What are the secrets of transformative product leadership? In this episode of the CPO Rising Series hosted by Products That Count Resident CPO Renee Niemi, Checkr Chief Product Officer Ilan Frank will be speaking on driving customer value through innovative product strategies. Ilan shares his 28-year journey from engineer to product leader, revealing how companies can balance rapid innovation with meaningful customer solutions.
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Show Notes:
- Product leadership has evolved from being project managers to strategic team quarterbacks
- AI is transforming product development, similar to the cloud transition but at a much faster pace
- Customer-led growth is more important than sales-driven or product-driven approaches
- Innovation is directly correlated with speed and team autonomy
- NPS scores are critical indicators of delivering genuine customer value
- Product leaders must balance metrics across three key buckets: company goals, customer requests, and product delight
- Successful product teams require alignment, not just approvals from leadership
- Background checks and enterprise services can be revolutionized through technical innovation
- Product managers should understand business dynamics beyond just feature development
- Customer advisory boards are crucial for transitioning from product-led to sales-led growth
- Transparency, humility, and collaboration are key cultural elements for high-performing product teams
- Iterative improvement is more effective than massive, infrequent changes
- Product leaders must be comfortable operating at both strategic and tactical levels
- Understanding total addressable market (TAM) and competitive landscape is essential
- Metrics should drive product decisions, but not be followed religiously without context
- Successful products solve real customer pain points
- Product teams need to be educated on business metrics, not just technical details
- Quick customer feedback loops are critical for continuous improvement
- Leadership is about creating alignment and trust, not micromanaging
- Mission-driven companies attract talent and create more meaningful product experiences
About the speaker
Ilan is the Head of Product at Airtable. In this role, Ilan leads product strategy, direction, and delivery for Airtable’s entire product offering. Ilan brings over 20 years of experience building productivity solutions for enterprises where usability and adoption needs meet administration, security, compliance, and scale requirements. Prior to Airtable, Ilan was an early product leader at Slack helping the company scale to win the Enterprise including 80% of the Fortune 100.