One Knight in Product

Nick Kenn, interim Chief Product Officer at Winmau and seasoned product leader from Betfair and Redbubble, outlines digitising a century-old sport. He talks camera-based scoring, pragmatic AI for refereeing, balancing heritage with modern features, aligning hardware and software timelines, and building passionate teams to deliver a connected darts experience.

In this episode, I speak with returning guest Dan Olsen, product management trainer, consultant, speaker, and author of The Lean Product Playbook. We go deep into the rise of "vibe coding" and what it means for product teams. Dan has gone deep into vibe coding, is offering training courses in it, and believes it firmly sits within his existing Lean Product Playbook process and supports the Product/Market Fit Pyramid. Episode highlights AI shifts the product bottleneck – As AI tools make engineers more productive, the limiting factor increasingly becomes product discovery and decision-making rather than development capacity. Product management isn't going away – AI can automate some tasks, but judgement, prioritisation, and making decisions under uncertainty remain core human responsibilities. The rise of the product builder mindset – New AI tools allow product managers to prototype ideas directly, giving them a more hands-on way to explore solutions. The vibe coding spectrum – AI development tools exist on a spectrum from simple browser-based tools through to full developer IDE integrations, letting teams adopt them at different levels of technical depth. Vibe prototyping vs vibe coding – For most product managers, the real opportunity isn't replacing engineers, but quickly generating interactive prototypes that help teams explore ideas before committing to production code. Divergent thinking still matters – AI tools often generate a single solution, so teams need to deliberately explore multiple directions and alternatives rather than blindly optimising the first result. Prototypes have four key audiences – Early prototypes help clarify ideas for the creator, align the product team, communicate concepts to stakeholders, and gather feedback from real users. Context beats clever prompting – The quality of AI-generated output depends far more on the context, requirements, and constraints you provide than on the prompt itself. Iteration beats one-shot builds – The real power of these tools comes from rapid experimentation and refinement rather than expecting a perfect result from a single prompt. ... and much more. Dan's stuff LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danolsen98/ Dan's Website: https://dan-olsen.com/ Dan's Vibe Coding Template: https://dan-olsen.com/vibe-coding/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/danolsen Lean Product Meetup: https://www.meetup.com/lean-product/ The Lean Product Playbook: https://amzn.to/1EYCUdP

Hugo Alves, co-founder of Synthetic Users and former clinical psychology master’s student, builds AI tools that generate synthetic qualitative interviews. He explains how the platform creates dynamic interview simulations, the agentic swarm of sub-agents that improves reliability, practical use in B2B research, validation methods to reduce drift, and responses to ethical critiques.

In this episode, I speak with Jessica Hall. Jess is the Chief Product Officer at Just Eat Takeaway, a global leader in the on-demand delivery space. With a professional pedigree that includes leadership roles at UK retail giants like Tesco, Argos, and Sainsbury's, Jess brings a wealth of experience in navigating complex, high-stakes consumer environments. Our conversation delves into the "big idea" of managing a massive three-sided marketplace, balancing the needs of consumers, partners, and couriers while transitioning from a food-centric brand to an "everything delivered" platform. We cover a lot, including: Navigating the Three-Sided Marketplace - Jess describes the Just Eat Takeaway product as a complex ecosystem connecting 60 million active customers with nearly 400,000 partners and a vast network of couriers. The core insight here is that the "product" isn't just an app; it is the seamless orchestration of these three distinct groups, where a failure in one branch inevitably disrupts the value for the others. Scaling Global Platforms with Local Nuance - Despite operating a global tech platform, Jess emphasises the importance of "optionality" to respect regional differences, from currency formatting to cultural preferences like cash usage. This approach allows the company to maintain a unified technical infrastructure while remaining flexible enough to adapt when a specific market, like the UK or Canada, leads the way in new category demands like grocery delivery. The Power of Customer Closeness - Moving beyond data and reports, Jess advocates for getting "on the ground" to talk to couriers and visit partner restaurants. By understanding the physical realities, such as a busy kitchen staff finding a feature too cumbersome to use during peak hours, product leaders can solve real-world friction that data trends alone might overlook. Cultivating Dual-Track Career Paths - Recognising that not every brilliant product mind wants to manage people, Jess champions the value of senior Individual Contributor roles. She highlights that technical and strategic mastery is just as vital as people management, and providing high-level growth opportunities for ICs ensures the organisation retains its most creative and experienced problem solvers. Leading Through Influence and Commerciality - Jess argues that the best product leaders act as "first-rate business partners" rather than just a bridge between engineering and the business. By focusing on "win-win" outcomes and deeply understanding commercial metrics like order volumes and market trends, product teams earn the credibility needed to influence strategy at the highest levels. Check out Just Eat Takeaway Check out Just Eat Takeaway's website: https://justeattakeaway.com, or their careers page: https://careers.justeattakeaway.com. Connect with Jess You can connect with Jess on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicalrhall.  

Michele Hansen, co-founder and CEO of Geocodio and author of "Deploy Empathy," shares her insights on user research in an AI-driven world. She emphasizes that while AI can assist with tasks like transcription, it cannot replicate the invaluable insights gained from real customer conversations. Michele explores the role of curiosity in interviews, the pitfalls of relying solely on synthetic users, and how research should transform teams, not just products. Her core message? Engage with real people for genuine understanding, even in the age of AI.

On this episode, I speak to Tim Herbig, long-time product management coach, speaker, and author of the new book "Real Progress". Tim has worked with companies like StepStone, Chrono24, Deutsche Telekom and Specsavers, and has spent years helping product managers stop hiding behind frameworks and start making a meaningful impact. His work focuses on helping teams connect product strategy, OKRs and discovery without falling into the trap of rigid process correctness. Episode highlights: Alibi Progress vs Real Progress - how teams hide behind "the right way" of doing things, obsessing over methods and templates instead of asking whether any of it actually works The Progress Wheel - Tim's diagnostic loop that ties strategy, OKRs and discovery together so teams can see where they're actually stuck and what to do next The three attributes of good product strategy: Decisiveness, Layering and Executability How to handle OKRs when leadership gives you metrics you can’t influence using zones of control and contribution How to sell discovery to sceptical stakeholders - by framing it as "protecting the company's investment", not a fluffy UX ritual Reverse-mapping discovery when you're handed a solution - even if you have to build it, work backwards to define the outcome Why frameworks should be starting points, not destinations - and why Tim would be disappointed if anyone adopted his wheel dogmatically ... And much more. Buy the book You can grab a copy of Real Progress here: Tim's site: https://herbig.co/real-progress-book/ Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/398275190X Contact Tim Website: https://herbig.co LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/herbigt/  

On this episode, I speak to Sean O'Neill. Sean is the Chief Product & Technology Officer at Syncron, and an executive product leader with a storied career spanning companies like Amazon, Tesco, and GfK. We bond over our shared history at GfK, speak about how Amazon has influenced his product thinking, how it's developed since he moved on, and his approach to portfolio management and right-sizing investments across the product portfolio. We cover a lot, including: There's no greater crime than building something the universe doesn't need: Sean's ten key product principles that he lists on LinkedIn - first developed at Tesco - all matter, but building pointless stuff tops his list of product sins. Use the right tool for the job: Amazon shaped Sean's product DNA, but he's clear that context is king - you can't simply transplant Big Tech practices into legacy environments and expect them to work wholesale. Most companies under-invest in their strategy: When progress stalls, it's usually because teams are spread too thin across BAU work and one-off feature requests. The best product firms align time and capacity to strategic bets (or admit that they're a professional services company). Adopt a portfolio mindset: Sean's capital allocation framework helps leaders size and re-balance investments, ensuring resources go where they'll have the biggest impact - and revisiting regularly (but not too regularly) to stay honest. Learn the language of money: Too many product leaders avoid finance. Sean argues that financial literacy isn't optional if you want credibility with the board and real influence on business outcomes. Learn the numbers! Connect with Sean You can connect with Sean on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seanon/. There you'll find a number of articles, including the one we discuss in this interview: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/you-dont-need-more-engineers-better-strategic-bets-sean-o-neill-s0vze/ Connect with Sean's "mystery caller" You can connect with special guest interviewer Sterling O'Neill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sterlingoneill/.

Georgie Smallwood, Chief Product, Technology & Data Officer at Moonpig, shares her impressive journey through leading product teams at N26 and Xero. She discusses the importance of creating 'moments that matter' in gifting and emphasizes that technology should connect people rather than distance them. Georgie explores the delicate balance of personalization and emotional connection, advocating for careful AI integration. She believes in empowering teams while maintaining necessary leadership and stresses the need for innovation governance in a rapidly changing landscape.

On this episode, I speak to my friend Nesrine Changuel, product coach and author of the new book "Product Delight". Nesrine started her career at Bell Labs as a research engineer before moving into product management at Microsoft, Spotify, and Google, where she even held the title "PM for Delight" on Google Meet. Her work focuses on how products can go beyond functionality to create genuine emotional connections with users. Episode highlights: Why Product Delight is more than just a “nice to have”, and isn't just confetti on your boring app The three pillars of Product Delight: reducing friction, anticipating needs, and exceeding expectations The difference between surface delight (like balloons on your Apple Watch) and deep delight (features that serve emotional and functional needs together) Why delight matters just as much in B2B products as in consumer apps, and why everything is B2H How to get buy-in from leaders and stakeholders by linking emotional connection to revenue, retention, and referrals The Delight Grid and Nesrine's four-step model for embedding delight into your product process The risks of chasing the wrong kind of delight (like Deliveroo's failed Mother's Day campaign or Apple's awkward gesture fireworks) ... And much more. Buy the book You can grab a copy of Product Delight here: Nesrine's site: https://nesrine-changuel.com/product-delight-book/ Amazon UK: https://a.co/d/1J7JLZZ Contact Nesrine Website: https://www.nesrine-changuel.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nesrinechanguel Newsletter: https://nesrinechanguel.substack.com

Katya Denike, Chief Product Officer at Holland & Barrett, shares insights from her journey leading a major digital transformation in this iconic health retailer. She discusses revitalizing a 150-year-old brand through innovative supply chain logistics, enhancing customer experiences, and adapting global strategies to local markets. Katya highlights the success of bringing the mobile app in-house, transforming its revenue share dramatically. She also emphasizes the underappreciated role of internal product management and the importance of mentorship within leadership.