On My Shelf with Benedikt Kantus — Head of Product at Starface (Karlsruhe, Germany)
About
Currently Head of Product at STARFACE GmbH, I build the future of business communications. I spent my entire career building B2B products and always strive to improve. I believe that reading is essential for learning!
On my shelf
The Hard Thing About Hard Things
Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers
by Ben Horowitz
My opinion
Ben has a very clear message about running a tech company. He does not engage in the usual optimism but talks very openly about the difficulties.
304 pages, HarperBusiness 2014
Managing Humans
Biting and Humorous Tales of a Software Engineering Manager
by Michael Lopp
My opinion
A huge part of Product Management is people management, even if you are not the CEO of anything. Get your office relationships right with this book.
348 pages, Apress 2016
Product Roadmaps Relaunched
How to Set Direction while Embracing Uncertainty
by C. Todd Lombardo, Bruce McCarthy, Evan Ryan & Michael Connors
My opinion
A modern approach to “roadmapping”. Better than setting feature release dates that turn out to be wrong because Agile recognises shifting priorities.
272 pages, O’Reilly Media 2017
HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Teams
by Jon R. Katzenbach, Kathleen M. Eisenhardt & Lynda Gratton
My opinion
This recommendation is a collection of essays. Some of the best essays about teams. Highly recommended when dealing with people.
208 pages, Harvard Business Review Press 2013
It’s Your Ship
Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy
by D. Michael Abrashoff
My opinion
When speaking about empowered teams, this book is an excellent advisor. Help people understand priorities and then let them find out the best solutions.
208 pages, Harvard Business Review Press 2013
The PM Library series “On my shelf” features Product Leaders from all over the world who are passionate about reading and sharing with the community. If you want to join the movement and share your reading list with others, send us a message or fill out the following form. Let’s get better together 📚.
