Product Collective - 💡 Not a good idea

When generating ideas, more is not always better

Ideas are an important input to the product development process. And like many other processes, the rule of garbage in, garbage out certainly applies. Sure you want lots of ideas, but you really want lots of good ideas. A good idea represents a workable solution to a problem you’re trying to solve. Here are some ways to generate good ideas rather than just cranking out a bunch of ideas that never go anywhere.

Product ideation: model, process & 9 techniques that work. Ideas are thoughts about possible courses of action, and they are the heart and soul of creation. Sometimes ideas come naturally, but it takes some hard work and creativity to create something new most of the time. In the product development process, product ideation is a critical component to sparking new ideas and features.
(via @prodcollective)

Brainstorming Techniques: 15 Creative activities to do solo or as a team. You’re probably familiar with traditional brainstorming to produce new ideas. You sit in a room with a whiteboard and work with whatever comes to mind. But there are many alternative exercises for tackling problems and developing new ideas, both individually and in a group setting. Ranging from structured to silly, Dani Mansfield shared the best creative brainstorming exercises and techniques to help you get your problem-solving juices flowing.
(via @danimansfield)

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Be careful out there, PM's

If you’ve been on “tech Twitter” lately, you may notice that the last few days have almost felt like the first few weeks of the pandemic – when company after company started announcing layoffs. Just this past week alone, companies like Cameo, Main Street, and On Deck have all announced major cuts. It’s not just early-stage startups, either. Even companies like Netflix are going through a “reorganization” right now.

So now what? What do you do when you’re a tech worker in a world where tech companies are in “right-sizing” mode? A few things come to mind…

1. Buckle down. Now isn’t the time to get too distracted at work. I know that may be difficult, all things considered. But get those wins under your belt. Show your company why they hired you in the first place. Let them see your worth. You’re a valuable asset to your organization and they should feel that right now.
    
2. Help your friends out. Even if you don’t end up getting affected by layoffs, you will likely have friends at other companies that do. Go out of your way to help those friends. Introduce them to others who have open roles. You shouldn't be doing it for transactional reasons, but because it’s the right thing to do. And you know how karma works… doing good deeds now will help you later.
    
3. Keep your eyes open. Look, your company isn’t your family (despite what your CEO likes to say right before they ask you to work a weekend). If you love your job and your company is thriving… then you’re in a great spot. But if things are a little murky, then keep your eyes open in case an opportunity pops up from a company that is thriving.

Be careful out there, Product Managers. And if anything happens – we’re here to help. Our Slack is always active with PM’s helping other PM’s… and our Job Board has plenty of open roles. We’ve got your back!

Product Collective, along with our friends at ProductLed, Productboard and Chameleon, has put together The Ultimate Guide for Product Managers with some of the best Product Management resources out there, including:

• Top online communities
• Best Product Management books
• Most valuable newsletters
• Articles on product discovery, careers, strategy, and much more!

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INDUSTRY: The Product Conference is back with a bang! The in-person edition returns on September 19-21 in Cleveland, Ohio, reviving the top independent product conference anywhere. Build your network and find inspiration as you'll learn from some of the best -- like David Cancel (CEO at Drift), Sarah Butterfass (CPO at FanDuel), and even Mark Duplass (award-winning filmmaker and co-star of Apple TV's The Morning Show).

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Stop brainstorming and generate better ideas. If your workplace is like most companies, there is no shortage of ideas. Customers, employees, your neighbors, everyone has an idea about what you should build next. Having an endless stream of ideas isn’t necessarily a good thing. If most of those ideas are not things you’re going to implement, those ideas become a burden rather than an asset. Teresa Torres explains how you can approach idea generation and idea management to increase the applicability of the ideas you work with.
(via @ttorres)

How our ongoing ideation process led us to create product validation software. Have you ever been in the position of watching your product team finish up its current initiative with no idea of what to work on next? This can grind development to a stop and create stress for you and your team. If this happens to you regularly, now is the time to set up a repeatable ideation process that helps your team come up with new ideas consistently. Rob Ridgeway, Senior Product Manager at UserVoice, shares the ongoing ideation process that his team uses to help them build the best product possible. 
(via @uservoice)

5 Sources of idea generation for product development. In today’s world, where the intersection of tech advancements and user needs makes us reinvent the way we work day by day, ideas have become one of the most valuable things to trade and possess. Tech has hardly any limitations, allowing you to create anything at any scale almost instantly. When you’re actively trying to come up with the next Spotify, Slack or Trello, it may seem like all great ideas have already been used up. To help you find those new ideas, Nancy Kelly describes 5 sources of ideas you can use to guide your product development efforts.
(via @storiesonboard)

Breaking into the world of Product Management

Let's face it — making your way into the world of product management probably wasn't so easy. Very few of us went to school for product management — and most of us probably feel like we simply "fell into" the profession. But what if it could be easier for those breaking into product? As product people today, what can we do to play our part in helping pave the way for others? And once we've helped people find their way to our own organizations… what else can we do to help empower them?

We'll dive into all of this and more with Seth Hutcheson, Senior Product Manager at insightsoftware — with plenty of time for you to ask questions of your own as well!

This webinar is sponsored by our friends at Logi Analytics.

1. A newsletter each and every Friday centered around an important product topic, like roadmapping, strategy, and analytics.
2. Access to a thriving Slack group with thousands of others to share advice, tips and get feedback on your work.
3. Plus, invitations to exclusive video chats, special member privileges at the conferences we hold in the United States and Europe, and more!