Differentiating product managers and project managers can be tricky. They share the same acronym (PM), and there can be overlap between the two roles. This week, Postlights Associate Director of Product Management, Ruiyan Xu, shares a handy analogy to help clarify the two roles. She chats with Chris about how PMs can be likened to different types of ship captains. For project managers, think of a captain sailing a predetermined route. For product managers, imagine a captain sailing uncharted sea...
Mar 28, 2023•36 min•Ep 375•Transcript available on Metacast Chris and Gina have learned the hard way that the IT team is all about minimizing risk. The product team, on the other hand, is all about taking risks. So how do you bridge the gap? This week Chris and Gina discuss how you can bring your IT team into digital transformation projects. They share tips on building relationships with your IT team, collaborating on product choices, and encouraging ownership over new products. Links: How to Build for the Handoff...
Mar 21, 2023•27 min•Ep 374•Transcript available on Metacast Navigating Disney World is a lot . There are endless parks, restaurants, hotels, and lineups. The My Disney Experience App was designed to help, but navigating the app is also pretty tricky. On the heels of a trip to Disney World, Chris shares how Disney could improve the app and the visitor experience. Links: My Disney Experience: Mobile Apps
Mar 14, 2023•26 min•Ep 373•Transcript available on Metacast The waterfall method isnt always ideal for software projects because it doesnt allow for innovation and creative problem-solving. So Postlights Head of Product Design, Natalie Kurz, takes a different approach: Figure out the what first instead of the how. With that method comes room for creative problem-solving and, you guessed it, rework. But rework isnt a failure; its a way to learn and get clarity. After all, rework is the work.
Mar 07, 2023•33 min•Ep 372•Transcript available on Metacast Leaders are always going to have competing demands for their attention. Getting up earlier and working later isnt always the answer to getting the work done. This week Chris and Gina reflect on how they prioritize and set boundaries to manage their workload without getting burnt out. They share tips on how to calmly set and stick to boundaries and determine your priorities. Do you really need to be in six hours of back-to-back meetings? Probably not!
Feb 28, 2023•31 min•Ep 371•Transcript available on Metacast On most projects, things will inevitably go wrong at some point or another. So whos to blame, or rather, whats to blame? This week Chris and Gina talk about accountability and how we learn and grow from our mistakes. They discuss how to discern where things went wrong without assigning blame. From addressing problems early on, to accepting apologies, they share tips on moving away from punishment and blame and towards accountability so you can build a stronger and higher functioning team. Links:...
Feb 21, 2023•29 min•Ep 370•Transcript available on Metacast This week, Netflix's Bernie Madoff docuseries sure has Chris and Gina thinking about trust. They discuss trust as the key to any partnership, even (and especially) in business, and its role as the backbone of client services. Through the lens of MADOFF: The Monster of Wall Street, they break down how to build trust, what might break it, and how the docuseries has given them perspective on trust in the workplace. Links: https://www.netflix.com/title/81466159...
Feb 14, 2023•28 min•Ep 369•Transcript available on Metacast LastPass, a password management site Gina has been touting to friends and family for years, reported a security breach in late December 2022. In the wake of this disappointment, Chris and Gina chat about how to keep your information safe when so much of our information is floating around on the internet. They discuss the tradeoffs between convenience and security and why password managers are still a net positive in personal security.
Feb 07, 2023•29 min•Ep 368•Transcript available on Metacast Recently Postlights Head of Engineering, Aaron Ortbals, had an eye-opening experience with ChatGPT, an AI tool that can write code for you. This week Chris and Aaron chat about new AI tools being developed. They discuss the benefits, concerns, and future of these tools and how we can use them to move more quickly without replacing people in the process.
Jan 31, 2023•33 min•Ep 367•Transcript available on Metacast Weve all heard the excuse that the backend just cant support the new needs of the frontend. But isnt the backend there to power user needs, not limit them? This week Chris and Gina discuss how to develop the frontend and backend in concert with each other to create modern platforms. No longer should we be shackled by the limitations of the backend! Links: End the Tyranny of a Limited Backend What Do You Need to Know About GraphQL?...
Jan 24, 2023•26 min•Ep 366•Transcript available on Metacast The term sales often conjures up an image of being pressured into something you dont need or want, but it doesnt have to be that way. This week Chris LoSacco and Michael Shane explain how sales can actually be a positive and compassionate experience. They break down Postlights consultative selling approach based on open dialogue and tailoring a solution to the clients needs. Sales shouldnt be about convincing it should be about consulting. Links: Postlight - The QORE Handbook...
Jan 17, 2023•36 min•Ep 365•Transcript available on Metacast Big companies are a bit like tankers sturdy, built to weather any storm, and can carry a lot of people. Startups are more like speedboats fast and good at exploring new places. This week Chris and Gina talk about how you can bring speedboat startup energy to a tanker-sized company. From bringing in new voices to creating the space for change to considering your APIs, they share tips on shaking up entrenched systems and moving quicker in a big organization.
Jan 10, 2023•27 min•Ep 364•Transcript available on Metacast Sometimes one small detail can make or break a products usability. Postlights Head of Product Design, Natalie Kurz, found this out the hard way when buying a fridge. In a rush to solve a smelly emergency, she ended up with a fridge that didnt open properly. This week, Natalie joins Chris and Gina to chat about how this experience is just like building software. She breaks down how to effectively research so you can pinpoint the right problem to solve and avoid a future disaster. Links: Reduce th...
Jan 03, 2023•32 min•Ep 363•Transcript available on Metacast Leaders often take steps to learn software and be ahead of the curve with new technologies. But more often than not, their time is limited to dig deeper into learning soft skills. Harvard Business Publishing is creating a new tool to make those skills easier to learn and apply by focusing on 10 important leadership capabilities. Laura Helliwell joins Gina and Chappell to discuss how the program is coming together, how the process has been different from building other software, and whats to come...
Dec 20, 2022•37 min•Ep 362•Transcript available on Metacast Audubons new tool, The Explorer, is a groundbreaking interactive map tracking bird migrations for 450 different species worldwide. Groundbreaking isnt hyperbole. Theres never been anything like it, and the amount of data compiled onto one site is an enormous collaborative accomplishment. This week Postlights Nathan Henry and Shawn Kelly chat with Melanie A. Smith and John Mahoney from Audubon about creating The Explorer and getting people involved in birding and conservation. Links: explorer.aud...
Dec 13, 2022•44 min•Ep 361•Transcript available on Metacast The tech industry loves its jargon and acronyms, but do they help or just sow confusion? Gina and Chris discuss how acronyms can obfuscate understanding and deeper meaning for the speaker and audience alike. They share how simplifying your presentations and giving broad strokes rather than nitty-gritty details can show greater knowledge than any acronym you throw out there. After all clarity is kindness!
Dec 06, 2022•31 min•Ep 360•Transcript available on Metacast What if there was a way to both impress investors and keep your team focused? Postlights Chappell Ellison is here to tell you that there is! The answer: a simple product vision. This week Chappell joins Chris and Gina to talk about how writing a compelling product vision can help you meet financial goals and stay focused on the purpose of your product. They also discuss the importance of incorporating a human angle into your vision and how doing so can make your product more marketable. Links: C...
Nov 29, 2022•36 min•Ep 359•Transcript available on Metacast Industry veterans Gina Trapani and Chris LoSacco chat with their friends and team about technology, business, and leadership. Decades of experience inform their insightful discussions about what digital transformation really means. Created by Postlight, the digital strategy, product, design, and engineering firm they lead in New York City.
Nov 23, 2022•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Reading on the internet can be tiring. There are pop-ups and ads everything is trying to get your attention. Enter Postlight Reader, a browser extension that removes distractions from any article. This week Chris LoSacco and Michael Shane sit down with one of Postlights most senior engineers, John Holdun, to talk about how they developed Postlight Reader and the intricacies of developing a modern open-source browser extension. Links: Postlight Reader Reintroducing Postlight Reader...
Nov 22, 2022•27 min•Ep 358•Transcript available on Metacast Money management has always been a money-making business, so why are so many money-tracking apps not up to snuff? This week Chris and Gina talk about their love of personal finance tracking and the problems with many finance apps out there today. They share the programs they currently use and envision a future of better personal finance apps.
Nov 15, 2022•39 min•Ep 357•Transcript available on Metacast The day has come your boss has finally asked for a big digital transformation. What now? In this third installment of Postlights Doing More With Less panel series, Postlights Associate Director of Digital Strategy, Chappell Ellison, chats with three experts in digital transformation. Leyla Ballantyne, Julia Beizar, and Stephen Tateishi share their digital transformation nightmare stories and tips on how to get back on track when managing unruly projects. Links: Chappell Ellison Leyla Ballantyne ...
Nov 08, 2022•52 min•Ep 356•Transcript available on Metacast Get another look into how Postlight works as Chris and Gina discuss how specific training and onboarding guidelines can restrict progress and creative approaches to project delivery. Can encouraging critical thinking lead to better products and happier clients? How much freedom is too much? And do the benefits match the costs? Links: The Agile Manifesto
Nov 01, 2022•33 min•Ep 355•Transcript available on Metacast How do you account for small change items within larger product roadmaps? Should you keep small changes separate from the bigger items or lump them together? This week Chris and Gina answer a listeners question about how to do the clean-up work while rolling out big shiny features. They share how to get creative with your work so you can focus on the big and small features in parallel. Links: Stephen Covey
Oct 25, 2022•21 min•Ep 354•Transcript available on Metacast Move fast and break things is a common term in tech, but is that the right way to go about product development? This week, Chris and Gina share their thoughts on when its okay to move fast during the product life cycle and when you should take it slow. If youre at the beginning of the life cycle, moving fast and taking risks can be crucial for the survival of your business, but later on, taking a slower, more methodical approach can get you to the finish line.
Oct 18, 2022•28 min•Ep 353•Transcript available on Metacast Working with aggressive timelines, multiple stakeholders, and endless constraints can seem daunting. In this live panel recording, Postlights Head of Product Design Natalie Kurz chats with Matthew Marco, Jodi Leo, and Todd Hulin about navigating tricky project constraints. From tips on how to identify constraints early on in the design process to ways you can include all stakeholders (think legal and compliance), the panelists show you how to turn your constraints into strengths. Links: Natalie ...
Oct 11, 2022•55 min•Ep 352•Transcript available on Metacast This week Chris and Gina are joined by the President of Digital Transformation Service at NTT Data, Aaron Millstone. They discuss managing client relationships, being a leader, and why empathy is a key skill in difficult-to-navigate situations. Links: Be The Hero by Noah Blumenthal
Oct 04, 2022•46 min•Ep 351•Transcript available on Metacast Theres a lot of bad software out there, but lets celebrate the good. This week, Chris and Gina share some of their favorite productivity tools that improve their work lives and workflow. From streamlining emails to taking quicker notes to filing company expenses, get an insight into what products Postlight uses behind the scenes. Links: Obsidian Alfred Superhuman Airtable Ramp Google sheets Soulver...
Sep 27, 2022•35 min•Ep 350•Transcript available on Metacast Are you prioritizing quick sign-ups with new users, or are you thinking about building long-term relationships? In this episode, Michael Shane, Postlights Head of Digital Strategy, joins Chris LoSacco to talk about the mistakes people often make when attracting new users. Michael and Chris give tips on building a seamless, welcoming first-time user experience and bring us back to the ultimate question you should be asking: What is the best way to get to the core value of your product? Link: Luke...
Sep 13, 2022•35 min•Ep 349•Transcript available on Metacast This week Chris and Gina answer a listener who asks, What do you do when you get work back that isnt going in the right directionand you hate it? From unpacking why you hate the work to coming up with ways forward, Chris and Gina share tips to ensure everyone follows the north star and puts out high-quality work.
Sep 06, 2022•27 min•Ep 348•Transcript available on Metacast Often, your best thoughts come in the shower or on vacation. This week, Gina sits down with Chris fresh off a two-week vacation to talk about the recentering that comes with taking a break. They discuss how a vacation can help you realize what matters in the day-to-day and make a case for leaders to take more vacation time, not only for themselves but also to set a standard for others.
Aug 30, 2022•32 min•Ep 347•Transcript available on Metacast 
