This document discusses how to build better products by building better teams. It advocates for assembling diverse, cross-functional teams that work autonomously and are co-located. It emphasizes that product development is a team sport that requires psychological safety, alignment on goals, and leaders who empower teams and get out of the way. Building such teams will allow organizations to keep up with rapid technological changes and build the new interfaces to the world that software and technology enable.

1. BUILDING BETTER PRODUCTS
BY BUILDING BETTER TEAMS
#UXFEST
@BFGMARTIN

2. Software is eating the world“ ”MARC ANDREESEN
2011
@BFGMARTIN

3. $50,000,000,000
@BFGMARTIN

4. $42,000,000,000
@BFGMARTIN

5. $480,000,000,000
@BFGMARTIN

6. 2011
1. Exxon Mobil
2. Microsoft
3. IBM
4. Chevron
5. Walmart
2018
1. Apple
2. Alphabet
3. Microsoft
4. Facebook
5. Amazon
S&P500BY MARKET CAP
@BFGMARTIN

7. Software is eating the world“ ”MARC ANDREESEN
2011
programming
@BFGMARTIN
2017

8. THE RATE OF CHANGE YOU
EXPERIENCE TODAY IS THE
SLOWEST IT WILL EVER BE
@BFGMARTIN

9. @BFGMARTIN

10. @BFGMARTIN

11. 1997
@BFGMARTIN

12. @BFGMARTIN
PRODUCTTANK

13. @BFGMARTIN
PRODUCT LEADERSHIP

14. @BFGMARTIN
PRODUCT VENTURE

15. @BFGMARTIN
HOW DO WE KEEP UP?

16. @BFGMARTIN
HOW DO WE BUILD
BETTER PRODUCTS?

17. OUR INTERFACE
TO THE WORLD IS
CHANGING
@BFGMARTIN

18. @BFGMARTIN

19. @BFGMARTIN
“all of the technology required to
transform industries through
software finally works and can be
widely delivered at global scale.”
MARC ANDREESEN
2011

20. HOW WE
INTERACT WITH
TECHNOLOGY
IS CHANGING
@BFGMARTIN

21. @BFGMARTIN
HOW WE
INTERACT WITH
EACH OTHER
IS CHANGING

22. @BFGMARTIN
HOW WE
INTERACT WITH
BUSINESSES
IS CHANGING

23. @BFGMARTIN
TECHNOLOGY
+ BUSINESS
+ DESIGN
NEW INTERFACE
TO THE WORLD

24. WE ARE BUILDING
THAT NEW
INTERFACE
@BFGMARTIN

25. Technology
Design
Business
You are
here
@BFGMARTIN

26. JOB TITLES?
JOB SCHMITLES
@BFGMARTIN

27. WHO OWNS THE USER?
WHO CARES?
@BFGMARTIN

28. WE ALL OWN THE
PRODUCT
@BFGMARTIN

29. WE ARE ALL
PRODUCT
MANAGERS
@BFGMARTIN

30. THIS REQUIRES
A NEW WAY OF WORKING
@BFGMARTIN

31. ASSEMBLE YOUR TEAM
#UXFEST
@BFGMARTIN

32. MULTI-DISCIPLINARY
You are
here
Customer Technology
Business
@BFGMARTIN

33. MULTI-DISCIPLINARY
Customer Technology
Business
@BFGMARTIN

34. MULTI-DISCIPLINARY
Customer Technology
Business
@BFGMARTIN

35. MULTI-DISCIPLINARY
Customer Technology
Business
@BFGMARTIN

36. MULTI-DISCIPLINARY
Customer Technology
Business
@BFGMARTIN

37. MULTI-DISCIPLINARY
Customer Technology
Business
@BFGMARTIN

38. MULTI-DISCIPLINARY
Customer Technology
Business
@BFGMARTIN

39. DIVERSE
Customer Technology
Business
Work
Experience
Industry
Knowledge
Creativity
Life
Experience
Culture
@BFGMARTIN

40. DIVERSE
Customer Technology
Business
Work
Experience
Industry
Knowledge
Creativity
Life
Experience
Culture
@BFGMARTIN

41. DIVERSE
Customer Technology
Business
Work
Experience
Industry
Knowledge
Creativity
Life
Experience
Culture
@BFGMARTIN

42. DIVERSE
@BFGMARTIN
DIVERSE TEAMS ARE
BETTER AT SOLVING
PROBLEMS
SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, & more

43. DIVERSE
Customer
product
team
empathy
@BFGMARTIN

44. DIVERSE
@BFGMARTIN
DIVERSE COMPANIES ARE
35% MORE LIKELY TO
OUTPERFORM
MCKINSEY, 2018

45. PRODUCT IS
A TEAM SPORT
@BFGMARTIN

46. FRICTION
@BFGMARTIN

47. FRICTION
KILLS
MOMENTUM
@BFGMARTIN

48. CROSS-FUNCTIONAL
@BFGMARTIN

49. CROSS-FUNCTIONAL
Solution
Space
Problem
Space
Opportunity
for Great
Products
@BFGMARTIN

50. CROSS-FUNCTIONAL
UX ProductDevs
? ?
@BFGMARTIN

51. CROSS-FUNCTIONAL
@BFGMARTIN

52. @BFGMARTIN

53. FRICTION
@BFGMARTIN

54. @BFGMARTIN
IMAGINE MAKING A
BUSINESS CASE FOR THE
RESEARCH YOU NEED
FOR A BUSINESS CASE

55. AUTONOMY
#UXFEST
@BFGMARTIN

56. @BFGMARTIN

57. @BFGMARTIN

58. @BFGMARTIN
YOUR TEAM IS
SMARTER THAN YOU

59. @BFGMARTIN
YOUR TEAM IS
MORE INFORMED THAN YOU

60. @BFGMARTIN
YOUR TEAM IS
CLOSER TO THE PROBLEM THAN YOU

61. @BFGMARTIN
YOUR TEAM IS
CLOSER TO THE CUSTOMER THAN YOU

62. @BFGMARTIN
WHY ARE YOU
TELLING THEM WHAT TO DO?

63. @BFGMARTIN
INSTEAD:
EMPOWER YOUR TEAMS.
EMBRACE AUTONOMY.

64. @BFGMARTIN
AUTONOMY MOTIVATES

65. @BFGMARTIN
AUTONOMY SCALES

66. @BFGMARTIN
AUTONOMY IS FAST

67. IS AUTONOMY
ANARCHY?
@BFGMARTIN

68. @BFGMARTIN
AUTONOMY
WITH
ACCOUNTABILITY

69. @BFGMARTIN
AUTONOMY
WITH
ALIGNMENT

70. ALIGNED AUTONOMY
@BFGMARTIN

71. @BFGMARTIN
AUTONOMY
=
NO DEPENDENCIES

72. @BFGMARTIN
AUTONOMY
=
EVERYONE GETS INVOLVED

73. “IF YOU’RE ONLY USING YOUR ENGINEERS TO
CODE, YOU’RE ONLY GETTING HALF THEIR VALUE ”
@BFGMARTIN
MARTY CAGAN

74. @BFGMARTIN

75. @BFGMARTIN

76. CO-LOCATED
#UXFEST
@BFGMARTIN

77. @BFGMARTIN

78. @BFGMARTIN

79. @BFGMARTIN

80. @BFGMARTIN
“THAT’S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I AM
ABSURDLY EXCITED ABOUT. WE CAN HAVE
INDUSTRIAL DESIGNERS SAT NEXT TO A FONT
DESIGNER, A SOUND DESIGNER, A MOTION
GRAPHICS EXPERT, A COLOUR DESIGNER, A
SOFT MATERIALS EXPERT, ETC”
JONY IVE

81. @BFGMARTIN
DESIGN YOUR SPACE
YOUR SPACE DESIGNS YOUR PROCESS

82. @BFGMARTIN

83. @BFGMARTIN
AUFTRAGSKLÄRUNG

84. @BFGMARTIN

85. @BFGMARTIN

86. @BFGMARTIN

87. BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER
#UXFEST
@BFGMARTIN

88. 1. ASSEMBLE YOUR TEAM
DIVERSE, CROSS-FUNCTIONAL, CO-LOCATED
2. SET THEM UP FOR SUCCESS
PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY, AUTONOMY, PURPOSE
3. PICK THE RIGHT PROCESS
BALANCE DISCOVERY VS DELIVERY @BFGMARTIN
LEADERS

89. @BFGMARTIN
AS MANAGERS
OUR JOB
IS TO GET
OUT OF THE WAY

90. 1. START SMALL, SHOW DON’T TELL
CHANGE HOW YOU WORK BEFORE YOU CHANGE THE COMPANY
2. PULL IN OTHER TEAM MEMBERS
PULL IN COUNTERPARTS AND THEY WILL RETURN THE FAVOUR
3. ALIGN YOUR GOALS
PUSH FOR ALIGNMENT WITH CUSTOMERS @BFGMARTIN
TEAM MEMBERS

91. @BFGMARTIN
AS PART OF A TEAM
OUR JOB
IS TO GET
IN THE WAY

92. TEAMS FOCUS ON
CUSTOMERS
@BFGMARTIN

93. LEADERS FOCUS
ON CULTURE
@BFGMARTIN

94. WE ALL OWN THE
PRODUCT
@BFGMARTIN

95. WE ARE ALL
PRODUCT
MANAGERS
@BFGMARTIN

96. SOFTWARE IS
EATING THE WORLD
@BFGMARTIN
WE’RE WRITING THE MENU

97. THANK YOU!
FOLLOW ME ON @BFGMARTIN
GET THE BOOK AT PRODUCTLEADERSHIPBOOK.COM
READ MORE AT MINDTHEPRODUCT.COM
“If you build products, you need this book.”
DES TRAYNOR, CO-FOUNDER of INTERCOM
“invaluable for leveling up your execution”
RYAN FREITAS, FACEBOOK
“the leadership guide I never had"
KEN NORTON, GOOGLE VENTURES