How to be the best coach to product people | Petra Wille (Strong Product People)

Petra Wille, a product leadership coach and author of Strong Product People, shares insights from coaching over 130 product leads and influencing thousands more through group sessions, her book, and events. Drawing from her experience with first-line managers—often non-product backgrounds—she outlines practical steps for coaching product managers (PMs), improving storytelling, and using communities, emphasizing small, consistent efforts over intensive overhauls.

Coaching product managers effectively

Wille identifies five ingredients for strong coaching: a clear "compass" defining a competent PM (e.g., her PMwheel with eight buckets like problem understanding, delivery, team dynamics, and personal growth); assessing a PM's current state and next growth challenge; aligning on a shared vision; co-creating a quarterly development plan focused on one skill (e.g., prioritization via Eisenhower matrix); and regular low-effort follow-ups like nudges or monthly check-ins. Start with the plan and follow-ups, as they build momentum even without a full compass—use existing frameworks like PM Daisy or Marty Cagan's assessment, customized to your context. This mirrors product roadmapping: current state as problem, vision as strategy, check-ins as standups. Personality traits like curiosity and empathy are hard to coach, so hire for them; skills respond better to targeted practice. Con