✌️ Katie Marcus
Speaking about AI at Women in Product London
More about me
With product such a nebulous and shifting discipline, I thought it'd be useful to jot down a few of the ways I think about and practice product, and the sort of companies, sectors and tech I've worked with. I've written a bit more about how I think about core product skills here ↗.
The bulk of my experience has been with startups at the seed to series A stages: the pace, innovation and ownership draw me to early-stage, while appreciating the opportunities that come with scale and maturity.
I've been fortunate to work in many industries and missions that align to my personal interests: circular fashion, edtech, and behaviour change. And across those, a range of applications and technologies, from native mobile apps to complex API-driven integrations; more recently exploring the deep potential of AI and automations.
I'm equally at home with B2C or B2B; each bringing fascinating challenges with how to think about product, users and impact. I've had a particular run with SaaS and subscription models, so thinking like a pirate (AARRR) is pretty embedded in how I approach strategy and results. I've also amassed a bulk of experience in integrating tech with the physical world, which often needs fun creative thinking (a.k.a hacking).
Like most product folk, I started out in an adjacent discipline, design in my case. This means I major in user centricity: discovery, research and deep analysis on what's going in our users' brains and behaviours – and how this translates to product opportunity – is my starting mental model. I invest in building relationships with designers, engineers, data scientists and other disciplines, and operate on trust and collaboration when it comes to finding effective, efficient solutions.
In terms of how I spend my day to day, I believe it's especially important when leading product in startups to balance strategic vision with what the company needs most at that moment: I practice what I like to call 'ZIZO' (zoom in and out), to make sure short- and long-term gains are in balance. I'm big on making sure everyone knows what they need to know at the right time. And I'll be the first to do whatever needs doing to make something happen.
'Pragmatism' has become a sort of defining tenet for me, which I find scales for any type of company or team. This means things like: the right level of process to get stuff done (light-touch over performative rituals); the right level of confidence to conviction (use all the data you have to make decisions, but optimise for action), and the right level of empowerment to leadership (understand what value I can uniquely add; delegate and collaborate on the rest).
In a prior life I was an OG travel and lifestyle blogger, but these days I sporadically write about product practice and startup culture on Medium.
I read excluslvely non-fiction, for my sins - find me on Goodreads here. A few recents I've enjoyed: Other Minds; Good Services; How to Change Your Mind.
I sew most of my own clothes and love to cook, which keep my hands literally full. You can follow along at @whatkatiesews and @nytfortea.