Diversity in Product: Divya Sabade

Showcase originally published on the Product Teacher blog on June 23, 2022.

Hi, my name is Divya. I am always up for learning and for solving exciting challenges that make life simple, productive and enjoyable. I am an energetic, value driven product manager with 8+ years of experience spread across business strategy and operations, technology consulting and leading cross-functional teams to plan, build, launch and manage SaaS solutions. Also, I am a mother to two young kids which has helped me grow as a person in the past few years and made me a more efficient and considerate teammate.

Currently I am a product manager at a startup in the Bay Area, Tekion corp where our team is disrupting the automotive space making it seamless to buy and sell automotives. Prior to Tekion, I was part of Turvo Inc. (acquired by Lineage Logistics) where we were building a collaborative platform for the logistics industry.

We’d love to hear about your journey into product management. How did you become a PM, and what were some of the challenges you faced in securing your first PM role?

My husband and I wanted to explore the opportunity that the Bay Area had to offer, so we left our well established careers in India and moved to the Bay Area in Nov 2013.

I came on a dependent visa along with my husband. What this meant was I could not work in the USA. In a few months, I realized that I needed a way to join the technology workforce and learn what all Silicon Valley has to offer. There is a different vibe here — positive and adventurous. Being a learner at heart, I want to experience it.

That is when I started my research to figure out what are the best ways to get back to work and finally choose the academic route. I completed my Masters in Software Management from Carnegie Mellon University and joined Deloitte Consulting LLP as a technology consultant in 2016.

As I continued to work across some of the big brands in Technology, often being part of projects and teams that enabled our customers to be better and more productive in their businesses. I came across multiple industries, processes, and challenges customers were facing. We often used best in breed SaaS based products/offerings to help our customers navigate their journey.

I was always curious to learn more about what these SaaS products had to offer, which made me look into product management as a career option because product managers lead cross functional teams to build and launch amazing products. I got my first product job at Turvo Inc. after giving 75+ interviews in the span of 1.5 years. Learning from each failure got me one step closer to success.

Few key steps that I followed:

• Learn: Understand the key PM interview question types and the frameworks that can be utilized to answer in a structured manner.
• Repeat: Practice at-least one product question each day till you develop a product mindset
• Connect: Reach out to people who have led a similar path. They might understand your struggles and be willing to help you achieve your goals.

Having said that, I did all this, during the pandemic while managing a toddler at home as well as expecting my second child. The key lessons that I have learned are being resilient, having a positive attitude and counting each failure as a building block to success.

What are some ways hiring managers can make that first PM role easier to obtain for people who don’t look or think like them?

Few ways hiring managers can make the role more accessible are:

• Collaborate with academia to make the role more visible to students across universities
• Publish resources to understand the role as well as prepare for the role on company website
• Consider overall value a candidate brings vs. subset of skills targeted
• Take bets on people who don’t have the experience but attitude to learn and deliver
• Take bets on your own network/mentees

Looking back on that first PM experience, what advice would you give yourself?

• Invest in relationships and master soft skills, they go a long way.
• You won’t know it all, so keep learning, growing and sharing knowledge.
• Your success is dependent on your team’s success — be the cheerleader.
• Set boundaries to operate and deliver the best.

Product management can sometimes be an isolating role. What are some approaches you’ve taken to get support?

• I always start my new role by setting up 1–1 greet and meet sessions across teams. It helps me to understand the perspective as well as the current state. Also, it provides an opportunity to establish a personal communication channel/relationship with individuals.
• I prefer to have touch points with several cross functional teams that I partner with at a frequency that best benefits both the parties. This enables us to be on the same page, build trust and get support when needed.
• When in doubt, I reach out to my network. Also, I find joy in mentoring folks looking to transition into product management. Often talking to people spark mindful conversations, generate creative ideas, remove blockers and remind us that we are not alone in the journey.
• I invest time to upskill whether through articles, books or courses.
• Last but not the least, I switch off and spend time with my family, go out for a walk or practice yoga. Sometimes, the best we can do is to take a break and start again.

What do you find frustrating about being underrepresented in product management?

• I am an immigrant that means I am on a working visa (H1B). I can’t work part time or take breaks between jobs. Also, some companies don’t sponsor the visa hence I have missed a few opportunities.
• Being a professional and parent to young kids we are still measured with the rest of the folks in the team who often can pull more hours or can be more flexible just because of the stage of life or choice of priorities.

From your perspective, what’s one thing people should be more aware of?

It is important to remember that work is a part of life, not life itself. As we grow and mature it becomes more evident — taking care of yourself, your loved ones, your passions is as important if not more than progressing in career.

Can you share one of your happy moments in the last year?

What’s the best way for readers to reach out to you and stay on top of what you’re doing?

Best ways to connect:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/divyasabade/
• Email: divya.sabade@gmail.com
• ADPList (for mentoring): https://adplist.org/mentors/divya
• Chet Network (for product management transition content): https://chetnetwork.com/curator/divya-sabade/collections/

We’re always looking for new perspectives to highlight, to bring more diversity into product management! If you have someone you’d like to nominate, please send us an email at admin@productteacher.com, we’d love to hear from you!