This talk will explore the differences and similarities in product management practices between technology companies and legacy companies. Drawing on experiences gained from working at a major tech firm and a legacy company, attendees will gain valuable insights into how product management approaches differ across industries. Additionally, the talk will provide guidance on how to navigate the transition between the two, as more non-tech companies embrace product management. This is a must-attend session for product managers seeking to deepen their understanding of the nuances of product management practices in different industries.

1. Product Leadership - from FAANG to
Traditional Media by The New York
Times SVP of Product
productschool.com

2. Accelerate your Product Management Career
Certifications
Product Manager
Certification™
Product Leader
Certification™
productschool.com/online

3. Team Training
Level Up Your Team’s
Product Management Skills
productschool.com

4. Resources
Free Product Management Resources
Events Courses Podcasts
Newsletters Communities eBooks and
Reports
productschool.com/resources

5. Product Leadership:
From FAANG to Traditional Media
Presented by Name Here
Lisa Kamm, SVP Product
May 2023
05/13/2020

6. About Me

7. 1. Ambition & Impact
2. Customer Focus
3. Core Product Skills
4. How We Work
What’s Different at The Times?
Readers, Journalists, Engineers
Mission & Purpose
→
→
→
→
Creativity & Reinvention
Scope, Impact & Flexibility
What’s Similar?

8. Product at a Company Like
The Times

9. How We’re Organized: Functions
Newsroom
Product Engineering Design
Data Marketing Research
Program Management

10. How We’re Organized: Missions
Consumer Missions
Examples
Monetization Missions
Examples
Subscriber Growth
Digital Advertising
News
Games
Cooking
Platform Missions
Examples
Core Platforms
Data Platforms
Delivery Engineering

11. Ambition, Impact, Mission,
Purpose

12. OUR MISSION
To seek the truth and help people
understand the world
First issue in 1851

13. Cohesive Bundle
Digital Transformation
Digital First Subscription First
Migrate from a print-first
strategy, to a digital-first
one, to scale our impact and
bring in new readership.
Move to a business model
that aligns with the value of
our journalism, from ads to
subscription based revenue.
Expand beyond core news,
and move to an ecosystem
of connected products that
redefine journalism.
Three Generations
2010-2015 2015-2020 2020 - Present

14. In November 2020, nearly
a quarter billion people
worldwide
came to The Times

15. PRODUCT VISION
We aim to be the essential subscription for every curious, English-speaking
person seeking to understand and engage with the world

16. PRODUCT STRATEGY
Be the best
news destination
in the world
1
Become more
valuable to more
people by meeting
everyday life needs
2 3
Expand and connect
our product to help
subscribers engage
with the full New York
Times

17. News
While news is central, we drive connections between
news and our other applications.

18. Customer Focus:
Clear targets

19. Engineers
Builders creating the tools
and systems
CUSTOMER FOCUS
Delivering what our customers need remains the core of product management,
and needs to drive key decision making.

20. We’ve made focused investment in the features that
drive engagement and retention in each product.
Many features that drive
high subscriber
engagement also drive
high retention.
Understanding our
readers enables us to
prioritize our feature work
- benefiting them - and us.

21. Readers
People who want to better
understand the world (and
play Wordle, follow sports,
shop, etc.)
Engineers
Builders creating the
tools and systems that
enable our journalism
Product Management
Product managers target all three audiences
Newsroom
Content creation
across many formats
and experiences.
Areas of focus

22. Core Product Skills

23. Strategy
The ability to show product
judgment, strategic thinking
and analytical rigor.
Leadership
Team health, lateral leadership
and effective communication
Execution
Prioritization, grit and resilience
and technical acumen
Cross Functional Collaboration
Ability to work across the standard
technology functions - and also to
meet the unique needs of the
Newsroom
The core product skills will look very familiar to people in
technology companies.

24. Creativity and reinvention

25. How We Work

26. How We’re Organized: Teams
Our Functions
Mission leadership
Example: Consumer
Product
Example: Platform
Design Newsroom
PMO Data
Marketing Engineering
Product & News Leads Product & Tech Lead

27. Working cross-functionally feels familiar, but in a smaller organization there is increased
need to be open to a wide variety of approaches
27
Product managers own larger
domains at much more junior
levels providing leadership
opportunities
Strong product managers can
have a much bigger impact
across the organization - but
need to understand that the
reach is smaller than at a
FAANG.
News events don’t always
come with advance warning,
and can lead to unanticipated
major pivots
Scope Impact Flexibility

28. Features
Platforms
Content
At NYT, we create most of our own content -
some of our product managers work very
closely with the content creators.
Work that is delivered to directly reach our
readers.
The underlying systems and infrastructure
that serve as critical enablers for engineers
and our Newsroom
Full stack nature of
Product work
At FAANG companies, product managers
typically focus on the product itself, and less
so on the content, features, and platforms.
At NYT, product managers have access to
more of the whole product ecosystem, and
on a more regular basis.

29. Engineers
Builders creating the tools
and systems
OPENNESS
Great PMs come from all backgrounds, and can drive impact across a wide
range of organizations

30. 1. Ambition & Impact
2. Customer Focus
3. Core Product Skills
4. How We Work
What’s Different at The Times?
Readers, Journalists, Engineers
Mission & Purpose
→
→
→
→
Creativity & Reinvention
Scope, Impact & Flexibility
What’s Similar?

31. Thank You!
lilisa.kamm@nytimes.com

32. Part-time Product Management
Training Courses
and Team Training
productschool.com