Lenny's Podcast: Product | Career | Growth

Crafting a compelling product vision | Ebi Atawodi (YouTube, Netflix, Uber)

December 3, 2023

AI Summary

5 min read

Ebi Atawodi shares a structured approach to product vision, drawing from her experience at Uber, Netflix, YouTube, and Google. She emphasizes visions as vivid future pictures that align teams, distinct from missions, which define purpose. The discussion focuses on practical steps to build, communicate, and sustain visions amid real-world constraints like naysayers and shifting priorities.

Core elements of an effective vision

A good vision paints a concrete destination—like a pilot announcing arrival in Miami at 24 degrees—lofty enough to excite but realistic and attainable, free from today's technical limits, and rooted in a clear user problem. For example, Uber's vision of continuous trips eliminating parking visualized cities reclaiming 25% of space wasted on lots, enabling features like Uber Pool. This contrasts with mission statements, such as Uber's "reliable transportation everywhere for everyone," which explain why the company exists. Visions work best when they inspire decisions, like testing cash payments despite CEO opposition, by evoking a believable future.

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What you'll learn

1 **[04:36] - [07:46] **Elements of a Good Product Vision***
2 **[07:57] - [14:45] **Vision vs. Mission Examples***
3 **[15:07] - [28:16] **Frameworks to Articulate Vision***
4 **[28:31] - [43:11] **Developing Vision: Empathize Step***
5 **[43:50] - [51:24] **Evangelize Vision: Concentric Circles***
6 **[56:39] - [68:20] **PM Craft: Clarity + Conviction Framework***
7 **[68:43] - [79:16] **Product Culture Across Uber, Netflix, Google***

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Show Notes

Ebi Atawodi is Director of Product Management for the Creator Experience at YouTube, former Head of Product at Uber, and a former Director of Product (Payments and EMEA) at Netflix. Known for crafting a strong, unified vision, Ebi empowers her teams to achieve outsized outcomes. In today’s episode, we go deep into vision and strategy, including:

• The four key elements of a good vision statement

• Three ways to determine your mission

• The four pillars of great product management

• How writing helps you gain clarity

• How culture influences product

• Tips on how to structure a strategy session

• Advice on building team culture and improving work relationships

• What’s coming soon at YouTube

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Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/crafting-a-compelling-product-vision

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Where to find Ebi Atawodi:

• X: https://twitter.com/ebiatawodi

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ebiatawodi

• YouTube mixes: https://www.youtube.com/@EbiAtawodi/videos

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Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/