How to manage a high-performing remote team

Facebook vs. Google: 10 Contrasts for Engineering Careers

Earlier this week, I saw Rushabh Doshi tweet about this article. He was the Senior Director of Engineering and Product Management at Facebook for five years, so he's experienced much of what this article talks about firsthand. If you're curious about what an engineering career looks like at Facebook vs. Google, this article gives you great insight into the nuances that might otherwise take you years to learn if you worked at either (or both) companies. 

It's Time to Build a Slow Burn Startup

I'd argue there has never been a better time to build a slow burn company, which is one that grows slowly but can develop tremendous value—sometimes without giving up much external equity. Slow burn startups have small teams with outsized impact and take years to amass success, but they are also more resilient and capital efficient than the average company. If you were to build a slow burn startup, what would it look like?

The Most Interesting Companies in the World Are Both Consumer and Enterprise Businesses

We tend to segment companies as either consumer or enterprise businesses. But, some of the fastest growing companies are both—Slack, Shopify, Notion, and Airtable, just to name a few. I can already tell this pandemic will catalyze some revolutionary startups. I'm willing to bet the next one won't be a consumer business or an enterprise technology company, but rather, a mix of both.

Lessons in Building Minimum Lovable Products

At this point, we've all heard the term "Minimum Viable Product (MVP)." It certainly has its merits, but I love the idea of launching "Minimum Lovable Products (MLP)" instead. I thoroughly enjoyed this read about how founders and product managers can hone in on the right problem to solve—and build an MLP from it. Here's the biggest shift in thinking from MVP to MLP: You start by focusing on what matters most to your users, not the business. That's a thinking shift a lot of startups would benefit from making. 
 

The Big Email Marketing Teardown

Andrus Purde studied almost 70 emails from seven companies sent over a 100-day period. He looked at factors like: subject lines, CTAs, design, frequency, UTM tracking, and personalization. Here are his findings, as well as some practical applications that may help you improve your email content and marketing-to-sales flow. A few of the big takeaways for me: more is not better, pique curiosity with subject lines, and add value before you try to sell. 

How the Biggest Consumer Apps Got Their First 1,000 Users

Here's a question every startup faces early on: How do I win over my first 1,000 users? This is a fascinating summary of how many major consumer apps acquired their earliest users—and it surprisingly comes down to just seven strategies. Most startups actually find their early users from one strategy. The most interesting thing I took out of this read: You have to do things that don't scale in the beginning. 

Why Customer Retention Is the Ultimate Growth Strategy

I've said it many times, but it's worth repeating: In the long run, retention is more important than acquisition. Of course it's critical to grow—especially in the beginning. But, I've observed too many startups put all their focus on growth and little to no energy on retention. Now is the perfect time to double down on retention optimization—and . 

How to Manage a High-Performing Remote Team

Here's a crazy stat: If only half of US employees who were able to work remotely did so only half the time, they would inject an additional $270 billion into the economy each year. As crazy as this season is for many companies adjusting to remote work for the first time, it might be a blessing in disguise. Check out this helpful guide to managing a high-performing remote team—from amending workflows to automating processes whenever possible.