Are you working in Lord of the Rings’ Villain Fortress?
I remember one conversation I had with a fellow Product Manager some time ago. We were exchanging bad leadership and managing habits that we knew from our experience. We got close to wrapping it up, so my interlocutor concluded: “Yeah, nobody wants to work in a feature factory”. It was the first time I’ve heard this term, so I immediately thought “heck, what a great way to close all the bad things I’ve seen in delivering products in just two words”.
I was totally stunned after reading John Cutler’s article from which, as I discovered, the term origins. It’s truly delightful how comprehensively it covers all imaginable aberrations in product management. Cutler’s articles are a must-read, by the way.
After some time of studying I began to notice some more or less subtle PM pathologies that were not fully exposed in Cutler’s work, or I should rather say, were left to be highlighted from a slightly different angle. From this moment on, we started to collect and formulate our own list.
Saruman’s voracious strive to power, his talents, force and the way he led was such an appealing analogy to what we’ve experienced along our careers. Isengard’s magnificence, nightmarish image and disgusting inhabitants fit the ugly side of product management even more.
So, we wrote a series of short articles telling stories about how not to build product teams, culture, and products itself. We placed them in the Lord of the Rings realm. Because it makes them more telling, and because it was so much fun to do.
Heren Istarion — “Order of the Wizards”. The wise guys in Product Teams.
The pinnacle of Orthanc and a lone, almighty Product Manager on top.
Misty mountains. Crafting the product in isolation.
Eating the Halflings. Why going after quick wins is not always the right choice.
Underground Orc Factory.
Palantir: Revelation-driven Product Management
Ring of Isengard. Staying safe from user’s feedback.
Hate of the order and prosperity. Enter the war path, antagonize the world.
