield.
- To succeed in your career, make a significant impact in your current position, deliver excellent results, and focus on solving real problems rather than getting caught up in the next job title or level.
- Understanding people and their motivations is critical for building products that resonate and for leading teams effectively.
- Operational excellence does not guarantee success. Companies with strong product-market fit can thrive despite internal chaos, while well-run companies may struggle if they do not solve real customer needs.
- Choose a company or role that aligns with your strengths and working style. Ensure the work environment and culture match your preferences and career goals.
- Jeff Bezos' principles included upholding core principles, prioritizing team input, and applying clarity and alignment in every decision.
- Stewart Butterfield recommended investing time in creating prototypes to validate concepts and gather feedback, having a strategic long-term vision, and maintaining a focus on vision while remaining adaptable to changes.
- Marc Benioff advised treating marketing with the same strategic rigor as product development, being bold, creative, and strategic in presenting and positioning the brand, and maximizing its impact.
- To leverage AI and stay ahead in the rapidly evolving tech landscape, create a strong product foundation with a deep understanding of the customer, reinforce the human experience without over-reliance on AI, and use AI to allow the customer to create value.
- Overall, focus on understanding people and their needs, creating strong cross-functional relationships, and staying adaptable to change to succeed in product management and leadership roles.
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Minis
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What is the sleepmaxxing trend that's taking over techies deprived of proper sleep?
- The "SleepMaxxing" trend is gaining traction among tech professionals who are often deprived of proper sleep due to demanding work schedules.
- This movement encourages prioritizing sleep as a key part of self-care and productivity. Techies are adopting practices to optimize sleep, such as using sleep trackers, improving bedroom environments, and reducing screen time before bed.
- With burnout being a common issue in tech, SleepMaxxing helps professionals recharge, enhance focus, and maintain better mental health. As the tech industry increasingly recognizes the importance of well-being, SleepMaxxing has become a popular solution for managing stress and boosting performance.
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Leah’s ProducTea
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Typical PLG failure points in Sales-led companies
- Product-led growth (PLG) is not just about freemiums and needs to be thoughtfully implemented for sales-led companies.
- Founding a company with only PLG is not advisable since sales are an important function that helps understand customers while PLG and Sales-led (PLS) need to be combined for maximum effect.
- Inbound and outbound sales approaches can both be useful depending on the situation, but the most important thing is to have a ROIC (return on invested capital) better than the competition's.
- A good PLG motion can rarely be driven by sales or product alone; a cross-functional CEO who is willing to implement change is needed.
- Classical sales organizations are not ready for PLG without fundamental changes to how incentive plans are structured, how revenue is evaluated short-term vs long-term, and how requests from different departments are balanced.
- PLG is data-informed but not always purely data-driven since sometimes data isn't the best indicator of what needs to be done, and conviction is the only way forward.
- Customer success is an essential part of any successful PLG motion since it provides a key element of the company's long-term revenue.
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Minis
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Amid debate over EY employee’s death, now HDFC Bank employee dies in Lucknow office; colleagues cite work pressure
- A 45-year-old HDFC Bank employee, Sadaf Fatima, died under suspicious circumstances while working at the bank’s Vibhutikhand branch in Lucknow.
- Fatima reportedly fell from her chair and died instantly. The police have sent her body for postmortem, with the cause of death yet to be determined.
- Colleagues mentioned that she was under work pressure, sparking concerns amid a broader discussion on workplace stress following a similar incident at Ernst and Young.
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Minis
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This common trait is a red flag of a toxic boss, says ex-IBM CEO
- Former IBM CEO Ginni Rometty shared a key leadership lesson about perfectionism during the 2023 World Business Forum.
- Initially known as “Red Pen” for her habit of critiquing every detail, Rometty once believed perfectionism was a strength. However, a colleague’s feedback revealed that her constant corrections disempowered her team, stifling creativity and productivity.
- Rometty realized that perfectionism created a toxic environment. She now advocates for a balanced approach, warning that perfectionism hinders progress and increases anxiety. Recognizing and addressing these tendencies can improve both workplace morale and mental health.
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Lenny's Newsletter
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State of the product job market, part 2
- There's indeed a shift to hiring more senior PMs.
- Remote PM jobs are shrinking fast (down 35% from peak, and still shrinking).
- More than one in five open PM roles is based in the San Francisco Bay Area (and still growing).
- Bengaluru, India, is now the most popular location outside the U.S. for PM roles.
- The three most common hard skills that hiring managers are looking for from PMs are SQL, Jira, and experience with LLMs.
- Machine-learning engineers and data engineers are the most in-demand tech functions right now.
- The data shows that, yes, new Senior and above PM roles do appear to be growing at a faster rate than other levels.
- Over a fifth of open PM roles globally are OK with remote, but this number is quickly declining—from over 35% of open PM roles two years ago to 22.5% today—nearly a 35% drop.
- The San Francisco Bay Area continues to be the leading location for open product jobs at tech companies.
- Over a fifth of open PM roles globally are OK with remote, but this number is quickly declining—from over 35% of open PM roles two years ago to 22.5% today—nearly a 35% drop.
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ADPList’s Newsletter
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The Don Norman Playbook
- Don Norman, the father of user-centered design, emphasizes the importance of designing with people, not just for them and believes that great design is an ongoing process of prototyping, testing, and refining. He stresses the need for AI systems to be transparent and understandable, avoiding creating black-box systems that make decisions without users understanding how or why those decisions were made. Norman teaches that great design is about creating products and systems that respect, guide, and empower the people who use them.
- Don Norman stresses on creating a human-centered design process. He believes that the design of the iPhone was about how people could intuitively interact with their devices, making it easy and enjoyable for all. He stresses that even the smallest details matter in creating a seamless user experience.
- Don Norman’s approach stresses iterative design and his process of continual iteration is what has made the Dyson brand stand out in a market filled with traditional vacuum cleaners. According to Don Norman, constraints can be helpful in guiding the user’s behavior and making interactions clearer, making products more user-friendly.
- Don Norman’s design teachings are crucial regarding affordances and signifiers. For example, doors labeled as 'push' or 'pull' often indicate a failure in design. A well-designed door should naturally communicate how to use it without any written instructions.
- Don Norman advocates for AI systems to be designed with a focus on augmenting human capabilities, not replacing them. For AI to be trusted, it must offer clear explanations and justifications for its actions, ensuring that users can maintain control and trust over AI-driven outcomes.
- Don Norman teaches that design isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s about solving real problems people face, and his hospital signage systems helped reduce confusion for patients and families navigating complex hospital layouts, leading to improved experiences and reduced stress.
- Don Norman believes that AI should be seen as a tool that aids human decision-making rather than something that replaces human expertise. He advocates for AI to handle repetitive, data-heavy tasks while leaving more nuanced, complex problem-solving to humans.
- Don Norman’s comments that “Apple gets simplicity wrong” are going viral. However, he believes that the design of the iPhone revolutionized the market because of its human-centered intuitiveness that made it easy and enjoyable for all age groups.
- Don Norman's design teachings are like having a masterclass in empathy, simplicity and functionality. He teaches that great design is about creating products and systems that respect, guide, and empower the people who use them.
- Don Norman views AI with a cautious but optimistic perspective, often emphasizing the importance of keeping technology human-centered and advocates for AI systems that support and collaborate with people, enhancing our abilities rather than making us feel redundant.
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Minis
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Coldplay concert: MBA student seeks job referrals on Mumbai concert ticket thread, gets offers
- An MBA student leveraged the buzz around Coldplay's upcoming concert in Mumbai to seek job referrals in a ticket-related discussion on X (formerly Twitter).
- Saumil Tripathi, founder of Grapevine, shared the student's creative approach, where he asked professionals for referrals amidst the ticket frenzy. Surprisingly, his request garnered responses, including one from a Razorpay employee, who invited him to direct message for a referral.
- This unconventional networking tactic highlights the innovative ways individuals are expanding their professional networks, demonstrating the power of creativity and opportunism in job searching. Coldplay's concert is scheduled for January 2025.
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Minis
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The Rise of Fauxductivity: How employees pretend to be productive at work
- Some workers practice "fauxductivity," appearing productive without truly working.
- These employees use tactics like sending early morning messages, speaking in meetings, or pacing around the office to look busy while taking long breaks or avoiding work. This phenomenon is especially common among managers and executives, driven by pressures from the top-down.
- Many fake productivity to maintain a work-life balance or avoid burnout, though it can lead to disengagement. Companies face the challenge of motivating employees to be genuinely productive rather than just pretending, as disengagement remains a significant global issue.
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Minis
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What is Sandwich Leave Policy and how does it work?
- The sandwich leave policy allows companies to deduct additional leave days when employees take time off before and after holidays or weekends.
- For example, if an employee applies for leave on Thursday and Monday around a Friday holiday, five days are deducted instead of two.
- This policy helps companies prevent long absences and ensure productivity. While it is legal in many countries, it's crucial to communicate the terms to employees to avoid dissatisfaction.
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Minis
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Jeff Bezos always kept one empty chair at Amazon meetings; know why
- Jeff Bezos, Amazon's founder, is known for innovative management strategies. One notable practice was keeping an empty chair in every meeting, symbolizing the customer.
- This gesture served as a constant reminder to prioritize customer satisfaction in decision-making. Bezos emphasized that unhappy customers in the digital age have the power to influence thousands through online platforms.
- The empty chair represented the most important person in the room, urging Amazon's team to always keep the customer's interests at the forefront. This strategy played a significant role in shaping Amazon's customer-centric approach, as reported by Unilad.
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Minis
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3 ways to recover when you don’t know how to answer a job interview question
- Reframe the question: Repeat or paraphrase the question to confirm your understanding. This gives you a moment to think and ensures you're addressing what the interviewer is truly asking.
- Bring in a related experience: If you're unsure of the direct answer, offer a relevant example of your skills or expertise that connects to the topic.
- Express eagerness to learn: If you lack experience in the specific area, convey your excitement to develop that skill and emphasize your ability to learn quickly.
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Minis
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Resume vs. Curriculum Vitae: What's the Difference?
- A CV (Curriculum Vitae) and a resume are both used in job applications, but they differ in content and purpose.
- A CV is an extensive document detailing a person’s entire career, including education, work experience, publications, and achievements. It’s typically used for academic, research, or international job applications.
- A resume, on the other hand, is a concise summary of skills, experience, and qualifications tailored to a specific job. Resumes are usually limited to one or two pages and are commonly used in corporate job markets. The main difference lies in length, detail, and intended use.
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Minis
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EY Employee's Grieving Father Explains Why Mother Wrote To Chairman
- Anna Sebastian Perayil, a 26-year-old EY employee, tragically died, reportedly due to "work-related stress.
- Her father, Sibi Joseph, highlighted her struggles with sleep and nutrition, stating that she worked long hours, often returning home around 1:30 AM. Despite family advice to leave her demanding job, she chose to stay, valuing the firm's reputation.
- He said the letter his wife wrote to EY India Chairman Rajiv Memani was meant to ensure that even though their daughter had died, "such a thing should not happen to any other person".
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