The Pragmatic Product Professional

Transcript

1. The Pragmatic Product @lauravandoore Laura Van Doore Head of Product

   Design, Fathom
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3. How could a book about programming written 2 decades ago

   be applicable to modern product development? @lauravandoore

4. Building Products in 2019

5. Solving problems in a sensible way that suits the conditions

   that really exist now, rather than obeying fixed ideas, theories or rules. Pragmatic Adjective @lauravandoore

6. Otherwise we end up with products like this: @lauravandoore

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9. What makes a pragmatic product person? @lauravandoore

10. They think beyond the immediate problem and place it in

    a larger context Trait #1 BIG PICTURE THINKER @lauravandoore

11. They work with the chess pieces that are on the

    board, rather than the resources they wish they had Trait #2 DEEPLY REALISTIC @lauravandoore

12. They constantly re-evaluate and question current methods, approach & practices

    Trait #3 INQUISITIVE @lauravandoore

13. They deeply care about their craft, and actively invest in

    new skill development Trait #4 SKILLED CRAFTSPERSON @lauravandoore

14. They make informed decisions and intelligent compromises Trait #5 SCIENTIFIC

    MINDSET @lauravandoore

15. Big picture thinker Realistic Inquisitive Skilled Craftsperson Test & Learn

    Mindset Pragmatic Product Mindset Traits @lauravandoore

16. Cultivating a Pragmatic Product Mindset @lauravandoore

17. Speak more than one language 1

18. Learn as many programming languages as possible In 1999 @lauravandoore

19. The limits of languages influence how you think about a

    problem The Pragmatic Programmer @lauravandoore

20. Building product is a team sport With many roles and

    players In 2019 @lauravandoore

21. Learning the languages of your teammates is a super power

    @lauravandoore

22. SPEAK MORE THAN ONE LANGUAGE • Customers • Engineering •

    Product Management • Design & UX • Business @lauravandoore

23. Shared language and skill overlap breaks down barriers @lauravandoore

24. Be a catalyst 2 @lauravandoore

25. A chemical substance that can be added to a reaction

    to increase the reaction rate without getting consumed in the process Catalyst Noun @lauravandoore

26. Be a catalyst Imagine this scenario: • You have a

    really clear picture on how to make positive change • You've got a great grasp on the resources you'll need, and how to bring it all together. • It’s a slam dunk @lauravandoore

27. Be a catalyst • But when asking for permission to

    get started, you’re met with delays and blank stares • People form committees • Budgets need approvals • Everyone starts to guards their resources @lauravandoore

28. STORY TIME Stone Soup @lauravandoore

29. Illustrations by Marcia Brown

30. Illustrations by Marcia Brown

31. Illustrations by Marcia Brown

32. Illustrations by Marcia Brown

33. Illustrations by Marcia Brown

34. Illustrations by Marcia Brown

35. Illustrations by Marcia Brown

36. Illustrations by Marcia Brown

37. BE A CATALYST People find it easier to join an

    ongoing success @lauravandoore

38. BE A CATALYST Showing a glimpse of the future helps

    folks to rally @lauravandoore

39. BE A CATALYST Sometimes people aren’t aware of the value

    they can contribute (They don’t know what they can bring to the pot) @lauravandoore

40. Be a catalyst by helping the people around you see

    an exciting possible future, with a clear path for how they can contribute @lauravandoore

41. Invest in your knowledge portfolio 3

42. Your knowledge & experience are your most important professional assets.

    Unfortunately, they’re expiring assets. The Pragmatic Programmer @lauravandoore

43. INVEST IN YOUR KNOWLEDGE PORTFOLIO Diversify The more areas you

    have knowledge in, the more valuable & adaptable you are. @lauravandoore

44. INVEST IN YOUR KNOWLEDGE PORTFOLIO Manage risk Tech skills exist

    along a spectrum from risky, potentially high-reward to low-risk, low-reward skills. @lauravandoore

45. INVEST IN YOUR KNOWLEDGE PORTFOLIO Buy low, sell high Learning

    emerging technologies or methods might be risky, but it pays off for early adopters who can end up dominating that area. @lauravandoore

46. Manage your knowledge investments in a similar way to how

    you would manage a financial portfolio @lauravandoore

47. Push for progress over perfection 4 @lauravandoore

48. PUSH FOR PROGRESS OVER PERFECTION You can’t design perfect software

    There’s no single correct answer when building new features & products. ‘Perfect’ is dependant on the eye of the beholder. @lauravandoore

49. PUSH FOR PROGRESS OVER PERFECTION Plan to adapt and iterate.

    Permanently. Customers needs are always evolving, usually needing more and more sophisticated functionality. Product is never done. @lauravandoore

50. Speak more than one language 1 Be a catalyst 2

    Invest in your knowledge portfolio 3 Push for progress over perfection 4 @lauravandoore

51. Pragmatic Product Mantras 4 bite-sized knowledge nuggets @lauravandoore

52. Don’t live with broken windows Fix bad designs, wrong decisions,

    and poor code when you see them.

53. Horses, not zebras Look for expected cause first, rather than

    searching out something more exotic

54. No one from Brazil has purchased our product, people must

    not be interested. Later, user research showed their checkout form validation didn’t allow Brazilian postcodes to pass

55. Carve stones, but think cathedrals Focus on where the big

    picture meets the detailed implementation.

56. When in doubt ask the duck Rubber duck debugging is

    popular with devs, but is handy for other teams too

57. Thanks @lauravandoore