Finding your place in the product org — Issue #20
Where do we fit in the organisation? What is our role or scope? Finding our place, purpose and direction can be a challenge, so how do we navigate the uncertainty?
In today’s world of digital products, built on the premise that the industry and market is in a flux of constant change, finding our place can be challenging.
On top of that, many of the roles are still being defined or in some cases, their definition is as inconsistent as the industry, changing from organisation to organisation, team to team.
This constant change does create a lot of excitement and interesting challenges. It creates opportunities for experimentation and exploration. The sky is the limit and even then, maybe we can go beyond.
But what are the negatives?
What often isn’t discussed is the high level of uncertainty this brings. Being an incredible professional in a specific role in one company doesn’t guarantee that you will be equally efficient in the same role in another organisation.
We ask people to take risks without a safety net. We ask them to be comfortable in the “mess” to achieve the best success. Every time I hear this expression, I think of the program hoarders, where people have lost complete control of the mess in their houses and have become comfortable with that mess.
So if I’m comfortable in that discomfort, everything is meant to be okay? Well I’m not buying it. Anxiety is anxiety, it’s not embracing the excitement of the unknown.
With this, I’m not saying we shouldn’t embrace change or take risks, but what I am saying is that the people on the team also have the right to feel some security in the middle of the confusion.
We also need to control the quantity and level of mess to reduce uncertainty.
Not everyone should be expected to be comfortable with uncertainty, insecurity and the unknown. It’s the organisation’s responsibility to create an environment where both type of people can thrive and grow.
It affects team retention and engagement
In my experience, one of the biggest reasons for rotation is that level of uncertainty and mess in organisations.
People have com to expect transparency from organisational leadership but something that leadership has forgotten is that they are also responsible for creating security.
There has to be a plan. There have to be milestones and there has to be a tangible “light at the end of the tunnel”.
Too often we ask the team to accept the mess and confusion because we are working towards something better, but while that “better” is invisible, it’s almost impossible to visualise.
Even with all the team building activities and building a organisational culture, that uncertainty and constant mess creates less opportunity to truly connect to the company and its mission, because they seem like abstract concepts.
The light at the end of the tunnel
I went off on a bit of a tangent above, but only because I think it’s important to acknowledge the uncertainty we have created for people working in product orgs.
Going back to the initial point about finding our place in the product org, it’s something we feel a need to achieve.
The advantages of today’s product organisations is that they create so many opportunities to grow and/or explore new areas.
They may allow us to explore and experiment with something new without the pressure of failure.
Ok, great, but how?
The million dollar question right? And as I said before there is no answer that will work in every org due to their differences.
However, I thought it might be useful to share what has generally worked for me:
#1 — Build relationship
This is probably the most important part of any role, building relationships that will help you in the future.
More than just looking at advantageous relationships to forward your career, look for the relationships that will support and guide you towards achieving your best work.
#2 — Map it out
Maybe it’s my designer background or just a habit I’ve built over the years, but I’ve found that mapping out everything possible is super useful.
Who are the stakeholders, colleagues and clientes you need to work with? How do they all connect to each other and how can they be supported, or can they support me?
What are my thoughts on my scope of work, responsibilities and challenges? How can I organise everything to be more focused or efficient?
Whether a mind map, a miro board or scribbles in a notebook, this exercise helps me structuring my thoughts.
#3 — Challenge, but constructively
Don’t be afraid to challenge what everyone takes for granted, as long as you bring something to help in working towards something more solid.
Ask if alternatives have been explored or what would happen if we stopped doing something, or if we started doing something.
Don’t be afraid to build up the narrative to where you can apply your expertise and know-how best, thus bringing even more value to the team.
#4 — Be honest and transparent
This is probably the second hardest habit to build, but we need to be honest and transparent.
Do I have doubts, fears or insecurities? Be open about them.
It’s hard to be vulnerable about our insecurities or the fact that we might not know enough about a topic, but ultimately, not being honest about them, usually has a way of backfiring later on. And usually in a much worse way than if initially discussed.
I’ve done my best to be honest about things and even if it makes me nervous some times, I try and stick to it.
#5 — Admit and accept when it’s not working
I would say this is the hardest one on this list, because I assume no one wants to fail or admit defeat.
But admitting that something isn’t working and moving on is a hundred times better than stretching it out. It just builds discomfort and mistrust and similar to the point above, may have a stronger effect later on.
Disclaimer, that doesn’t mean getting too used to quitting. We also need to sometimes whether complicated moments to reach a better place.
Measure each situation carefully.
In conclusion
It’s always hard finding out place, especially in a new role and even what worked in one place might not work in your next role.
But give yourself some space to build up that space and to ramp up to it. Even the most experienced product leaders who ultimately change the face of organisations, start off by first building context and mapping out all the challenges and opportunities.
Jumping right in and expecting results right away is a pressure we put on ourselves and we need to move away from that.
You also don’t have to accept the mess as is. The “mess” can be more organised, more clean.
Instability, insecurity and discomfort should never be pushed under the rug as an integral part of product organisations.
There is no excuse for a truly disorganised mess (product org).
Originally published at https://www.getrevue.co on June 2, 2022.
