An inside look at how CNN builds product | Upasna Gautam
Brought to you by Amplitude—Build better products: https://amplitude.com/ | OneSchema—Import CSV data 10x faster: https://oneschema.co/lenny | Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security: https://vanta.com/lenny — Upasna Gautam is a product manager at CNN Digital, where she works closely with editorial staff and journalists to build their internal content management system. She is also a longtime meditation coach and a board member of the News Product Alliance. In today’s episode, we delve into how product teams are structured and operate at CNN, how CNN uses OKRs and roadmaps, and the unique challenges and opportunities in designing a digital product for journalists. Upasna also shares a story about her team’s product saving the day during the 2020 elections and gives listeners a free mini lesson on meditation. Listen now on Apple, Spotify, Google, Overcast, and YouTube. Find the transcript for this episode and all past episodes at: https://www.lennyspodcast.com/episodes/. Today’s transcript will be live by 8 a.m. PT. Where to find Upasna Gautam: • Twitter: https://twitter.com/UpasnaGautam • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/upasnagautam/ • Website: https://linktr.ee/upasnagautam Where to find Lenny: • Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ Referenced: • Insight Timer: https://insighttimer.com/ • News Product Alliance: https://newsproduct.org/ • Mindfulness in Plain English: https://www.amazon.com/Mindfulness-English-Bhante-Henepola-Gunaratana/dp/0861719069 • How to Win Friends & Influence People: https://www.amazon.com/How-Win-Friends-Influence-People/dp/0671027034/ • The New Product Development Game: https://hbr.org/1986/01/the-new-new-product-development-game • The Mandalorian on Disney+: https://www.disneyplus.com/series/the-mandalorian/3jLIGMDYINqD • Ted Lasso on AppleTV+: https://tv.apple.com/us/show/ted-lasso/umc.cmc.vtoh0mn0xn7t3c643xqonfzy • Everything Everywhere All at Once on Showtime: https://www.sho.com/titles/3493875/everything-everywhere-all-at-once • Andor on Disney+: https://disneyplusoriginals.disney.com/show/andor In this episode, we cover: (00:00) Upasna’s background (03:13) How Upasna’s meditation background helps her thrive in the chaotic world of product at CNN (08:55) How PMs at CNN build in buffer time and create backup plans when breaking news hits (10:26) How the product team works with editorial staff and journalists at CNN (15:22) The product org structure at CNN Digital (19:02) OKRs at CNN (20:10) How CNN’s product teams do long-term planning (21:37) Why Upasna involves the tech lead in all product discovery/product review meetings (23:51) How to boost morale with remote teams (27:39) Balancing maintenance with building new stuff (29:21) The time CNN.com went down in 2020 and the new platform saved the day (31:21) How the product team rehearses breaking news (34:22) The superpowers Upasna and her team have cultivated (35:50) Why meditation and honing your communication skills help you excel as a PM (42:01) How to get started on the path of meditation (44:39) The work News Product Alliance is doing and how to get involved (51:54) Lightning round Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com. |
Key phrases
Older messages
How to be prepared for layoffs
Tuesday, February 21, 2023
What you can do today to avoid getting caught off guard in case layoffs come for you
10 lessons on bootstrapping a $200m business | Patrick Campbell (ProfitWell)
Sunday, February 19, 2023
Listen now (74 min) | Brought to you by Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security: https://vanta.com/lenny | Amplitude—Build better products: https://amplitude.com/ | Dovetail—Bring your customer
Understanding the role of product ops | Christine Itwaru (Pendo)
Friday, February 17, 2023
Listen now (67 min) | Brought to you by Amplitude—Build better products: https://amplitude.com/ | Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security: https://vanta.com/lenny | Lenny's Job Board—Hire the
Growth inflections
Tuesday, February 14, 2023
Stories behind growth unlocks for Figma, Facebook, Airbnb, YouTube, Tinder, DoorDash, and others
Mastering onboarding | Lauryn Isford (Head of Growth at Airtable)
Sunday, February 12, 2023
Listen now (64 min) | Brought to you by Public—Invest in stocks, treasuries, crypto, and more: https://public.com/lenny | Miro—A collaborative visual platform where your best work comes to life: https:
You Might Also Like
Best channel to grow ecommerce in 2024?
Friday, April 26, 2024
See what Ezra Firestone says , Do you know that more than 100 million Americans like to shop online? It's no wonder that the ecommerce market is on track to hit a jaw-dropping $6.3 trillion this
MicroConf Atlanta — My Biggest Learnings — The Bootstrapped Founder 315
Friday, April 26, 2024
MicroConf 2024 is over, and you get to learn what I learned.
What to expect at Sifted Summit 2024
Friday, April 26, 2024
Haven't got your ticket yet? Here's what to expect over the two days. View this email in your browser. 1200 x 380 (Desktop & Tablet) (2)-1 Hey there, Is it just us, or is the Summit Summit
The problem with VC: Reason #384
Friday, April 26, 2024
We have brunch with HelixNano cofounder Carina Namih, Isomer enters secondaries market and the startups mitigating AI's impact on the climate. View in browser Notion flagship logo final Good
SaaSHub Weekly - Apr 25
Thursday, April 25, 2024
SaaSHub Weekly - Apr 25 Featured and useful products 12 Foot Ladder logo 12 Foot Ladder Prepend 12ft.io/ to the URL of any paywalled page, and we'll try our best to remove the paywall and get you
Editor’s Brief: The Robotics Renaissance
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Why we're entering into an automation supercycle. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Converso, Mood Board AI, For Future, Editor.do, and AI Chat
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Help solve humanity's existential risks with your talent/money/time BetaList BetaList Daily Win a $100 Amazon gift card? Fill out this one-question survey about domain names. Marc Converso AI
Partnering with Dropzone: Automating Security Operations with AI
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Tomasz Tunguz Venture Capitalist If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here. Partnering with Dropzone: Automating Security Operations with
if I were starting over today…
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Read time: 1 min, 20 sec A lot of people ask me: “Pat, what would you do if you were starting all over today?” Most of the time, I think they're looking for a quick fix. (hint: there's no such
Free ecomm coaching from multi-7-figure founders >
Thursday, April 25, 2024
Sign up for foundr+ to learn more > , Here at Foundr, we believe that taking initiative should ALWAYS be rewarded. That's why YOU, as a summit attendee, will get to join an exclusive 4-week