Product Chats Podcast

How have product teams transformed over the past 15 years and where are they headed next?

In this episode, we sit down with Andrew Saxe, VP of Product at Smartling, to explore the evolution of product leadership, AI integration, and the growing expectations of today’s enterprise customers. With three decades of experience, Andrew shares practical lessons from building smarter teams, scaling development, and making AI actually work...

What if your meetings could go from frustrating to high-functioning?

In this episode, we sit down with Douglas Ferguson, president of Voltage Control and author of The Magical Meeting, to explore why facilitation is an essential, and often underdeveloped, skill for product managers. Douglas shares how intentional meeting design, inclusive practices, and purpose-driven structure can turn routine meetings into game-changing moments ...

What happens when a great engineer becomes the boss?

In this episode, we sit down with Pete Steege, B2B growth strategist and founder of B2B Clarity, about the unique challenges faced by “accidental CEOs” – technical experts who find themselves in leadership roles without a roadmap. Drawing parallels to product managers (many of whom also come from technical backgrounds), Pete explores how engineering minds can shift from designi...

How do you go from strategy to better sales without getting stuck in planning mode?

In this episode, we sit down with Simon Severino, CEO of Strategy Sprints and a sales strategist who’s helped clients generate over $2 billion in revenue. Drawing from his background in psychology and two decades of experience, Simone shares his sprint-based framework that brings together product, marketing, and sales to make fast, high-impact decis...

What if you could predict consumer behavior—without running a single survey or focus group? 

In this episode, host Rebecca Kalogeris sits down with Avi Yashchin, founder and CEO of Subconscious AI, to explore how synthetic respondents and causal AI are transforming the world of market research.  

Avi shares how his background in high-frequency trading, behavioral economics, and product management at IBM Watson and Two Sigma led hi...

What does it take to move from product management into the CEO seat and thrive once you get there?

In this episode, we are joined by Marc Rubner, CEO of Building Intelligence, to trace his journey from marketing analyst to B2B product leader at American Express to top executive. Marc shares how product thinking gave him a head start in executive decision-making and prioritization but also where PMs often hit blind spots when trans...

What’s the secret to getting your product not just built—but sold, used, and loved?

In this episode, we sit down with Ciara Peter, SVP of Product at Robin, to explore the full lifecycle of product success from early design decisions to sales enablement and in-app education. With nearly two decades of experience at companies like Salesforce, Box, and Medallia, Ciara shares tactical strategies for making your product easy to sell an...

What makes product management in startups so different—and what lessons can translate back to enterprise?

In this episode, we welcome Arturo Piña, founder of The Startup Agency, angel investor, and President of ProductCamp Austin. Arturo shares insights from his work offering fractional product management and strategy services for early-stage startups, and compares those experiences with his time in larger enterprise environments.

How can vulnerability, mentorship, and purpose reshape a career—and a company culture?

In this episode of the Product Chats, host Rebecca Kalogeris sits down with Steve Chambers, a seasoned tech executive, educator, and advocate, for a powerful conversation on identity, leadership, and transformation.

From his early days in acting to executive roles in AI and robotics, Steve shares the deeply personal experiences—coming out in the...

What happens when you apply product management principles to mission-driven work?

In this episode, host Rebecca Kalogeris is joined by Neil Baron, Matthew Anderson, and Rod Griffith to discuss a compelling case study of their work with Mosaic Interfaith Youth Action—a nonprofit dedicated to building bridges across diverse communities. Mosaic had traditionally operated as a summer camp but needed a new approach to grow its impact.

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What if AI could do more than just chat—what if it could take action on your behalf?

In this episode of the Pragmatic Product Chat Series, host Rebecca Kalogeris sits down with Sam Mallikarjunan, Growth Lead at Agent AI, to explore the transformative potential of AI agents. Unlike traditional generative AI, these AI-driven agents automate workflows, enhance productivity, and reshape customer interactions—without requiring coding e...

We’re at day zero of AI—so how can product managers keep up without getting left behind? 

In this episode, host Rebecca Kalogeris sits down with Ron Green, AI expert, serial entrepreneur, and Co-founder & CTO of KUNGFU.AI. Ron has nearly 30 years of experience in AI, having overseen deployments across healthcare, government, retail, real estate, and financial services. He’s also the host of Hidden Layers: Exploring the People ...

What if you approached your career the same way you approach product management—strategically, iteratively, and with a clear roadmap? 

In this episode of Product Chats, we’re joined by Kirsten Butzow, product leadership expert, to explore a structured, strategic approach to career management. Kirsten introduces a three-phase career framework—Do, Build, and Catalyst—each lasting approximately 10-12 years, guiding professionals thro...

What if the key to product success isn’t just the product itself, but how well you tell its story? 

In this episode of the Product Chats Podcast, host Rebecca Kalogeris welcomes Blair Bryant Nichols, owner of BBN Creative Management and an expert in strategic speaking platforms. Blair helps business leaders refine their public speaking and storytelling skills, guiding them to craft compelling narratives that engage stakeholders a...

What separates the companies that succeed in digital transformation from the 73% that fail to deliver any business value? 

In this episode, host Rebecca Kalogeris sits down with John Rossman, former Amazon executive, best-selling author, and renowned business advisor, to discuss his latest book, Big Bet Leadership: Your Transformation Playbook for Winning in the Hyper-Digital Era. 

John shares his expertise on Big Bets—high-stakes...

How can organizations move beyond one-off feedback projects and build continuous customer listening programs that drive real change? 

In this episode of the Product Chats, host Rebecca Kalogeris is joined by Zach Golden, Director at Anova Consulting Group, and special guest Steve Stano, Executive Director of Marketing at one of Wall Street's leading investment banks. Together, they explore the power of treating win-loss analysis a...

How can product managers set themselves up for success in the first 90 days of a new role? 

This week we talk with Amy Graham, Pragmatic Institute instructor and product management expert, about best practices for navigating the critical first three months in a new job. Amy shares actionable strategies to build relationships, understand team dynamics, and map out an effective 90-day plan that balances learning with producing resul...

How do you build trust and alignment with stakeholders to ensure product success? 

In this episode of the Pragmatic Product Chat Series, we’re joined by Bruce McCarthy, renowned product management expert and author, to explore the often-overlooked art of stakeholder management. Drawing insights from his latest book Aligned: Stakeholder Management for Product Leaders, Bruce emphasizes that product management isn’t just about creati...

How can AI revolutionize the way businesses operate and innovate? 

Kevin Dean, founder and CEO of ManoByte, helps you uncover the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI). With over 15 years of experience in AI-driven business transformation, Kevin shares how AI can turn overwhelming data into actionable insights, streamline operations, and improve customer experiences. 

Kevin highlights real-world examples, includ...