The Product Experience

In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily and Randy dive into the nuanced world of team collaboration with Jenny Wanger, product ops consultant. Jenny challenges the overuse of RACI matrices in product teams, arguing they often obscure deeper organisational issues rather than solve them. They discuss better alternatives, the root causes behind requests for RACI, and the value of prioritising human relationships over rigid frameworks.

Chapters
0:00 – The accountable vs. responsible dilemma
0:37 – Meet Jenny Wanger: Product ops and Reforge
1:20 – RACI: A quick explainer
3:16 – Why RACI falls short in product teams
7:00 – Infantilisation and territorialism
9:18 – The flaws in the terminology
10:14 – The consulted conundrum
11:05 – RACI as a conversation starter
12:01 – Better alternatives: Rapid and others
14:20 – When RACI might be useful
18:01 – Team dysfunction and RACI misuse
23:00 – A case study in resolving collaboration issues
26:00 – RACI as scaffolding, not infrastructure
28:02 – AI, documents, and relationships
30:05 – Diagnosing the real problem behind a RACI request
32:38 – Job descriptions vs. RACI
35:25 – Everyone’s a bit of everything
37:04 – Focusing on mission and collaboration
39:57 – Final thoughts and where to find Jenny’s work

Key Takeaways
— RACI isn't a cure-all: It often signals deeper dysfunction like poor team structure, unclear mission, or lack of trust.
— Healthy teams don't need RACI: When collaboration and communication are strong, formal frameworks become redundant.
— Use RACI as scaffolding: Let it initiate conversations, but don’t enshrine it as a permanent solution.
— Language matters: Terms like “accountable” and “responsible” are often confused, making the framework less clear than intended.
— Consider better alternatives: Frameworks like RAPID offer more clarity around decision-making without creating silos.
— Prioritise relationships over roles: Documents don't build culture—conversations and mutual understanding do.

Featured Links: Follow Jenny on LinkedIn | Jenny's RACI feature at her website | Dave Johnson's page at The Pragmatic Agilist 

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

We revisit our conversation with Frances Ibe, Chief Experience Officer at Tide. Frances shares invaluable insights on her journey from developer to product leadership and how to avoid common pitfalls during the discovery process.

Chapters
01:07 – Meet Frances Ibe
02:05 – Common Discovery Pitfalls
03:34 – Embedding Continuous Discovery
04:51 – The Myth of Talking to 20 Customers
06:38 – What is a Data Prototype?
08:03 – Building Confidence in Product Bets
10:42 – Sharing Insights Across the Business
13:52 – Keeping Sprint Reviews Engaging
15:49 – Discovery Through Observation
17:21 – Responding to Data-Driven Disruption
18:30 – The Power of Storytelling
20:49 – Training Teams in Storytelling
22:36 – Maintaining Message Consistency
23:48 – Collaborating Across Disciplines
25:01 – Francis' Game-Changing Advice

Featured Links: Follow Frances on LinkedIn | Tide | 'Six things we learned at the Pendomonium and #mtpcon roadshow - London 2024' feature by Louron Pratt

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

Erica Wass, Principal Product Consultant at Brainmates, joins the Product Experience podcast to share pragmatic tools for building strategic foresight into your roadmap. From horizon scanning to backcasting, this episode explores how product teams can harness future-focused techniques—bolstered by generative AI—to improve decision-making, resilience, and impact.

Chapters:
0:00 – Why foresight matters in product
1:00 – Introducing Erica Wass
2:30 – How product is changing
3:45 – The value of strategic foresight
5:00 – Clarifying the term and its importance
7:00 – Who owns foresight in the product org
10:00 – Techniques: Horizon scanning, scenario planning, backcasting
14:30 – Horizon scanning in action: Google & Android
16:00 – Scenario planning for resilience
21:00 – Tips on running scenario sessions
23:45 – Backcasting: Vision-first roadmapping
26:00 – Using AI to accelerate foresight
30:00 – Product team dynamics in the AI era
33:00 – Mistakes to avoid and balancing action with foresight
37:00 – Wrap-up and takeaways

Key Takeaways
— Horizon scanning helps teams identify early, weak signals that may grow into significant trends.
— Scenario planning enables resilience by preparing teams for a range of plausible futures.
— Backcasting flips traditional planning by working backward from a long-term goal to define near-term milestones.
— Generative AI can democratise access to foresight tools—when used with critical thinking and proper validation.
— Product professionals should take a proactive role in guiding strategic conversations, regardless of their title.
— Avoid extremes with AI: neither fear it nor over-rely on it. Use it as a pairing partner rather than a replacement.

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

Featured Links: Follow Brigitte on LinkedIn | DrDoctor | European Commission Public Health 'Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare' feature

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily Smith and Randy Silver speak with Dee Miller, Director of Product Strategy and Insights for Product Equity at Adobe. Dee shares her personal journey into inclusive design, and discusses how Adobe is moving beyond accessibility compliance to build genuinely usable, inclusive, and emotionally accessible products. 

Featured Links: Follow Dee on LinkedIn | The Adobe Accessibility Checker | Listen to previous The Product Experience episode: 'Building Accessible Products' with Jonathan Hassell (CEO & Founder, Hassell Inclusion) 

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily and Randy speak with Faith Forster about the art of aligning product work with commercial outcomes. From redefining velocity as a function of customer value to implementing impact models that quantify ROI, Faith outlines practical frameworks to help product teams think commercially without compromising user value. 

She also explores the evolving role of AI in product development, the necessity of syncing planning cycles with business units, and why happy teams are the cornerstone of faster, better delivery.

Key takeaways

• Velocity = Value: Product velocity isn't about coding speed—it's about reducing time to customer value to improve ROI and lower opportunity cost.
  
  
• Impact Modelling: A disciplined approach to estimating commercial outcomes before development helps product teams understand and justify their work.
  
  
• AI Integration: Teams are expected to primarily use AI tools within three months to boost delivery speed and build organisational capability.
  
  
• Viability from Day One: Pricing and revenue potential must be considered from the outset—not after feature completion.
  
  
• Cross-Functional Alignment: Successful planning requires synchronising product cycles with finance, sales, and marketing calendars.
  
  
• Happy Teams, Better Results: Reducing friction between design, engineering, and product roles directly impacts delivery speed and feature quality.

Chapters
00:00 – Redefining velocity: Why speed isn’t just about code
01:05 – Faith’s journey from Dex to Legal
03:02 – Introducing the commercial value talk
04:51 – Understanding the P&L from a product lens
08:07 – Why team cost-awareness matters
10:00 – Building better impact models
12:25 – Increasing ROI through value velocity
16:37 – The AI imperative: Adoption, anxiety, and acceleration

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily and Randy sit down with Moshe Mikanovsky—product coach, educator, and host of the Product for Product podcast—to explore what makes an effective product management toolkit. From identifying the real problems in your workflow to choosing and implementing tools that stick, Moshe outlines a pragmatic, user-centric approach to tool selection.

Chapters:
2:59 – From Engineering to Product Management
5:25 – Why Choosing Tools is Hard
8:11 – Elements of a Product Stack
10:49 – From Roadmaps to Analytics
14:01 – A Framework for Selecting Tools
18:01 – Comparing Tools Beyond Features
21:18 – Test and Validate Your Tool Choices
26:01 – Why Implementation is Critical
28:04 – What’s Changing in Product Tools
29:26 – AI and the Future of Product Management
32:01 – Keeping Your Stack Modern
34:29 – Making the Case for Budget & ROI
37:23 – When ROI Forces a Change
38:45 – Final Thoughts & Listener Call to Action

Featured Links: Follow Moshe on LinkedIn | Moshe's Product Manager Toolkit | PostHog

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

Transformations are hard, and too often, they fail to deliver on their promise. In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily and Randy speak with Jen Swanson, CEO of Tuckpoint Advisory Group, to unpack why transformation initiatives falter and what it truly takes to succeed.

Key Takeaways
— Transformation requires intentionality: Real transformation isn't accidental or surface-level; it must be deliberate, comprehensive, and backed by leadership.
— Avoid ‘transformation theatre’: Pretending to change—without restructuring ownership, processes, or collaboration—is worse than doing nothing at all.
— Start with honest orientation: Knowing your starting point is essential before plotting a path forward.
— Executive involvement is non-negotiable: Transformations can’t be delegated. Leadership must model the change and communicate relentlessly.
— Product-led is about mindset, not just teams: Everyone should operate within the product model, but not all need to be on product teams.
— Pace matters: Organisations must assess their capacity for change and determine the right balance between ambition and sustainability.
— Give grace for the learning curve: People need space to be bad at new things before they get good—psychological safety is essential.

Chapters
0:00 – Introduction & the myth of sneaky transformations
1:01 – Jen’s background and path into product
2:53 – What transformation really means
5:53 – Defining honest orientation
8:00 – What is transformation theatre?
12:09 – When real change feels fake
13:04 – The importance of executive commitment
16:04 – Why transformations fail
19:11 – Common catalysts for transformation
22:06 – Product-led vs product thinking
25:00 – Who’s in the op

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.

What does it mean to build world-class products in the age of AI? In this episode, Randy Silver talks to Ezinne and Oji Udezue, co-authors of Building Rocketships, a playbook for building high-growth companies in today’s fast-evolving tech landscape. Together, they unpack what product looks like now, how AI changes collaboration, and why ambition, clarity, and disciplined execution matter more than ever.

Key takeaways
— Building world-class products starts with clear ambition and choosing big, meaningful problems
— AI isn't replacing PMs, it's changing the way product work gets done—especially in how we collaborate
— Vibe coding enables faster iteration and clearer communication through prototyping in code
— The product manager’s job is to lead teams and help the organisation build the right thing, not just anything
— Clarity, focus, and leadership buy-in are essential to successful transformation, even in legacy organisations
— Product teams need to shift from writing specs to orchestrating systems that drive customer and business outcomes
— Every product person should master the full arc: solving today's problems, helping customers succeed, and spotting future opportunities

Chapters 
0:00 The "should PMs code?" debate
1:54 First product roles and how the book came to life
4:49 The mission behind Building Rocketships
7:13 Why the book is for leaders and their partners
10:01 Differences between world-class teams and everyone else
13:35 What ambition really looks like
17:10 How clarity transforms legacy companies
23:10 AI, vibe coding, and the new spec: working prototypes
30:10 Redefining the product team’s role in the AI age
35:02 What skills PMs actually need to thrive now
42:54 The one mistake PMs can't afford to make

Featured Links: Follow Ezinne on LinkedIn | Follow Oji on LinkedIn | ProductMind | Buy their new book 'Building Rocketships: Product Management for High Growth Companies'

Our Hosts
Lily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.