Growth Is a Verb: DigitalOcean’s VP of Growth Laura Schaffer

We all want real advice on how to grow a career, right? Meet this week’s guest, Laura Schaffer, Vice President of Growth at DigitalOcean. Laura got her start in sales, and now leads a cross-functional team that includes Growth R&D and Marketing. Prior to DigitalOcean, she built Growth and Product teams at companies like Twilio, Amplitude, and Bandwidth, bringing a depth of experience in product-led growth and experimentation. In conversation with host Shannon Peavey, Laura offers her perspective on making your mark as a product manager, and talks about the power of spending time on validation and fast-fail experimentation. 00:00 Introduction and Sponsor Message01:48 How a sales job lead to a growth career06:50 North Star metrics for the win09:03 How PLG work WITH, not INSTEAD of sales10:00 Bringing sales “snacks” to yield a “buffet”18:34 Validation doesn’t have to mean A/B testing24:00 Experiment fast - and often27:00 Big wins can come from small changes30:00 How is product management changing?33:00 Make time for AI📚Resources:Reforgehttps://www.reforge.com/DigitalOceanhttps://www.digitalocean.com/Amplitudehttps://amplitude.com/Bandwidthhttps://www.bandwidth.com/Twiliohttps://www.twilio.com/en-us🌟 Where to find Laura:On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauraschaffer/🙋🏻‍♀️Where to find Women in Product:On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-product/posts/ Website https://womenpm.org/Join the Community https://womenpm.org/wip-community/

In this episode, Pendo’s senior vice president of product and u/x Nichole Mace talks with host Shannon Peavey about the growth mindset that infiltrates her company’s culture. She illuminates the differences between core product work and product growth work and shares her tips on ways companies can cultivate a collaborative environment, where the spirit of experimentation becomes contagious. Chapters:4:05 Why growth needs to be prioritized6:19  Organizing your mind for pursuing multiple goals7:50 Cultivating team spirit9:30 Knowing when the time is right for a growth push10:50 Why experimentation can be contagious13:40 Nichole’s path into growth15:45 Skills for great growth leaders18:50 How pivots happen: the ZipCar example21:00 Growth loops are golden23:00 Nichole’s 6 Core Product Growth Principles 31:00 What’s AI’s impact?32:15 Life in balanceWhere to find Nichole:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nichole-mace-44bb65/Nichole Mace’s PLG websitehttps://www.nicholemace.com/Resources:Pendo https://www.pendo.io/Constant Contact https://www.constantcontact.com/LastPass https://www.lastpass.com/BevSpot https://bevspot.com/ZipCar https://www.zipcar.com/

In this episode, product growth leader Sandhya Ganesh talks with host Shannon Peavey about the way Tinder builds product-led growth into its culture and its business strategy. She defines common acronyms for measuring success and shares details of her unique path from engineer to product manager. Sandhya offers advice on developing the right mindset to cultivate explosive success.Chapters:1:08: Sandy defines “growth product” and “product-led growth”5:22  Acronym soup10:08 Stickiness metrics11:02 The marketing-product growth partnership14:14 Sandy’s journey from engineer to growth product manager19:06 Critical skills and mindset for product growth21:54 How approaches differ in B2B vs. B2C26:00 Strengthening relationships with your teammates28:33 How Tinder tested rewards programs30:45 The importance of secondary and counter-metrics33:00 Why to hypothesize when experimenting34:15 Why failure needs to be part of the cultureWhere to find Sandhya:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandhya-ganesh/Resources:Deloitte Consulting https://www.deloitte.com/Tinder https://tinder.com/Lending Club https://www.lendingclub.com/

In this episode, host Shannon Peavey welcomes the one and only Elena Verna. But wait, it’s not the illustrious, highly sought-after growth expert herself, but her AI agent, powered by SuperMe. “She” shares deep knowledge from her expansive body of work in growth from Miro to Amplitude to Loveable and shares why company stage matters when thinking through a growth strategy.Chapters:1:50: Elena defines PLG3:45  Skills for aspiring growth PMs 4:20  Choosing the right success metrics 5:58  Why company stage matters to growth strategy7:10  How companies can get started with growth8:12  Stories from SurveyMonkey, Miro and Amplitude10:15 Hitting the ground running at Lovable11:20 Refining the ICP13:00 Collaborating cross-team14:00 Personal reflectionsWhere to find Elena Verna:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elenaverna/Elena’s SuperMe AI Agent: https://www.superme.ai/elenaResources:Elena Verna’s Substack: https://www.elenaverna.com/SuperMe https://www.superme.ai/Lovable https://lovable.dev/Miro https://miro.com/SurveyMonkey https://www.surveymonkey.com/Amplitude https://amplitude.com/Sanity.io https://www.sanity.io/MongoDB https://www.mongodb.com/

Adobe’s Head of Product-Led Growth shares the joys, challenges and opportunities that come with managing growth efforts at an iconic company. She talks about the power of leveraging a unique customer community and being ready to embrace constant evolution. She lets us in on what she sees as the 3 most valuable skills for product growth managers - and her list may surprise you.Chapters:4:05 Adobe’s proprietary onboarding layer5:40  Aligning with organizational goals7:13 Wrangling data across a vast ecosystem 9:48 Critical partnerships: leadership and data science12:10 How to apply correlation analysis13:40 Identifying user habits that signal success15:15 A broad set of funnels21:30 Deepti’s path to PLG24:15 Her number-one skill for growth product managers26:44 AI helps us get to the “so what” faster31:00 Thinking through the ways your customers want to consume AI32:40 How product management itself is evolvingWhere to find Deepti:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deeptipradeep/Resources:Adobe https://www.adobe.com/Box https://www.box.com/homeLitmus https://litmus.io/Deloitte https://www.deloitte.com/in/en.htmlAppCues https://www.appcues.com/

Everyone’s talking about GenAI. But adding it to your product isn’t just about chasing what’s new, it’s about making sure it actually makes sense for your users and your long-term strategy.In this episode, Carmen Palmer, CEO of Women In Product talks with Suba Vasudevan, COO, Mozilla.org and SVP, Mozilla Corp take a look at integrating GenAI into your product roadmap without letting hype override clarity or purpose. Whether you're facing internal pressure to “do something AI,” or you’re genuinely excited by its potential, this conversation will help you avoid common traps like over-scoping, misaligned use cases, or “GenAI theater”, and instead chart a path that’s grounded, scalable, and aligned with your mission.Suba will be a main stage speaker at the 2025 Women In Product Conference.00:00 Introduction to Suba Vasudevan02:08 Early Career Journey and Unique Path04:07 Pivotal Career Moments and Personal Life07:45 Dual Role at Mozilla and Strategic Vision10:49 Incorporating Gen AI into Strategy and Operations19:15 Thought Leadership and Organizational Transformation21:44 Practical Advice for Product Leaders26:44 Challenges and Pitfalls in AI Adoption35:14 Rapid Fire Questions and Personal Insights40:28 Conclusion and Final Thoughts🌟 Where to find Suba:On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/subavasudevan/💫 Where to find Carmen:On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/carmengpalmer/🙋🏻‍♀️Where to find Women in Product:On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-product/posts/ Website https://womenpm.org/Join the Community https://womenpm.org/wip-community/

In this episode, well-known product growth advisor and strategist Leah Tharin talks with host Shannon Peavey about the importance of trust in growth team relationships. Leah defines product led growth, discusses metrics for measuring success, and shares her view on the impact of artificial intelligence on roles and career development.Chapters:1:08: Leah defines “growth product” and “product-led growth”5:22  Where growth teams generally fit into an organization11:18 What is “product-led sales?”16:42 The right metrics20:28 Differences between growth approaches in B2B versus B2C companies24:16 Growth loops for the win28:31 Leah’s path into product growth33:33 What everybody needs to know35:39 Leah’s “controversial” view on AI42:00 Where to learn more 44:00 Personal reflectionsWhere to find Leah Tharin:Leah Tharin’s Substack https://www.leahtharin.com/Podcast: ProducTea with LeahSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/383QGHr8zIk3K04l3ijk9q?si=de5b7a8f8c474c6b&nd=1&dlsi=4c4a8f84cad7478dApple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/productea-with-leah-growth-senior-leadership/id1679153573Maven Course: https://maven.com/leah-tharin/productledgrowthLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leahtharin/?originalSubdomain=chResources:Elena Verna’s Substack: https://www.elenaverna.com/Ben Williams’ PLGeek website:https://www.plgeek.com/Leah’s favorite conditioner:https://functionofbeauty.com/SmallPDF https://smallpdf.com/Jua Jua.aiNotion Capital https://www.notion.vc/

Get ready for a hot new series on growth product management. Elizabeth and series host Shannon Peavey chat about the genesis of our latest set of conversations on a somewhat mysterious product niche. Guests from Pendo, Adobe, Tinder, Lovable as well as consultants, advisors and yes, an AI agent, let us in on what growth product entails. Get the goods on the challenges and opportunities that come alongside growth product efforts and hear why unconventional thinking is part of the job. Tune in weekly to hear about the principles behind this discipline as well as tactics, strategies and mindset crucial to explosive success. Whether you’re an individual contributor, leader, founder, or advisor, get the truth about growth product and how it fits into an organization, affects team dynamics and can accelerate the pace at which a company moves toward scale.#ProductGrowth #WomenInProduct00:00 Introduction by Elizabeth Ames01:07 Genesis of the series03:02 Why growth product is misunderstood04:32 The time for growth product is right now05:49 Our unconventional guest roster07:06 Zigzags: never a straight line07:45 Team tension? Probably9:00 What to expect from guest #1: Leah Tharin09:56 WIP’s fall podcast (and conference!) schedule10:36 Where to get your conference tickets
🌟 Where to find Elizabeth:- On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethames/  
💫 Where to find Shannon
 LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/spmad/

Resources:
ThoughtSpot
https://www.thoughtspot.com/
Walt Disney Co.https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/

WIP 2025 Conference Websitehttps://womenpm.org/conference/🙋🏻‍♀️Where to find Women in Product:On LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-in-product/posts/ Website https://womenpm.org/Join the Community https://womenpm.org/wip-community/

Join Carmen Palmer, CEO of Women in Product, as she chats with Cassie Campbell, a fractional CPO coach and founder, about the insights from their powerful podcast series focused on product leadership coaching. This episode delves into the importance of coaching, distinguishing it from training, and its value for product leaders. They discuss key themes from the series, personal experiences, challenges, and the role of community, especially for Women in Product. Cassie also shares her journey and how coaching can uncover blind spots, foster growth, and enhance leadership quality. Whether you're a seasoned product leader or just starting, this episode offers valuable takeaways to navigate your career journey.00:00 Introduction and Host Transition00:36 Unpacking the Podcast's Focus on Leadership Coaching02:09 Themes from Top Coaches02:34 Customer Discovery and Outcome-Oriented Product Management04:19 The Importance of Context in Coaching10:53 Personal Takeaways and Blind Spots17:58 The Value of Executive Coaching25:23 Treating Learning and Development as a Product32:20 Navigating Financial Conversations in Product Leadership34:14 Behind the Scenes: Building the Podcast Series35:45 The Importance of Coaching in Product Leadership36:58 Key Takeaways from Podcast Production40:00 Addressing Team Challenges and Conflict47:55 The Role of AI in Product Management50:58 A Day in the Life of a Fractional CPO and Coach58:52 The Power of Community and Women in Product📚Resources:Book: What Got You Here Won’t Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith and Mark Reiter - We used the saying “what got you here won’t get you there” in this episode and I thought it important to share that was not to refer to this book. However, I’ve started reading the book and can highly recommend to anyone curious about coaching.Book: Transformed - Moving to the Product Operating Model by Marty Cagan Book: Trillion Dollar Coach by Eric Schmidt Book: Reboot - Leadership and the Art of Growing Up by Jerry Colonna✨Where to find Carmen:On LinkedIn💫 Where to find Cassie:Substack: Athena & JazzOn LinkedIn At Cassie Camp - Learn more about product leadership coaching and fractional product leadership🙋🏻‍♀️Where to find Women in Product:On LinkedIn Website https://womenpm.org/Join the Community https://womenpm.org/wip-community/

This is a must-listen episode for any founders, especially those using “AI Agentic Coding” or “Vibe Coding” to quickly build concepts and now need to think about finding product-market fit. Even if you’re an experienced PM, you’re bound to expand your aperture and understanding of the “path to PMF” with this episode.In this episode, we sit down with Rob Snyder, a two-time founder and current fellow at Harvard Innovation Lab, to discuss his unique approach to finding product-market fit. Rob shares his journey from McKinsey and Harvard Business School to the realities of startup life, emphasizing the challenges and lessons learned in the 'pain cave.' We delve into the importance of understanding true customer demand, avoiding common discovery pitfalls, and the real meaning of pivoting. Rob also offers insights into his bootcamp and one-on-one coaching for early-stage founders, illustrating how to extract actionable insights from sales calls and get on the same side of the table with potential customers. This conversation is a must-watch for product managers and founders navigating the complexities of the zero-to-one phase of product development. 00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome02:39 Rob Snyder's Background and Journey04:54 The Importance of Product Market Fit08:42 Understanding Customer Demand14:55 Discovery and Validation in Startups19:48 Navigating Pivots and Iterations23:32 Introduction to Founder Sales25:02 Challenges Founders Face with Sales26:45 Effective Sales Strategies28:31 Bootcamp for Founders31:38 Coaching and Real-World Examples35:48 The Role of AI in Sales Discovery38:00 Finding Product-Market Fit44:27 Working with Rob and Final Thoughts📚Resources:The Path to Product Market Fit Slide DeckThe Path to Product Market Fit Video Workshop✨Where to find Rob:On LinkedInWebsite: Finding PullSubstack: How To Grow💫 Where to find Cassie:On LinkedIn At Cassie Camp - Learn more about product leadership coaching and fractional product leadershipSubstack: Athena & Jazz🙋🏻‍♀️Where to find Women in Product:On LinkedIn Website https://womenpm.org/Join the Community https://womenpm.org/wip-community/