Brian de Haaff's Blog, page 4

The One Sign Your Company Is Growing Too Fast

What is the most important characteristic of a company founder? Perhaps a visionary mind, bold spirit, or strong work ethic. There is no single answer. But I believe there is one essential trait that is often overlooked. I am talking about patience — the willingness to pursue opportunities and solve challenges as they arrive. This is especially true when it comes to hiring.

Hiring when the truth of the business does not support adding more people only leads to pain.

I understand why it can...

How to Get Executive Buy-In by Creating a Compelling Business Case

Blank checks are rare in most companies. You typically need to first validate how your ideas will impact the business before you get resources assigned and receive financial support. And if you are a product manager, then you know how challenging it is to get leadership buy-in for a big new investment. But to build what customers really need, you must be able to show the executive team that your vision is sound.

This is where a business case comes in — it is an argument for why your organization should t...

Big Goal, Achieved — So Why Do You Feel Lousy?

Achievement is addictive. But it does not automatically lead to bliss. I am referring to what researchers call the arrival fallacy — the mistaken belief that once we accomplish our goals we will be happy. We think that finishing a big project, earning a promotion, or receiving positive feedback from our boss will bring us jo...

8 Smart Tactics for Understanding Customer Pain Points

Have you heard of the Wong-Baker FACES® scale? You may not know the name but I bet you would recognize it immediately. This numerical and visual pain rating scale shows several cartoon faces in increasing amounts of pain — from smiling (zero) to crying (10). No matter how young a patient is or what language they speak, they can use the scale to communicate their current level of suffering. 

The first step to alleviating any pain is to understand its severity and document it.

This is not just for the realm of medic...

How to Properly Scare Yourself (Into a New Role)

Your co-workers would say you are a zombie. You have lost your motivation and it shows. There is no spark in your soul as you drift between meetings. You are in desperate need of a new role — one that actually challenges you. But when you are in a listless state like this, it can be difficult to get worked up about anything. You must figure out how to jolt yourself into action. Sleepwalking is no way to live.

True happiness comes from achieving something meaningful. But it requires you to push yourself...

The Founder’s Paradox: How to Make Time for Strategy in an “Agile” World

“To get off the treadmill.” I once asked a friend why he moved from Silicon Valley a few years ago and this is what he said. But I am not sure there are many places you can go these days to avoid it. Unless you make a conscious decision to slow down. And many of us do not want to — we all have our reasons. 

I have a deep sense of purpose and an appreciation that life is short — I find meaning in individual and team achievement.

That achievement is not limited to professional work either. As another friend ribbed yest...

5 Questions Every Frustrated Product Manager Should Ask When Dates Slip

Busy is not always better. I have written before about the difference between busy work and meaningful work. Our time is finite, so it is important to be purposeful about where we put our effort. This is especially true if you are a product manager striving to provide real value to customers. But what if, despite your best efforts and plenty of busy days, you are not delivering new features on time?

You are in the business of building — you have the honor of making things that create value for your com...

9 Excuses Bosses Use to Keep People From Working Remotely

I still cannot understand why companies do not want people working remotely. It has served us incredibly well at Aha! — but I also believe it is important to consider differing points of view. So I recently asked folks on LinkedIn for the reasons employers had rejected remote work. One particular response floored me. “This job is too important to be remote.” Wow. This perfectly encapsulates every misguided notion that exists about the nature of distributed teams.

It is a fallacy that people...

The Product Manager vs. the CEO vs. the CTO

Do you like tennis? If you like watching it live, you know that it is best to sit behind one of the players. Because if you are at mid-court, you may get dizzy snapping your head back and forth to follow the ball. And if you are a product manager caught watching angry volleys between a CEO and CTO, you also know the whiplash feeling. 

So how do you avoid becoming nauseous when the CEO and CTO are engaged in vigorous competition?  

Tension between different function areas is not unique — esp...

Hey Product Managers: It Is Time to Set the Strategy That You Think Is Right

“Vision.” What does this word mean to you? I define it as knowing what you want to accomplish and where you want to go. In business, it can be difficult to determine what your vision is and then commit to it. Of course, this is a lot easier if you are the CEO of a company. Everyone looks to you to set the strategy and wants to know how they can help make the company a success.

But if you are a product manager, your strategy is not always aligned with what everyone else in the organization w...