Leveraging mentors to uplevel your career | Jules Walter (YouTube, Slack)

Jules Walter, a product leader at YouTube who previously scaled growth and monetization at Slack, explains how he broke into product management and advanced his career through deliberate skill-building, mentorship, and self-awareness. Drawing from his path as an immigrant from Haiti and co-founder of diversity nonprofits like Black Product Managers Network and CodePath, he emphasizes practical mechanisms for learning amid high ambiguity and stress.

Paths into Product and Early Career Wins

Walter entered PM via a Series A startup as one of its first PMs, gaining a resume title before landing at Slack as its inaugural growth PM despite no prior experience. Revenue grew 10x during his tenure, fueled by quick wins like double-digit activation lifts on mobile through frameworks from mentors like Bangaly Kaba. He notes two common entry routes: joining startups for hands-on roles or internal switches leveraging domain expertise. A key barrier is interviewing; he recommends dozens of mock interviews—ideally deliberate practice with company insiders or peers in communities—to build resilience under stress, especially for underrepresented candidates facing belonging doubts.