Gibson Biddle on his DHM product strategy framework, GEM roadmap prioritization framework, 5 Netflix strategy mini case studies, building a personal board of directors, and much more

1. Delight, Hard-to-Copy, Margin Model

Focus on delighting customers in ways that are hard for competitors to copy and enhance your business’s margin, as this forms the core of a sustainable product strategy.

2. Prioritize with the GEM Model

Align leadership by force-ranking Growth, Engagement, and Monetization to resolve fundamental misalignments and guide product development decisions.

3. Build Personal Board of Directors

Actively cultivate a network of peers and mentors to gain diverse perspectives, learn from others’ experiences, and make better career and product decisions.

4. Optimize for Continuous Learning

Throughout your career, prioritize and actively seek opportunities for learning, as this is fundamental to growth and adapting to new challenges.

5. Treat Your Career as Product

Approach your career with a product mindset, forming hypotheses, experimenting with different paths, and learning from successes and failures.

6. Assess Decision Stakes

Before making product decisions, evaluate their magnitude (impact on the business) and reversibility (one-way vs. two-way door decisions) to understand the true risk.

7. Be Bold, Step Out of Comfort

Actively seek opportunities to be bold and step outside your comfort zone, as this is where the most significant learning and growth occur.

8. Just Start, Then Optimize

When trying something new, don’t overthink it; just start, even if imperfectly, and then iteratively optimize and improve from that initial attempt.

9. Balance Delight vs. Margin

Evaluate trade-offs between customer delight and business margin by quantifying the value of delight (e.g., improved retention, word-of-mouth) against the cost of implementation.

10. Start Day with Intent

Begin each day by clearly defining 3-5 key objectives you aim to accomplish, fostering focus and productivity.

11. Minimize Meetings

Actively reduce the number of meetings to reclaim time and energy, improving overall productivity and well-being.

12. Spend Time with Customers

Dedicate significant time to understanding customers through various methods like focus groups, usability testing, survey data analysis, and A/B testing to truly be their voice.

13. Balance Doing and Thinking

Regularly pause from “doing” to engage in “thinking,” asking yourself what is truly important and what you should be doing, not just what you enjoy.

14. Start with a SWAG

When tackling a new problem or strategy, begin by forming your own initial hypothesis or “SWAG” (Stupid Wild Ass Guess) to establish a point of view before seeking feedback and refinement.

15. Iterate Strategy with Feedback

Develop a product strategy by first creating a SWAG, then iteratively refining it by gathering feedback one-on-one from experienced colleagues before presenting it company-wide.

16. Define Clear Engagement Metrics

As part of the GEM model, rigorously define and agree upon a specific metric to measure product quality and engagement (e.g., monthly retention) to ensure data-driven decision-making.

17. Cultivate Organic Mentor Relationships

Instead of directly asking someone to be a mentor, identify potential mentors, then find ways to be genuinely helpful to them, fostering a natural, reciprocal relationship.

18. Maintain Peer Network

Regularly connect with former colleagues on platforms like LinkedIn to build and maintain a strong community of peers for support and advice.

19. Join Interview Teams Early

Participate in interview teams even if not directly hiring, as it provides crucial practice in hiring and recruiting, a vital skill for career growth.

20. Prioritize Hiring and Recruiting

As a leader, dedicate significant time (e.g., 1-2 days/week) to hiring and recruiting, recognizing it as the most critical activity for building strong teams.

21. Develop Inspired Communication

Cultivate the ability to communicate a vision in an inspiring way, a key leadership skill for product leaders.

22. Master Product Strategy Framing

Develop strong product strategy skills to effectively frame and articulate the vision for your product and team.

23. Gain Team Building Experience

Acquire experience in building and managing teams, a fundamental requirement for leadership roles.

24. Be Proactive, Results-Oriented

Demonstrate proactive behavior and a strong focus on achieving results, as leaders are expected to lead, not follow.

25. Leverage Culture for Leadership

Understand and appreciate the importance of culture as a tool to provide highly leveraged leadership, guiding desired skills and behaviors without relying on excessive processes or rules.

26. Give “Topic to Cement” Talks

To solidify your own learning, regularly give short talks (e.g., “topic to cement” on Friday mornings) about new concepts you’ve recently acquired.

27. Be a “Good Picker” of Companies

Leverage your personal board of directors to help evaluate potential companies, treating the decision to invest your time like a VC investment.

28. Quantify Word-of-Mouth Impact

Actively try to quantify the word-of-mouth factor (e.g., 2X, 10X) when evaluating the value of customer delight, as it significantly impacts investment decisions.

29. Avoid “Two-Percenter” Features

Do not launch or keep features that only appeal to a very small percentage (e.g., 2%) of customers, as they add complexity without significant delight or business impact.

30. Use Socratic Method for Clarity

When making tough strategic decisions, ask fundamental questions like “Who needs to be the best in the world at X?” to clarify core competencies and focus.

31. Prioritize Exercise for Well-being

Incorporate regular exercise into your routine, as it contributes significantly to happiness and overall well-being.

32. Limit TV Consumption

Be mindful of and limit excessive TV watching, as it can detract from other productive or beneficial activities.

33. Seek Contemporary Career Advice

When seeking career advice, be cautious of generational gaps; parents may not have the most relevant insights for future career landscapes.

34. Provide Constructive Feedback

When asked for feedback, take it seriously and provide thoughtful, constructive input, understanding its value for continuous improvement.