How Revolut trains world-class product managers: The “local CEO” model, raw intellect over experience, and a cultural obsession with building wow products | Dmitry Zlokazov (Head of Product)

1. Empower Product Owners as GMs

Give product owners end-to-end responsibility for their product, business metrics, and customer happiness, as this fosters skills crucial for starting companies and leading other teams.

2. Master Deep Problem Solving

Train product managers to delve very deep into problem details, even reading code, and switch between zooming in and out, to simplify complex issues and build scalable processes.

3. Obsess Over “Wow” Product Quality

Pay enormous attention to the look, feel, smoothness, and frictionless nature of the app, as this makes the product lovable and helps cut out uncertainty about product traction.

4. Prioritize Raw Intellect & Hunger

Hire individuals with raw intellect and an unquenched hunger to build things, even if they lack extensive experience, because they are more likely to drive change and thrive in a fast-paced environment.

5. Founder-Led Product Reviews

Have founders review 100% of screens being shipped weekly to scrutinize details and ensure every customer will be happy, providing valuable steering and maintaining a high-quality bar.

6. Strategic Deep Dives for Leaders

As a senior leader, choose 7-10 most impactful projects to go “super deep” into (even to code level), as this sets a standard for meticulous execution and builds discipline across other autonomous teams.

7. Direct Customer Communication

Build direct communication channels to customers (e.g., easy access to user panels for interviews/surveys) to capture nuances, emotions, and unfiltered feedback that might be lost in delegated research.

8. Build “Wow” MVPs Quickly

For new products, assemble a small, lean team to build the first version very quickly, but ensure it’s “wow” and polished, not scrappy, to eliminate uncertainty about whether lack of traction is due to the idea or poor quality.

9. Get Things Done Relentlessly

Adopt a hands-on approach, understanding that the most important things often require direct action and relentless focus on execution, recognizing that “99% done is closer to 0%.” This includes ensuring customer care and marketing teams fully utilize new features.

10. Found a Startup for Steep Learning

To boost your career and achieve the steepest possible learning curve, consider founding your own startup, as it forces you to work in all different areas and get things done.

11. Invest in Scalable Platforms

Invest heavily in building a scalable platform from the get-go, avoiding custom solutions, to enable small, lean teams to ship new products rapidly across many jurisdictions.

12. Unblock Teams by Driving Consensus

Product owners should be able to unblock their teams by driving stakeholders to consensus and getting necessary decisions made, ensuring value is shipped to customers.

13. Source from Loved Products/Companies

When sourcing talent, look into products and apps you love, as people who built great products are likely high performers; also target good schools.

14. Promote Internal Transfers

Encourage internal transfers from other functions (e.g., operations, engineering) into product roles, as these individuals often have guaranteed culture match and domain knowledge, leading to successful product owners.

15. Utilize Wealth Protection Feature

Enable the ‘wealth protection’ limit in Revolut settings for transfers outside the app; if a transfer exceeds this limit, it requires a video selfie check, adding an extra layer of security.

16. Embrace Planning, Not Just Plans

Remember the motto ‘Plans are worthless, but planning is everything,’ emphasizing the importance of thinking many steps ahead and thoroughly planning, while remaining flexible and agile to changing circumstances.