What are the strategies for success as a startup PM? In this webinar, Moves Fmr. CPO Stephanie Overholt speaks on the closely-guarded secrets of achieving rockstar status in product management within startup environments. She covers the unique challenges of being a PM in a startup, the importance of cross-functional collaboration, user experience research without a research team, and embracing the unpredictable & navigating the unknown. Whether you’re a seasoned product manager or just starting out, tune in for proven strategies, innovative techniques, and insider tips that will propel your career to new heights.
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Show Notes:
- Embrace the startup mindset of thriving in ambiguity and flexibility.
- Understand customer needs deeply through discovery to prioritize problems.
- Have qualities like curiosity, communication skills, and initiative.
- Be adaptable to changing scopes of responsibilities with limited resources.
- Have a high risk tolerance for experiments that may not succeed.
- Define clear goals and metrics to align teams and measure progress.
- Balance discovery work with delivering value through iterations.
- Build strong relationships and trust across functions.
- Communicate well internally and externally with customers.
- Be resourceful in finding solutions with limited startup resources.
- Have confidence to lead teams through uncertainty and ambiguity.
- Show humility through asking questions to gather different perspectives.
- Iterate and experiment quickly based on learnings from failures.
- Challenge assumptions by identifying them and bringing data points.
- Adapt strategies based on new market and customer feedback.
- Succeed through meaningful business impact, not just ideas or metrics.
- Consider your skills, motivation, and the organization’s needs for a PM role.
- Learn from failures by identifying hypotheses for improvement.
- Prioritize experiments that provide the most valuable learnings.
- Find great design and engineering partners for product development.
About the speaker
Stephanie is a seasoned product leader with over 20 years of experience in fintech and financial services, having navigated both large corporations and startups. In her current role as Chief Product Officer at Moves, she leads the Product, Engineering, Operations, and Marketing teams. At Moves, Stephanie oversees the development of an innovative all-in-one financial app tailored exclusively for gig workers, streamlining and optimizing their financial management. Having been integral to Moves since its inception, Stephanie brings a wealth of knowledge and a strategic vision that has contributed to the company's growth and success. Prior to her role at Moves, Stephanie played a crucial part in the success of Borrowell, a leading Canadian consumer fintech company with over 2 million members. As the Head of Product, she played a key role in establishing the product function from scratch, transforming Borrowell into a product-led company. Stephanie's leadership included recruiting and onboarding a high-performing team, driving the growth of existing business lines, and spearheading the discovery and development of innovative products. Stephanie's career journey spans both large banks and fintech startups. Before her venture into startups, she dedicated nearly a decade to Finastra, the third-largest global fintech company, and five years at CIBC. Her roles at Finastra and CIBC involved various product and operational responsibilities, including leadership in national operations for a significant business line. Throughout her career, Stephanie has showcased a passion for people management, emphasizing talent development and positive workplace cultures. Her commitment to fostering collaborative and growth-oriented environments has consistently defined her leadership. Stephanie's extensive fintech background, coupled with her track record in driving product innovation, managing P&Ls, and building high-performing teams, establishes her as a dynamic and influential product leader in the industry.
About the host
Toronto Chapter Head for Products That Count I am a digital product executive with over 20 years of experience in retail, digital media, and e-commerce. I’ve held both strategic and operational leadership roles at Canadian Tire, Torstar, Postmedia, eBay, and PayPal as well as start-ups. I am a servant leader who is humble, self aware, always learning, and excels at collaborating with stakeholders. I am a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, a father of two, pancreatic cancer awareness advocate, moved to Canada 13 years ago, and grew up in Boston, Massachusetts. I currently sit on the Product Management Program Advisory Council for York University which offers Canada’s first post-secondary product management program.