Episode 249: Moving Beyond Function in Product Management with Nesrine Changuel

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1. 

   E253 · 22 Oct 2025 · 38 min

   Episode 253: Intelligent Friction in Digital Banking with Tony Brancato

   Tony Brancato, Chief Product Officer at Charlie Financial, joins Melissa Perri on the Product Thinking Podcast to discuss the unique challenges and opportunities in developing financial products for older Americans. With a focus on security and user-friendliness, Tony shares how Charlie Financial is reimagining banking for the senior demographic, often overlooked by tech innovations. The conversation reveals insights into building trust with users, the role of intelligent friction in product design, and the importance of understanding user needs in product development. Want to know how to…

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   E251 · 8 Oct 2025 · 38 min

   Episode 251: From CERN to FemTech Innovation with Magda Armbruster

   Dr. Magda Armbruster, Head of Product at Natural Cycles, joins Melissa Perri to discuss her unique journey from physics to product management, and how she leverages her scientific background to innovate in women's health technology. As the first FDA-cleared birth control app, Natural Cycles offers a non-hormonal alternative for women and is expanding into new areas such as perimenopause. Dr. Armbruster delves into the challenges and opportunities of integrating user feedback, scientific data, and regulatory compliance in product development. Explore how Natural Cycles maintains user trust…

3. 

   E250 · 3 Oct 2025 · 13 min

   Episode 250: Building Smart: Clarity Over Perfection

   What framework or experience do product managers rely on to determine when a feature is ready for delivery? Product managers should balance clarity and collaboration with developers when determining if a feature is ready for delivery. Key considerations include validating the feature's worth, assessing risk levels, and ensuring specifications provide enough context for developers to start coding without needing every detail defined. Iteration and communication are essential for successful product development, allowing teams to adapt and refine features as they progress. Episode resources:…

4. 

   E248 · 26 Sep 2025 · 14 min

   Episode 248: Escaping the Reactive Trap in Product Teams

   How can a product manager handle a backlog of unanswered customer support tickets and enhancement requests while transitioning to a more strategic approach? Addressing a backlog of customer requests requires strategic thinking rather than reactive responses. To manage this, categorize requests into buckets, establish communication rhythms for backlog reviews, and reset stakeholder expectations. Focus on quick wins to build credibility, engage with stakeholders collaboratively, and protect time for strategic discovery. Ultimately, create a framework for product strategy to prioritize feature…

5. 

   E247 · 24 Sep 2025 · 55 min

   Episode 247: Freeing Teams from Operational Overload with John Cutler

   In this episode, Melissa Perri is joined by John Cutler to explore the often overlooked yet crucial role of product operations in driving organizational success. They dive into the balancing act between having the right people and the right processes, emphasizing how both are essential in managing complexity and fostering innovation. The conversation takes a deep dive into strategic planning, discussing flexible frameworks and the balance between simplification and nuance. They also touch upon the potential impact of AI in product operations, addressing the opportunities and challenges it…

6. 

   E246 · 19 Sep 2025 · 7 min

   Episode 246: Rethinking the Role of R&D

   How can a company successfully integrate an R&D department that primarily works with academia within a product management model that emphasizes engineering, design, and business? The discussion emphasizes the role of R&D in product management, questioning its necessity when engineering teams are empowered. R&D can serve as content or market experts but may become disconnected from customer value if not integrated properly. It's important to align R&D efforts with customer needs and business value, especially considering the size of the company and available resources. Episode resources:…

7. 

   E271 · 24 Jun 2026 · 11 min

   Episode 271: The Gap Between AI Adoption and AI Strategy

   In this solo episode of the Product Thinking Podcast, Melissa Perri shares the results of the State of AI in Product 2026 survey of 309 product leaders, co-published with Product Circle. The tools are everywhere, but the work has not changed. Melissa walks through five findings and what they mean for you. Adoption is nearly universal, yet only a third of leaders say AI is strengthening their operating model. Melissa explains why the bottleneck is still upstream in discovery and decisions, and why AI acts as a multiplier rather than an equalizer, helping mature organizations and exposing the…

8. 

   E270 · 3 Jun 2026 · 14 min

   Episode 270: How Experimentation Becomes Culture

   What does it actually take for experimentation to stick inside a product organization? In this compilation episode of the Product Thinking Podcast, Melissa Perri brings together three perspectives on the leadership behaviors, portfolio decisions, and iteration loops that separate real experimentation from theater. David Bland, author of Testing Business Ideas, opens with what he has seen go wrong in well-funded companies that treat experimentation as a checkbox. He follows with a story about programs that died when leadership stopped reinforcing them, and the difference between living in a…

9. 

   E269 · 20 May 2026 · 15 min

   Episode 269: Continuous Discovery Habits That Actually Work

   Continuous discovery sounds simple and breaks down constantly in practice. In this compilation episode of the Product Thinking Podcast, Melissa Perri brings together three perspectives on what it actually takes to build the habit and why slowing down on discovery is still the fastest path to shipping the right thing. Teresa Torres, author of Continuous Discovery Habits, breaks down the structure underneath every method: outcome, opportunity, and solution. Teams doing this right never have to stop and replan. Christina Wodtke, lecturer at Stanford and formerly at Zynga, follows with the…

10. 

    E268 · 6 May 2026 · 25 min

    Episode 268: Rethinking What Done Means in Product Ops

    What does it mean for a product to actually be “done”? Not code in production, but customers buying, using, and loving it. In this compilation episode of the Product Thinking Podcast, Melissa Perri brings together three product leaders to explore the systems that make whole product launches consistent. Trisha Price, then Chief Product Officer at Pendo, argues for shifting the team's definition of done from "code complete" to "whole product complete." She reframes product marketing as a strategic voice in discovery, not a translation layer at launch, and shares how cadences keep the work…

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