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Twice monthly, Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin talk to battle-hardened product leaders about building phenomenal products. Their guests are industry experts, people who have pioneered remarkable careers at companies like Netflix, Intuit, Khan Academy and Infusionsoft. Making customer-driven product choices is the right move. But it’s not always the popular one. If advocating for your customers has you feeling like a lone wolf, hosts Vidya and Heather—product rebels in their own right, with 20 combined years of experience—are here to help you learn from the best, so you can pave your way confidently.
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What does it really mean to make AI practical in product teams? In this special year-end episode, Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin are sharing highlights from a recent Product Rebels live webinar focused on how product leaders can apply AI in meaningful, responsible ways. Joined by Polly Allen, former Principal Product Manager at Alexa AI, they explore grounding AI in real customer problems, aligning AI efforts to business strategy, and why leaders can’t afford to stay hands-off...
What happens when a product leader enters a company and rewrites the strategy playbook—not with a megaphone, but with a matchstick and a campfire? Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin sit down with Raji Bedi, CPO at Lob, as he shares his analogies-packed approach to aligning teams, building product culture, and moving from "roadmap blur" to clarity and execution. From transforming product managers into organizational "locals", to advocating for faster cadence and fuller buckets, Raji offers a m...
This special episode of Product Rebels brings you highlights from a recent webinar hosted by Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani, and featuring product veteran Ravi Mehta. With AI hype reaching fever pitch, many product teams are being pushed to “do AI”—without clear strategy or outcomes. In this candid conversation, we break down what’s really working in teams today. Learn the Inspire, Validate, Structure, and Ship framework designed to move your team from idea to impact with clarity. If yo...
What does it really mean to be a product rebel? Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani sit down with Saurabh Sharma, CPO at You.com, as he shares how asking the tough questions can shift an entire company's trajectory. From tackling NFT theft at OpenSea to transforming product leadership with resilience, Saurabh brings real-world insight on thinking systemically, building partnerships, and elevating PM influence. Learn how he uses "relentless subtraction" to stay focused, why RQ...
How do you drive lasting change in one of the most complex and high-stakes industries—healthcare? Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin sit down with Nasir Ali, former CPO at CareMetx, to explore how a product mindset can reshape legacy systems. From shifting to scalable solutions to outcome-based contracts, Nasir shares real-world tactics and lessons in driving innovation at scale.
What does it take to drive product innovation across cultures, languages, and business units? Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani sit down with Chris Pasley, former VP of Product at 17Live, as he shares lessons from scaling product at a global live-streaming platform. From managing incentives in a “whale economy” to aligning cross-country OKRs, Chris shares stories of stakeholder wrangling, cultural empathy, and staying true to the customer. He also offers a practical framework for defining ...
What does it take to build products that transform not just classrooms, but the entire education space? Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani sit down with a product leader who's done just that—Rachel Stack, Chief Humanities Officer at Great Minds. From navigating complex nonprofit-to-for-profit transformation, Rachel shares how her teams embraced continuous learning, prioritized with discipline, and preserved the "special sauce" of mission-driven education. Explore real talk on prod...
What does it take to push back against the status quo—and win? Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin sit down with Colt Stander, CPO at Presence, as he shares what it means to be a true product rebel. From tackling overlooked customer problems to navigating leadership resistance, Colt reveals how his teams tested controversial ideas and drove innovation in hardware and healthcare. He offers honest insights on product storytelling, user obsession and why the best PMs challenge assumpt...
How do you scale product impact while keeping customer trust at the center? Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani sit down with Ismail Elshareef, CPO at CarGurus, as he shares his bold approach to leading with empathy, optimism, and integrity. From standing up against revenue-first tactics to cultivating teams that challenge norms with courage and candor, Ismail brings tactical advice from hard-earned wisdom. Tune in to hear how he develops customer-obsessed teams, asks the right question...
What does it take to challenge the convention and rebuild from scratch? Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani find out as they sit down with Sara Xi, CPO at Rubicon Carbon. Sara shares her journey leading product, engineering, and design to reshape the voluntary carbon market. From scrapping legacy platforms to scaling lean teams, Sara talks risk, trust, and mission-driven leadership. Hear her insights on empowering teams, taking smart risks, and building products that make climate impact—...
What happens when a seasoned sales and engineering leader becomes a CPO? Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin sit down with Jim Shaw, Chief Product Officer at Acquia, as he shares his journey into product leadership and what he's learned along the way. From navigating imposter syndrome to bridging gaps between sales and product, Jim dives into the importance of clarify, mission-driven teams, and cross-functional alignment. A must-listen for anyone leading through influence in comple...
What does it take to drive product innovation in industries that aren’t traditionally product-led? Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani sit down with Rahul Nath, CPO at Accel, who brings rich experience from Google, Drip Capital, and McKinsey. Rahul shares how he builds product in non-product-led spaces, from redefining onboarding in trade finance to leveraging AI in venture capital. Hear Rahul's practical lessons on stakeholder alignment, scrappy experimentation, data-driven decision-mak...
What does it take to lead product in complex, regulated industries while driving change from the inside out? Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin talk to Chad Fenner, CPO at i3 Verticals. Chad shares lessons from decades of experience at Dell, Thomson Reuters, and now the public sector. From influencing stakeholders to saying "no" with confidence, Chad unpacks what it takes to build alignment and create lasting customer value—even when it means challenging the status quo.
Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani sit down with Nat Kunes, Chief Product Officer at Ontra. He shares his insights on redefining pricing strategies, replacing assumptions with validated hypotheses, and the impactful strategy he uses to empower his team to balance goals with true user value. Nat digs into financial fluency for PMs, market validation practices, and shifting org culture to view product as an asset, not a liability.
Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani sit down with Priyankka Mani, Global Head of Product at Intuit Mailchimp, for a masterclass on leading with customer obsession, product intuition, and courageous decision-making. Priyankka shares stories from Amazon, insights on building empathy into teams, and how to stay close to users even under pressure.
What does it take to be a truly bold product leader in complex, high-stakes industries like finance? Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin find out as they sit down with J. Womack, CPO at SEI. He shares how he balances strategy, risk, and customer obsession to drive innovation—whether in scrappy startups or global enterprises. J. further talks about co-creation, prioritization, stakeholder influence, and the evolving role of product in owning revenue.
Heather Samarin and Vidya Dinamani sit down with Verizon Business' Chief Product and Marketing Officer, Iris Meijer, as she shares her bold approach to organizational transformation — merging product and marketing to champion customer experience and commercial impact. Iris unpacks what it really means for product leaders to act as CEOs of their product, why shared KPIs are non-negotiable, and how to lead with conviction in the face of resistance. A powerful conversation on grit, alignm...
How is AI reshaping product management? Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin sit down with Kene Anoliefo, Co-founder of HEARD by Elis, to explore how AI is accelerating product development, streamlining research, and transforming how teams build and iterate. Kene shares insights on leveraging AI for rapid experimentation, the risks of low-quality product output, and why AI-driven tools are redefining how product teams operate.
To celebrate this coming International Women’s Day, we’re bringing you a special episode featuring the voices of awe-inspiring women in product. These female trailblazers share their game-changing insights—mastering the strategic “no,” driving AI-powered innovation, and putting customer needs at the forefront. From breaking industry norms to redefining collaboration, their lessons will inspire and challenge how you think about building products. Join us for a powerful conversation on leadersh...
Vidya Dinamani and Heather Samarin sit down with Kareem Mayan, Founder of Savio, to explore how product teams can effectively leverage customer feedback for smarter decision-making. Kareem shares insights from his journey building, scaling, and selling multiple SaaS businesses, including his time at ESPN and MySpace. He also discusses practical strategies for gathering, prioritizing, and acting on user feedback to drive real product growth.
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