How can product leaders create value through strategic shifts? In this episode of the Product Leaders to Watch Series with Cognizant Product Director Chenny Solaiyappan, A10 Networks Fmr. VP of Product Yasir Liaqatullah shares his perspective on what makes a great product, highlighting the importance of understanding customer needs and delivering value. He also discusses his experience transitioning on-premise solutions to the cloud at Anthropic, which significantly grew revenue and margins. Additionally, Yasser speaks on the potential of generative AI technologies, balancing priorities as a product manager, and evaluating products for the Product Awards.
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Show Notes
- A great product solves customer pain points in an elegant way.
- A product’s value proposition should be obvious.
- User experience and design should be user-centric.
- Reliability, quality, scalability, and flexibility are important.
- Positive branding builds trust.
- Customer support is critical.
- A product manager is like a “mini CEO” balancing stakeholders.
- Empathizing with customers is a top priority.
- Alignment with business strategy and objectives is also key.
- Products have different stages in their lifecycle.
- Transitioning to the cloud can significantly grow revenue and margins.
- Emerging technologies like AI should be leveraged.
- Generative AI will have a profound impact on many industries and products.
- Tools like Copilot are already enhancing productivity.
- AI won’t replace humans but can be a force multiplier.
- Products should be evaluated in categories for fair comparisons.
- Quality includes ease of use and minimizing bugs.
- Time to market vs quality is an important balance.
- Customer success teams can boost adoption.
- Learning from other product leaders is valuable for growth.
About the speaker
I have over 20 years of experience as a product management leader, actively driving product strategy, revenue growth, and market expansion at renowned companies like Amazon and A10 Networks. My expertise focuses on transforming product portfolios to cloud/SaaS, enhancing gross margins, and accelerating product development. I take pride in successfully launching numerous groundbreaking products from the ground up, driving substantial revenue growth through identifying market trends, evolving portfolios, and initiating strategic industry disruptions.
About the host
Chenny Solaiyappan is the Director of Product Management for Cognizant Trizetto's Government and Quality Solutions, and a founding member of the ClaimSphere suite of products, encompassing quality, HEDIS ®, CMS Stars, and clinical solutions. An accomplished Intrapreneur and Lean Startup Practitioner, he plays a pivotal role in shaping the overall product strategy and serves as the HL7 DaVinci Business Co-chair. With a notable track record, Chenny has provided consultancy to over 30 health plans across the nation, consistently raising Quality and Star ratings in Medicaid, Medicare, Federal Employees Health Plan, and Commercial health plan sectors, collectively supporting 30 million lives. His outstanding leadership and innovative contributions have earned him prestigious awards, including the 2023 Top 20 Global Product Manager Award by Products That Count, as well as the 2021 and 2019 Product of the Year awards by Cognizant Trizetto.