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In this episode of the Product Agility Podcast, Ben sits down with Evgeniy Kharam, author and communication expert, to discuss the underrated art of clear communication and its role in building influence. Drawing on his experience in technical sales and cybersecurity, Evgeniy shares why “soft” skills are anything but soft, and how mastering them can help leaders connect, engage, and drive impact. If you’ve ever struggled to make your ideas stick or felt nervous presenting to a crowd, this episode is packed with insights to help you feel more confident and effective.

Key Takeaways:

• Turning Fear into Excitement: How recognising the difference between fear and excitement can make presentations feel manageable—and even enjoyable.
• Curiosity as a Core Skill: Why maintaining a mindset of curiosity leads to better questions, stronger connections, and a more engaging presence.
• Communicating with Clarity: Simple strategies to cut through jargon and ensure your message lands with any audience.
• Breathing and Visualisation Techniques: Practical tools to calm your nerves, increase focus, and improve your presentation flow.

Practical Tools & Methods:

Box Breathing: A breathing exercise to help you relax, stay centred, and communicate with ease.

Building Rapport with “Hooks”: How to find common ground quickly and make authentic connections with anyone.

Quotable Moments:

"Communication isn’t about what you say; it’s about what others understand."
"Empathy isn’t just a ‘soft’ skill—it’s essential to making ideas resonate."

Links and Resources:

Connect with Evgeniy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ekharam/

For more on Evgeniy’s work, visit his website at https://www.softskillstech.ca/

Host Bio

Ben is a seasoned expert in product agility coaching, unleashing the potential of people and products. With over a decade of experience, his focus now is product-led growth & agility in organisations of all sizes.

Stay up-to-date with us on our social media📱!

Ben Maynard

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmaynard-sheev/

🐦 https://x.com/BenWMaynard

💻 https://sheev.co.uk/

Product Agility Podcast

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/productagilitypod/

💻 https://productagilitypod.co.uk/

🖇️ https://linktr.ee/productagility

Listen & Share On Spotify & iTunes

• Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0lkwAYJzVSuk5zfJ1vIDZq?si=4c691fb12f124a56
• iTunes - https://apple.co/3YvTX8p

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In this episode of the Product Agility Podcast, Ben sits down with OKR and strategy expert Richard Russell to tackle a challenge many scale-ups face: OKR overload. Richard, with years of experience at Amazon and Google, shares insights on creating effective objectives without overwhelming teams. If you've felt the pain of unfocused, sprawling OKRs, this episode sheds light on simplifying and strengthening your approach.

Key Takeaways:

• The Pitfalls of Too Many OKRs: How having excessive objectives dilutes focus and overwhelms teams.
• Achieving Alignment Without Overload: Why keeping OKRs lean and clear is more impactful.
• The Role of Strategy: OKRs should be an extension of a well-defined strategy, not a substitute for one.
• Centralisation vs. Autonomy: Find the balance between a unified direction and team-led execution.
• Avoiding Task Overload: How to steer clear of overwhelming backlogs and stay focused on impactful outcomes.

Practical Tools & Methods:

• Setting Priorities with Fewer OKRs: Limit OKRs to those directly tied to critical outcomes.
• The Execution Flywheel: Richard’s unique framework that uses strategy, goals, planning, and review for sustainable growth.

Quotable Moments:

• "OKRs are meant to guide focus, not create it. Without a clear strategy, they’re just more tasks."
• "A few strong objectives will take you farther than an endless list of ‘nice-to-haves.’”

Links and Resources:

Connect with Richard on LinkedIn: Richard Russell LinkedIn

Want more insights on OKRs and strategy? Visit Richard’s website at richardrussell.co for resources and tips on practical, lean OKRs.

Host Bio

Ben is a seasoned expert in product agility coaching, unleashing the potential of people and products. With over a decade of experience, his focus now is product-led growth & agility in organisations of all sizes.

Stay up-to-date with us on our social media📱!

Ben Maynard

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmaynard-sheev/

🐦 https://x.com/BenWMaynard

💻 https://sheev.co.uk/

Product Agility Podcast

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/productagilitypod/

💻 https://productagilitypod.co.uk/

🖇️ https://linktr.ee/productagility

Listen & Share On Spotify & iTunes

• Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0lkwAYJzVSuk5zfJ1vIDZq?si=4c691fb12f124a56
• iTunes - https://apple.co/3YvTX8p

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We wrap up our coverage of Productized 2024 with an engaging conversation with the renowned Radhika Dutt. As a returning guest and a fan-favorite, Radhika brings her unique insights into the challenges product teams face when using OKRs and shares her radical rethinking on this popular framework.

In this episode, we dive deep into her new talk on “Radically Rethinking OKRs,” where Radhika passionately argues for moving away from the traditional OKRs model, which she believes often leads to short-term thinking and performance gaming. Instead, she advocates for a shift to hypothesis-driven objectives and key learnings, emphasising continuous learning over rigid goal-setting.

Radhika on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/radhika-dutt/

Episode Highlights:

• The pitfalls of the traditional OKRs and how they push teams toward short-term fixes
• How a hypothesis-driven approach fosters true learning and long-term success
• Real-world examples from Radhika’s extensive experience in helping teams break free from vision debt
• Practical tips on how product teams can implement these radical ideas into their own OKRs process

Whether you're new to OKRs or a seasoned product manager, this episode is packed with actionable insights that can help your team thrive in a constantly evolving product landscape.

Don’t miss out on this transformative conversation and be sure to connect with Radhika on LinkedIn if you’re eager to dive deeper into her radical ideas!

Use code PROD24 for 15% off training courses at Sheev – https://www.sheev.co.uk

Host Bio

Ben is a seasoned expert in product agility coaching, unleashing the potential of people and products. With over a decade of experience, his focus now is product-led growth & agility in organisations of all sizes.

Stay up-to-date with us on our social media📱!

Ben Maynard

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmaynard-sheev/

🐦 https://x.com/BenWMaynard

💻 https://sheev.co.uk/

Product Agility Podcast

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/productagilitypod/

💻 https://productagilitypod.co.uk/

🖇️ https://linktr.ee/productagility

Listen & Share On Spotify & iTunes

• Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0lkwAYJzVSuk5zfJ1vIDZq?si=4c691fb12f124a56
• iTunes - https://apple.co/3YvTX8p

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Want to be a guest or have a guest request? Let us know here https://bit.ly/49osN80

Send us a text

We’re excited to bring you more exclusive content from Productized 2024, our third conference of the year! This series continues our TalkInTen format, where we deliver concise, impactful conversations with industry leaders driving innovation in product and business agility. Each episode is packed with fresh insights, actionable strategies, and real-world examples to help teams and organisations thrive.

In this episode, we’re joined by Esra Yetis, who co-facilitated the Enabling Product Thinking Mindset workshop with Chris Compton. Esra shares her thoughts on how a product thinking mindset can transform how teams approach problem-solving and innovation. She dives deep into the key principles of product thinking, explaining why it’s essential for teams to move beyond project-based thinking to embrace continuous learning, experimentation, and growth.

Esra on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/esrayetis/

Episode Highlights:

• Shifting from a project-based model to a continuous learning and experimentation mindset
• The importance of being data-informed rather than solely data-driven in product decisions
• How product thinking fosters team growth, innovation, and adaptability
• Practical exercises from the workshop that helped participants apply product thinking to real-world challenges

If you enjoy our episodes, please leave a review and stay tuned for more great episodes from the Product Agility Podcast!

Use code PROD24 for 15% off training courses at Sheev – https://www.sheev.co.uk

Host Bio

Ben is a seasoned expert in product agility coaching, unleashing the potential of people and products. With over a decade of experience, his focus now is product-led growth & agility in organisations of all sizes.

Stay up-to-date with us on our social media📱!

Ben Maynard

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmaynard-sheev/

🐦 https://x.com/BenWMaynard

💻 https://sheev.co.uk/

Product Agility Podcast

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/productagilitypod/

💻 https://productagilitypod.co.uk/

🖇️ https://linktr.ee/productagility

Listen & Share On Spotify & iTunes

• Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0lkwAYJzVSuk5zfJ1vIDZq?si=4c691fb12f124a56
• iTunes - https://apple.co/3YvTX8p

Want to come on the podcast?

Want to be a guest or have a guest request? Let us know here https://bit.ly/49osN80

Send us a text

We’re excited to bring you more exclusive content from Productized 2024, our third major event of the year! This series continues with our engaging TalkInTen format, featuring quick yet impactful conversations with industry leaders who are driving innovation in product management and business agility. Whether you’re looking to elevate your product strategy or embrace new ways of scaling your teams, these episodes are filled with actionable insights and practical frameworks to help you thrive.

In this episode, we’re joined by Asya Kuznetsova, a growth leader from Wise (formerly TransferWise), who dives into the often misunderstood but highly effective world of user advocacy. Asya reveals how product managers can tap into the power of Word-of-Mouth (WoM) marketing and referral loops to drive organic, sustainable growth. She explores how to design dynamic growth loops, implement successful referral programs, and convert your users into enthusiastic advocates.

Asya on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/asya-kuznetsova/

Here is the synopsis of Asya's Talk:

In today's competitive landscape, achieving growth requires more than traditional marketing. In this talk, Asya will reveal how product managers can leverage Word-of-Mouth (WoM) and recommendation features for sustainable, organic growth. You'll learn to move from standard funnels to dynamic growth loops, create impactful recommendation journeys, and use referral programs to turn users into enthusiastic advocates.

If you enjoy the show, please leave a review and stay tuned for more great episodes from the Product Agility Podcast!

Use code PROD24 for 15% off training courses at Sheev.

Sheev - https://www.sheev.co.uk

Host Bio

Ben is a seasoned expert in product agility coaching, unleashing the potential of people and products. With over a decade of experience, his focus now is product-led growth & agility in organisations of all sizes.

Stay up-to-date with us on our social media📱!

Ben Maynard

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmaynard-sheev/

🐦 https://x.com/BenWMaynard

💻 https://sheev.co.uk/

Product Agility Podcast

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/productagilitypod/

💻 https://productagilitypod.co.uk/

🖇️ https://linktr.ee/productagility

Listen & Share On Spotify & iTunes

• Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0lkwAYJzVSuk5zfJ1vIDZq?si=4c691fb12f124a56
• iTunes - https://apple.co/3YvTX8p

Want to come on the podcast?

Want to be a guest or have a guest request? Let us know here https://bit.ly/49osN80

Send us a text

We’re thrilled to bring you more exclusive insights from Productized 2024, our third major event of the year! This series continues our engaging TalkInTen format, where we explore concise, high-impact conversations with industry leaders pushing the boundaries of product management and business agility. Each episode delivers fresh perspectives, practical strategies, and real-world examples designed to help teams and organisations adapt, grow, and succeed in today’s fast-paced environment.

In this episode, we’re joined by Rich Mironov, a renowned product management expert and author of The Art of Product Management. Rich takes us on a thoughtful journey into the often-underappreciated emotional side of product management. He discusses how product leaders can rediscover joy in their roles, tackle the challenges of imposter syndrome, and find purpose in supporting their teams and products. Rich’s insights are a must-hear for anyone looking to balance the emotional demands of product leadership with the fulfilment that comes from creating impactful, user-centred products.

Rich on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/richmironov/

Key Takeaways from Rich's Talk:

• Understanding the emotional rollercoaster of product management and why it’s important to embrace it.
• Strategies for finding joy and satisfaction in your work, even when the road gets tough.
• How to support your team and products with empathy, while leaving ego at the door.

Here is the synopsis of Rich's Talk:

Product management is hard. Almost no one else in our organization understands how we add value. Most of us suffer from imposter syndrome. And we spent lots of energy arguing with each other about exactly what should – and should not – be part of our jobs. So it’s important to remember *WHY* we do what we do – and to find some joy in it. We love our products, are passionate about our end users, and are deeply empathetic as well as analytical.

If you enjoy the show, please leave a review and stay tuned for more great episodes from the Product Agility Podcast!

Use code PROD24 for 15% off training courses at Sheev.

Sheev - https://www.sheev.co.uk

Host Bio

Ben is a seasoned expert in product agility coaching, unleashing the potential of people and products. With over a decade of experience, his focus now is product-led growth & agility in organisations of all sizes.

Stay up-to-date with us on our social media📱!

Ben Maynard

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmaynard-sheev/

🐦 https://x.com/BenWMaynard

💻 https://sheev.co.uk/

Product Agility Podcast

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/productagilitypod/

💻 https://productagilitypod.co.uk/

🖇️ https://linktr.ee/productagility

Listen & Share On Spotify & iTunes

• Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0lkwAYJzVSuk5zfJ1vIDZq?si=4c691fb12f124a56
• iTunes - https://apple.co/3YvTX8p

Want to come on the podcast?

Want to be a guest or have a guest request? Let us know here https://bit.ly/49osN80

Send us a text

We’re excited to bring you exclusive content from Productized 2024, our third conference of the year! This series continues our TalkInTen format, where we deliver concise, impactful conversations with industry leaders driving innovation in product and business agility. Each episode is packed with fresh insights, actionable strategies, and real-world examples to help teams and organisations thrive.

In this episode, we’re joined by Aggelos Mouzakitis, an expert in growth and value-based pricing, to explore the critical role pricing and packaging play in driving revenue for B2B SaaS companies. Aggelos walks us through the complexities of value-based pricing, offering practical advice on how companies can structure their pricing models to maximise value for their customers while boosting their bottom line.

Aggelos on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/growth-product-manager/

Episode Highlights:

• Value-Based Pricing as a Growth Strategy: Learn why pricing is more than just a financial decision—it's a core part of your positioning and growth strategy.
• Packaging for Success: Understand how to segment your customers and tailor your product packages to meet their needs effectively.
• Key Dependencies: Explore the factors that influence pricing decisions, including growth stage, go-to-market strategy, and customer segmentation.
• Real-World Case Study: Aggelos shares a case study of a company with flawed pricing, revealing how the right pricing strategy can transform business performance.

Here is the synopsis of Aggelos's Workshop:

Whether you're facing challenges in growth or grappling with setting prices for your product plans, this workshop is perfect to help you learn how to leverage value-based pricing like a scientist, ensuring your offerings are not just priced right, but are perceived as valuable by your customers.

If you enjoy our episodes, please leave a review and stay tuned for more great episodes from the Product Agility Podcast!

Use code PROD24 for 15% off training courses at Sheev.

Sheev - https://www.sheev.co.uk

Host Bio

Ben is a seasoned expert in product agility coaching, unleashing the potential of people and products. With over a decade of experience, his focus now is product-led growth & agility in organisations of all sizes.

Stay up-to-date with us on our social media📱!

Ben Maynard

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmaynard-sheev/

🐦 https://x.com/BenWMaynard

💻 https://sheev.co.uk/

Product Agility Podcast

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/productagilitypod/

💻 https://productagilitypod.co.uk/

🖇️ https://linktr.ee/productagility

Listen & Share On Spotify & iTunes

• Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0lkwAYJzVSuk5zfJ1vIDZq?si=4c691fb12f124a56
• iTunes - https://apple.co/3YvTX8p

Want to come on the podcast?

Want to be a guest or have a guest request? Let us know here https://bit.ly/49osN80

Send us a text

We’re thrilled to bring you exclusive insights from Productized 2024, our third conference of the year! This series continues our TalkInTen format, delivering short, impactful conversations with leading voices in product and business agility. Each episode is packed with actionable strategies and real-world examples aimed at helping teams and organizations succeed in a rapidly changing world.

In this episode, we’re joined by Krasi Bozhinkova, an expert in product strategy and innovation, to explore the secrets of creating lasting product value. Krasi introduces the Critical Need Model, a framework designed to identify and prioritize user needs in a fast-evolving landscape. She discusses how product managers can move beyond incremental improvements to deliver breakthrough success by focusing on user tensions and aligning them with core product values.

Krasi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/krasi-bozhinkova/

Here is the synopsis of Krasi's Workshop:

In today's hyper-competitive digital landscape, success requires more than understanding user needs—it demands speed, precision, and a bit of luck. Discover how to replace luck with the Critical Need Model, focusing on evolving user needs for enduring product value. Krasi and Ewald will provide actionable insights on prioritizing critical needs, understanding user tensions, and aligning them with core product values.

If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a review and stay tuned for more great episodes from the Product Agility Podcast!

Use code PROD24 for 15% off training courses at Sheev.

Sheev - https://www.sheev.co.uk

Host Bio

Ben is a seasoned expert in product agility coaching, unleashing the potential of people and products. With over a decade of experience, his focus now is product-led growth & agility in organisations of all sizes.

Stay up-to-date with us on our social media📱!

Ben Maynard

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/benmaynard-sheev/

🐦 https://x.com/BenWMaynard

💻 https://sheev.co.uk/

Product Agility Podcast

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/company/productagilitypod/

💻 https://productagilitypod.co.uk/

🖇️ https://linktr.ee/productagility

Listen & Share On Spotify & iTunes

• Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0lkwAYJzVSuk5zfJ1vIDZq?si=4c691fb12f124a56
• iTunes - https://apple.co/3YvTX8p

Want to come on the podcast?

Want to be a guest or have a guest request? Let us know here https://bit.ly/49osN80