Perception Is Everything
A collaboration with another great writer, Artur Henriques, about perception and hype
Welcome to this speacial edition of Leading in Product.
Note to my readers: I am an avid reader of another publication, The Long Missing SoW. While I write about product management, Artur Henriques writes about project management - and there are many similarities!
Today it is my pleasure to introduce you to Artur and his writing!
If you like the articles, I highly encourage you to subscribe to Artur’s work as well!
I'm genuinely pleased to connect with you today, and a special thank you to Benedikt for this wonderful opportunity to share some reflections from my experiences.
It is a fantastic experience to start a new project, I know! However, sometimes this collective excitement, which everyone involved contributes to, can create a 'hype train' where expectations may detach from achievable reality. In the first article, I share my experience and some tips on how to navigate that initial project momentum. A phase that is different but exciting as well, yet potentially delicate for the project execution.
Unfortunately, delivering and executing isn't the whole story, which brings me to my second article. I share a story where, from a technical team's view, IT was initially seen merely as 'an inconvenience' or 'a problem to be fixed'. Yet, we risk confusing 'problem solved' with 'value delivered' if we only see it from our internal perspective. My article covers how our view can significantly differ from the client’s, even if we deliver what they asked for. It doesn’t matter what the reality is, what matters is how our product is perceived on the other side.
Back to me!
When I read Artur's articles, I remembered that form is not everything. Substance also counts. I'm delighted to share two of my own posts on similar topics:
One of them is about frameworks, but I'm not going to highlight yet another framework that solves all our problems. This is one common perception: You have a problem, and you're about to find the perfect solution! All you have to do is add a framework, and you're all set. This is not the case.
In a second post, I dive into the fascinating topic of uncertainty, exploring its many dimensions and implications. Some companies thrive in the face of uncertainty, while others falter. The exciting thing is that the uncertainty itself does not change, as it is inherently in the world.
Why Frameworks Are Attractive
Gunnar R. Fischer, who writes Leader of the Chocolate Guild, mentioned something that resonated much with me:
To conclude this edition, a big thank you to Artur Henriques for this collaboration! Find the link to his newsletter below.
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