Divya Venkataramu

During my interview process at Asana, I made a mistake that I thought would cost me the role. It was during the product design question, where I was asked to design a “YouTube for kids”. My training for this question was pristine. I could do it my sleep. The Why, the Who, the prioritization. All was going great until they asked me about the success criteria. What was the exact action I wanted to use to measure engagement? I opened my mouth and said: “Reproduction count”. Everyone in the room looked at me, puzzled. What I had just said made no sense whatsoever. You see, English is not my first language. In Spanish, we use the word “Reproducción” to refer to a video view count. My answer was good, only that for my American audience, I had used the word for "making babies”. Great. That threw me off, so I tried to finish the exercise the best way I could. I gave myself a hard time for days, convinced that I had bombed the exercise with my crappy English. But I hadn’t. I got the offer. Years later, talking to my manager at Asana, we recalled that moment. I told her I was mortified at the time. She looked at me and shrugged: “No biggie, your process was great, so that didn’t matter”. Mistakes are amplified 10-fold when you are the one making them. It’s called the “spotlight effect”. Remember that and carry on. No biggie. Learn strategies to land a Product Manager job, for free ➡️ arijanover.com #productmanagement #jobsearch #aspiringpms #productmanagers #interview #jobinterview

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"Product management is like choosing the perfect masala for your chai. You get to experiment with flavors, find the perfect blend that everyone loves. Program management is like making sure the chai stall has enough water, milk, and that the stove is always lit. Product gets the happy customers, program keeps the chai flowing!" #productmanagement #productmanager #productstrategy #productdevelopment #uxindia #programmanagement #programmanager #projectmanagement #projectmanagerindia #madeinindia #indianstartups #indianbusiness #chaiwallah #chaiholic #humor #productmemes #pmlife #productfun

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A 100% agree with this for learning a new skill. The end result of following tutorials might look great but understanding the fundamentals and tinkering with minimum instructions is what helps the most.

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I have always believed in the power of mentorship and paying it forward. 🌱 It's been an incredible journey navigating my own career in product management, and I have been so fortunate to have mentors who've guided me along the way. Now, I am opening my (virtual) doors to offer that same guidance to you. If you're an aspiring or seasoned product manager looking for personalised support, a sounding board, or just someone to cheer you on, I would love to connect! I am offering one-on-one coaching and mentorship on TopMate, where we can tackle everything from interview prep and resume reviews to career transitions and personal growth. I know firsthand how challenging yet rewarding this journey can be, and I am here to help you navigate it with confidence. As the saying goes, "I water you, you water me, and we grow together." Let's learn and grow together! 😊 #ProductManagement #Mentorship #CareerGrowth

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🔥 Excited to announce my new page on Topmate! 🔥 I am excited to give back to the community, and help others with guidance through my page. 🙌 As an experienced individual, I can't wait to share my knowledge and skills on product management, category management, and growth & strategy. 🚀 Let's connect and make an impact together! 💡 #Topmate #Mentorship #GiveBack

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Just wrapped up an exhilarating journey through the Advanced Product Management: Vision, Strategy, and Metrics course on Udemy! 🎓💼 In this dynamic program, I delved deep into the core pillars of effective product management, gaining invaluable insights into crafting a compelling vision, devising robust strategies, and leveraging metrics to drive impactful decisions. Here's a glimpse of what I learned: 🔍 Understanding Vision & Strategy: Unraveled the true essence of vision and strategy and their pivotal role in product management. 🚀 Becoming a Visionary: Explored the qualities that define a great visionary and learned how to articulate a clear and inspiring vision. 🗺️ Crafting Effective Roadmaps: Mastered the art of creating agile roadmaps, essential for navigating the complex landscape of product development. 📊 Metrics Mastery: Gained proficiency in deciphering various metrics, from e-commerce to mobile and marketplace products, and understanding their significance in driving business success. 🧠 Data vs. Intuition: Discovered the delicate balance between relying on data and intuition in decision-making processes. 💡 Real-World Applications: Engaged with real-world examples, illustrating the practical application of advanced product management techniques. With a solid foundation in product management, I'm equipped to tackle challenges head-on and drive innovation in any organization. 💪 #ProductManagement #VisionAndStrategy #MetricsMastery #ProfessionalDevelopment #UdemyCourse #ContinuousLearning

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Netflix had a problem: users were sharing access without paying for it. "While everyone at the company agreed it had to crack down on password sharing, the question was how." What happens in most companies when they don't know how to solve a problem? They listen to the highest paid person's opinion (HiPPO) and implement that idea. What did Netflix do? They analyse, debate, hypothesize and test. The CEO got it wrong and that's ok in an experiment driven organisation. source: Lucas Shaw (Bloomberg) #experimentation #decisionmaking

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Just completed an incredible journey through the world of Generative AI! I had the opportunity to learn AWS SageMaker, AWS Bedrock, and Foundational models. The experience was amazing, and I feel like I gained so much knowledge and insight into the power of AI. One of the highlights of my journey was implementing fine-tuning of FMs for an insurance project. I am excited to see where this newfound knowledge will take me next! #GenerativeAI #AWS #ArtificialIntelligence #AIlearning

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Earlier this year when I began peeping out of my blissful career break, a conversation went something like this; "Walk me thru the end to end product life cycle of an AI product that you managed!!" So, this is beginning of 2024, considering a year long corp break I took that I had put out there for everyone to clearly see, and since we were talking about an entire product life cycle, if my math maths, we were talking about a time period of somewhere between 2020 - 2022. Certainly a timeframe when every silicon valley PM was neck deep managing AI product life cycle!!! Since I don't believe in the war cry, "fake it till you make it", I gave a straight answer of- "there werent any AI products in my purview to be managed in this time frame" trying not to smirk. As I see every Linkedin profile getting a fast prefix/suffix of AI, every startup is about GenAI, I got reminded of this. The pressure, the FOMO to belong in yet another race is real. But, I do hope before jumping in folks do ask themselves, am I trying to dive into the shallow end of the pool or the deep end of the pool. Otherwise, all we will end up with is a membership in yet another buzzword bingo club!

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Google's $1 billion investment in Pacific connectivity is a major milestone in bridging the digital divide and fostering a more connected world. This initiative not only strengthens infrastructure but also holds the promise of transforming lives and economies across the Pacific region. As we move towards an increasingly digital future, investments like these are crucial in ensuring that everyone can benefit from the opportunities that connectivity brings. “In partnership with Governor Green’s administration, Hawaii's Connect Kakou initiative is working to ensure people from all walks of life have reliable and affordable access to high-speed Internet. The Pacific Connect initiative perfectly complements our planned efforts, and will significantly enhance our future connections from Hawaii to the continental U.S. and Japan as well as ensure communities across the Pacific have equitable and reliable access to digital services." - Sylvia Luke, Lieutenant Governor, State of Hawaii https://lnkd.in/gp849ihX https://lnkd.in/gcUwbJs7 Amanda Stange Jen Stanley Reymund Dumlao Jamar Thomas Sandeep Togrikar Steve Lujan Christopher Hein

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A few thoughts on #LLM usage in the small, prompted by my toying with #llama3 and #phi-3 on consumer hardware.

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Hi LinkedIn fam, It has been long months of building and making products great and better. So why am I here and back out of hiatus ? well I had some sort of reflection and and I thought a community helped me land my first role as a Product Manager so I am returning the favor and helping others and if possible land their first role as a APM. So if you are pivoting to tech and want to make a difference then join our community. If you are new to product management and looking to accelerate your career in tech? Join our vibrant community on Telegram, "All Things Product" (https://lnkd.in/eQjtJjEJ), to connect with experienced professionals, gain valuable insights, and access top-notch resources! What to Expect: - Expert advice and mentorship from seasoned product managers - Access to curated resources, including articles, podcasts, and webinars - Networking opportunities with like-minded professionals - Discussions on industry trends, best practices, and innovative strategies - Support and guidance to help you overcome challenges and achieve your goals Whether you're just starting out or looking to upskill, our community is here to help you: - Develop a deeper understanding of product management principles - Stay updated on industry trends and emerging technologies - Build a network of peers and mentors for support and guidance - Enhance your skills and confidence to excel in your tech career Join me today and become part of a dynamic community dedicated to helping you succeed in product management! Regards, Segun Sobodu #Productmanagement #APM #Techcommunity #joinustoday

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Continuing our exploration of evolving learning approaches, happy to share a year-long learning experiment undertaken with my team. A heartfelt thanks to Lenny Rachitsky, whose podcasts were our go-to resource for all things on product management. Our experiment revolved around hosting watch parties for Lenny's Podcasts, fostering real-time discussions and insightful post-party reflections within our team. The primary aim was to infuse our team with the latest success stories, cutting-edge product management methodologies, and emerging trends in the field, all geared towards fostering a culture of continuous learning. Over the past 12 months, we've conducted 20 engaging watch party sessions. Here's a glimpse into our journey and its outcomes…   Wave 1: Rapidly bring everyone together into a rhythm. Weekly 'all team' watch parties (AM/PM alternates time to accommodate US and India teams) Goals: Awareness, continuous learning mindset, PM disciplines Sessions 1- Nature of product - Marty cagan   2 - Why product led growth is the future - Elena Verna 3- Build better products with continuous product discovery - Teresa Torres 4 - Mastering onboarding by Lauryn Isfold 5 - Building better product roadmaps | Janna Bastow (Mind the Product, ProdPad)  Wave2: Focus on broader and deeper discussion topics. Split sessions between India and US (optimized for a Friday ambience) , frequency changed to Every 2/3 weeks, 2 part sessions to cover longer podcasts  Goals: More relaxed setting, increase engagement, explore adjacent topics to PM, Career awareness,  forcing function for practicing listening and sharing perspectives real-time Sessions 6- Julie Zhuo on accelerating your career, impostor syndrome, writing, building product sense 7 - Building minimum lovable products and thriving as a PM | Jiaona Zhang 8- AI and product management | Marily Nika (Meta, Google) 9- Picking sharp problems, increasing virality,unique product frameworks | Oji Udezue 10- A step-by-step guide to crafting a sales pitch that wins | April Dunford 11- Brian Chesky’s new playbook 12: Making time for what matters. Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky  13: Vision, conviction, and hype: How to build 0 to 1 inside a company | Mihika Kapoor  Team Feedback 'Good to see what is possible', 'Engaging speakers sharing practical suggestions' 'Concepts are indeed relevant not just professionally, but also personally' 'Very good content we should factor into our work'.   Next wave in the making… Some Ideas from the team for making it more interesting..  - Sessions with fun exercises or activities  - Contextualize session to real projects  - Book club idea where people share insights from the Podcast in a group setting   In summary, PMs have internalized this paradigm of learning model. With high awareness and absorption of concepts, we are ready to engage with those more deeply at work. Curious to hear your feedback or other similar experiences.  See comments to try it in your teams

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Concerned that your next presentation will be adorned with your AI's "artistic interpretation" (read hallucinations) of the data. Tired of AI assistants autocorrecting "world domination" to "world vacation"? Then join me and Abhishek Jawali V at AWS Summit Bengaluru on May 15th, 2024 at 4:00 PM for a talk on "Advancing Responsible AI in the Generative Era", where we will delve into the emerging risks of AI like hallucinations, toxicity etc. and to ensure it doesn't become the villain in our next sci-fi nightmare (unless, of course, it involves robot chefs who whip up delicious meals). P.S.: And I assure you that no AIs were harmed (or used to write) in the making of this post :) Register here: https://lnkd.in/d-MMK4KV #responsibleAI, #AWS, #AWSSummit, #generativeAI, #GenAI, #AmazonBedrock, #Guardrails, #awscloud, #AI, #CloudComputing, #MachineLearning

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Exciting Announcement! 🚀 Thrilled to share that our new book, "From Ideas to Impact: The Product Manager's Playbook," co-authored by Harish Sridharan, Sangita Raj, and myself, is set to launch soon! "From Ideas to Impact" is the ultimate guide to mastering the art and science of product management. Whether you're an aspiring product manager, a seasoned practitioner, or a business leader, this book offers valuable insights and practical guidance to excel in today's dynamic and fast-paced industry. 📘 Inside, you'll discover: - Core responsibilities and evolving roles of product managers - Essential skills for success across various industries - Navigating the entire product lifecycle from ideation to launch and beyond - Crafting compelling product visions and defining strategic roadmaps - The power of user-centric design, agile methodologies, and data-driven decision-making - Building high-performing teams and managing stakeholder relationships - Scaling your impact as a product leader With real-world case studies, actionable templates, and essential tools, "From Ideas to Impact" equips you to create innovative products that delight users and drive business growth. 🔔 We can't wait to share our insights and experiences with you all. Stay tuned for more details on the launch date! #ProductManagement #Innovation #Leadership #BookLaunch #FromIdeasToImpact

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"When two people disagree about product strategy, it is because they have different assumptions. Because, if you have the same assumptions, there is no reason why a person should think, "We should do X versus we should do Y." So as a PM, you need to understand in the event that it's a top-down strategy, what are the assumptions that led to folks believing that that is the right idea? And then, if it is you pushing something bottoms up, you need to be able to ensure that everyone else has the same assumptions that you have in your head that leads them to believe deeply or not believe deeply." from Mihika Kapoor in Lenny's Newsletter

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The fake news problem is real. Today, there is no independent or trusted media left. Everyone has a bias and it has been amplified with social media echo chambers. The problem with governance is that there is no real way to be completely objective, since the bias of governing body is implied. If we could remove the element of human judgement from governance, it might be possible to have responsible AI

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