Rian van der MerweDon’t get customers hooked, focus on healthy retention insteadI’m getting increasingly nervous about the ongoing emphasis on getting users “hooked”, which is taking the product world by storm.Jul 31, 2019Jul 31, 2019
Rian van der MerwePrioritization, product stewardship, and the hardest part about being a product managerI used to believe that the hardest part about being a product manager is effective prioritization. I don’t think that’s true any more. I…Jul 9, 20191Jul 9, 20191
Rian van der MerweWhy it’s not a good idea to define a fixed project scopeThere are too many unknowns, too many variables, and too many things can change along the way.Apr 29, 2019Apr 29, 2019
Rian van der MerweProduct specifications: our template and processA follow-up post to share our product spec template and explain our process in more detail.Apr 21, 20192Apr 21, 20192
Rian van der MerweThe dangerous rise of “crazy-busy” product managersIt’s time to talk about how “crazy-busy PM” thinking is harmful to individuals and our industry.Apr 12, 20196Apr 12, 20196
Rian van der MerweHow to make “product principles” more usefulThere’s an interesting discussion going on in the Elezea Community about “Product Principles”. What they are for, when you need them, how…Mar 14, 2019Mar 14, 2019
Rian van der MerweWhat I look for in product management softwareI’ve had this vague sense for a while that I need to dig into the product management software space a lot more. So on Friday I just did it…Feb 26, 2019Feb 26, 2019
Rian van der MerweProduct management doesn’t require in-person collaboration to be effectiveRemote product management is something I’ve written about before, so I read Julie Caprio’s Four Keys to Successful Remote Product…Feb 5, 2019Feb 5, 2019
Rian van der MerweThe power of “why now?” as a prioritization techniqueI imagine that if you made one of those pull-string dolls of a Product Manager, it would just say “Why?” over and over. We love figuring…Jan 28, 2019Jan 28, 2019
Rian van der MerweVinyl Me, Please and the power of product thinkingI’ve been a Vinyl, Me Please customer since January 2015. Back then things were pretty basic. For roughly $25/month they would send you a…Aug 23, 2018Aug 23, 2018
