Product Leader Attributes to Look For Based on Company Size
Key product leader attributes based on your organization’s stage of growth.
Different growth stages need different styles of product leaders in order to flourish. Based on our interview with John Stetic, here are the main product leader attributes to look for based on your organization’s growth stage:
John Stetic was the product leader who stood up Oracle Marketing Cloud following their acquisition of Eloqua. His career includes product leadership roles through 5 exits (acquisitions), raising one of the largest series B rounds in the edtech category, and Board seats in multiple startups. John is currently a Venture Partner at Companyon Ventures in Chicago.
Early Stage Startup
In this stage, it is not common to see a CPO — more often, it will be someone leading product as a Head of R&D or Head of Product. They will likely have a background in engineering or a mix of engineering and product.
When a company is a startup, it needs a hands-on-keys product leader solely focused and dedicated to the solution space and experimentation to move the product forward.
Scaling Scale-up
As a startup develops and matures, it will seek out new growth opportunities, so a leader at this stage still needs to be good about problem discovery, thinking through solutions, and working in that solution space, but they also need to be focused on the longer-term thinking of scaling up.
This longer-term thinking requires a different mindset because it’s a case of trying to generate many different problems to solve and assess. In this stage, company strategy and product strategy are very similar. Yet, it’s essential that this product leader can delineate between the high-level company strategy and the individual product strategy.
At this stage, they need to work at that problem space while not getting too consumed with the solution because they’ve most likely had teams to work on it. So look for leaders who empower their teams to figure out the problem. This is where a product leader needs to be willing and able to let go; give the team direction and let them run and solve the problem.
Product Org Build Out
At this stage, the organization has grown and needs a more mature product leader with a more holistic view of the business. It requires a big-picture thinker, not just someone focused on product, engineering, and design.
Along with thinking bigger is the ability to continually develop the team. This is where the human side of management, not just working on and building products, comes into play.
Ultimately, in this growth stage, it also comes down to how well they communicate a vision and a strategy. Can they evangelize and distill down messaging into something that everybody in the organization can understand? A product leader at this stage needs to be great at distilling a bunch of different things into a simplified message and exceptional at evangelizing that message.
It is crucial to recognize that each growth stage necessitates distinct attributes in product leaders. By thoughtfully selecting leaders who possess the appropriate qualities, organizations can effectively drive growth and success.
If you’re struggling to find a product leader who has the right blend of capabilities and experiences connect with us today.
