Micro-Interview: Gergana Peneva, Product Manager
360 words. 2 min read.
EDITOR’S NOTE:
Gerry Peneva is a PM at Quantive - a strategy execution platform based on the OKR management methodology.
In under 500 words, she shares:
How she got into product management…
How she starts her mornings for maximum productivity…
Some of her sources of learning…
And more…
Enjoy!
“How did you get into product management?”
I started my career in marketing and customer research and later moved to project management and business development. Product management sounded to me like the most logical next step. But also, a desired one since I was attracted by the idea of creating value by building products.
“How do you start your mornings at work?”
I’d like to talk about how I end my workdays and weeks – with a retrospective and a list of important things to do on the next day or week. The best mornings are when I’ve done that because it gives me the freedom to start by learning something new and checking my favorite blogs, podcasts, and news.
“What do you know about product management now that you wish you’d known when you first started?”
“Falling in love with the problem”. Sounds simple but learning its implications and how to deeply research and understand the problem takes time and practice.
Another thing that I always knew was important, but I cannot emphasize enough – is always looking for data. Analytics on usage, research on use patterns, benchmarking.
“What did your biggest product failure teach you?”
Always look back, evaluate how successful we are with our efforts, and think about what we could have done differently. It needs to become part of the routine to be efficient both in implementation and prioritization.
I’d take a moment just to appreciate any organization and its leaders who provide the space for independence and are supportive of making mistakes, taking responsibility, and learning.
“What’s the #1 thing that has helped you shorten your product management learning curve?”
Get. The job. Done.
It always goes with the books, articles, podcasts, events, and peer exchange. But nothing is as efficient as learning by doing. And making mistakes.
One thing that changes my learning and ability to get things done these days is AI. It saves so much time and extends my options to do better and/or do more at the same time.
“How do you stay updated on the best practices in product management?”
I’d approach the question from another angle – stay updated on business and tech novelties. Product managers wear too many hats to limit us only to PM practices.
Some of my favorite topics, resources, and thought leaders (not only product):
- Product:
o Mind the Product (newsletter and resources)
o Authors: Marty Cagan, Nir Eyal, Alexander Osterwalder
- Behavioral science: Kristen Berman, Andrew Huberman, Martin Lindstrom
- Business: HBR (the magazine and podcasts), Masters of Scale (podcast), Rethinking (podcast)