Joseph Draschil

Product & Customer Experience Leader | Tech Enthusiast | Babson MBA | Disciple of Christ — Always listening, learning, failing, growing.

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

@RobertIrwin @AACTA Always such a stud.

[Paweł Huryn @PawelHuryn]

Product Management is not about:

- Asking customers about the requirements
- Writing detailed specifications
- Creating prototypes and wireframes
- Assigning tasks to developers
- Verifying and accepting the work of others
- Obsessing over velocity, deadlines, and roadmaps
- Mastering Scrum to perfection
- Acting like the CEO of the product

Anyone can do that.

It's about:

- Understanding customer's problems, needs, and desires
- Understanding the market and the business in depth
- Collaborating closely with engineers and designers
- Identifying opportunities, ideating solutions, and tackling the risks together
- Marrying customer goals and business goals
- Influencing others to work toward the common goal
- Being humble (it's ok not to be the smartest person in the room)
- Experimenting to validate assumptions
- Leading without authority
- Turning chaos into clarity

Start with these questions:

- Why are we building this thing?
- Why are we building it now?
- For whom are we building it?
- What's the unique value of our product?
- How is it aligned with the company's vision?
- How is it aligned with the business strategy?
- What does success look like? How can we measure it?
- What are the customer needs/jobs (functional, emotional, social)?
- How will it affect our customers and users?
- How will it create value for the business?
- Can we buy it instead of building it?
- How can we make sure that our customers would love it?
- Will our customers know how to use it?
- Can our business support it (e.g., legal, finances)?
- Is it feasible? Can we build it?
- How can we bring it to the market? Do we have the required channels?
- Should we do it at all? Are there any ethical considerations?
- What are the riskiest assumptions? How can we validate them?
- What does the data tell us?
- How can we get maximum validating learning with minimum effort?

Be curious. Learn and experiment. Question solutions and push back on things handled down.

Remember that product management is about creating a "product customers love, yet also works for our business" (Marty Cagan, Inspired), not about pleasing stakeholders.

After 9 years, I'm still learning daily, and I do not know everything, but I can give you my perspective on any questions you have.

Drop them below.

[Berlin Product People GmbH @Berlin_PP]

Guten Morgen!

"How to Combine OKRs and User Story Mapping" https://t.co/r74zc1evIV @jboogie

[Alex Sauer-Budge @alexsauerbudge]

@johncutlefish A: do we have a user story for this?

B: oh, sure: “as a user,…”

A: oh, sorry! I meant an actual story told by a user?

B: oh, no. We haven’t talked to an real user about this.

A: 🤦

[Jack Sacco @JackSacco]

“You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes.”
~ from The Count of Monte Cristo
#MantiTeo

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

I’m a huge fan of @volley_app for async team communication. They happen to be on @ProductHunt today.

Do yourself a favor and check them out today on Product Hunt!

https://t.co/AZhHHnx6Z5

[Front @frontutah]

You are building too much – a barnacle is work that doesn't have to be done yet, but it attaches itself to the high-priority work. Build things that are simple, lovable, and complete. @jdraschil Product & Customer Experience; Previously GM, Prenda #FrontUtah

[Front @frontutah]

🎟️ Barnacles are killing your product team's flow

@jdraschil will help answer why our product work is actually slower, and less outcome-based than we realize. He'll share a powerful practice to help you deliver customer value within days.

https://t.co/f9pQhpW9On

#frontutah

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

🤣 This is so true, especially in #startuplife

[Andrew Gazdecki @agazdecki]

Startup job descriptions should really just say “your role will change every week and without notice”.

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

Need a VPN for the next hour or so, and kind of excited to get to use @theTunnelBear again, TBH. Being able to reward good products with my personal usage makes me happy. 😄💪 https://t.co/J9zNTRZczi

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

.@theTunnelBear solves a real problem (valuable), but taking it the extra mile with great UX (usable/delightful). #doingitright #prodmgmt

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

@nwalkingshaw @nwalkingshaw Thx for this share. Been going over prod & experience org design this past month, including your 2019 Front preso: https://t.co/5CMkoPGeLO. Brilliant stuff. Got some follow-on questions for you at some point.

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

I’m grateful for the mentors who have been so influential in my career, even though they don’t know they’ve been my mentors. #givethanks @nwalkingshaw @dcancel @cagan @sgblank @jeffpatton @lissijean @jezhumble

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

@MarcoPoloApp Is it possible to transfer my Family Plan ownership to another plan member so that I can start another Family Plan at my new work?

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

Interested in taking the first step into a career as a designer? Come join me tomorrow Oct 7th at AIGA's SLC Design Week. I'll be part of a panel discussion about transitioning into design and what local resources can help you do the same. https://t.co/hxoJ8X35jA #generalassembly

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

I just backed Code Cards 2.0 on @Kickstarter https://t.co/NhIdORiJAO

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

@nwalkingshaw @pluralsight On seeing this, I thought, “Wait, how does Walt Disney leave the Disneyland he created?” But then I realized. He never really does. He’s in every part of it.

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

@gilbertglee Whatever is next, I’m excited to watch!

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

My friend, @craiggggers, is doing #75HARD. I'm so tempted! https://t.co/R31DiS4Vdo

[Joseph Draschil @jdraschil]

Amen!

[Harvard Business Review @HarvardBiz]

Too many managers make the mistake of assuming motivation is all about money. But it’s really about helping your team feel great about what they do. https://t.co/aD3LFIM01f

[Yo-Yo Ma @YoYo_Ma]

In these days of anxiety, I wanted to find a way to continue to share some of the music that gives me comfort. The first of my #SongsOfComfort: Dvořák – "Going Home”

Stay safe.