ClickUp CEO on Why Most Productivity Apps S*ck and How to Measure Productivity ROI | Zeb Evans |
E248 | #TheProductPodcast
"I think everybody kind of learns things. And then they could forget them after a couple of months."
In this edition of #TheProductPodcast newsletter, we explore the world of platform engineering with Sneha Rao, Vice President of Product at The New York Times. With experience at both The New York Times and Spotify, Sneha shares valuable insights on building scalable platform products, driving digital transformation, and evolving a traditional media company into a multi-product digital platform.
There are many incredible lessons to learn from Sneha. Here are a few of the top ones:
Building a Customer-Centric Product Culture
"You have to use your users. You can't take action on everything, but you can take action on the trends, the common patterns that people continuously bring up."
Zeb emphasizes the importance of staying connected with users and incorporating their feedback into product development. ClickUp's success is attributed to its community-driven approach, where user insights are actively sought and integrated into the product roadmap. This strategy has allowed ClickUp to rapidly iterate and address real user needs, leading to its explosive growth.
Embracing Personal Challenges as Catalysts for Innovation
"I think everybody kind of learns things. And then they could forget them after a couple of months."
Zeb's journey is marked by multiple near-death experiences and personal challenges, including narcolepsy. These experiences have fueled his drive to create a product that maximizes productivity and saves time. His approach to journaling and constant self-reflection demonstrates how personal challenges can be transformed into innovative solutions that benefit others.
Balancing Data-Driven Decisions with Intuition
"We crave data, but we're not slaves to it."
While ClickUp values data in decision-making, Zeb stresses the importance of balancing quantitative insights with qualitative user feedback and intuition. This approach allows the company to make informed decisions while remaining agile and responsive to user needs. Zeb's perspective highlights the value of maintaining a flexible mindset and being open to adjusting product vision based on real-world customer experiences.
Innovating with AI in Productivity Tools
"We are leveraging right now to be able to build all of this AI functionality."
Zeb discusses how ClickUp is integrating AI into its platform to enhance productivity further. By leveraging a universal data model that syncs with various integrations, ClickUp is developing AI-powered features like automatic task assignment, status updates, and context-aware chat responses. This innovative approach demonstrates how AI can be used to solve real user problems and create more efficient workflows.
Scaling Product Leadership as a Founder-CEO
"I am fortunate to I mean, I've hired a few of our users and from the community."
Zeb shares his experience of wearing both the CEO and CPO hats, highlighting the challenges and benefits of staying deeply involved in product development as the company scales. He emphasizes the importance of building a strong product team, often by hiring passionate users from the ClickUp community. This approach ensures that the product team remains aligned with user needs and the company's vision.
🔑 Key takeaways :
Balance data-driven decisions with qualitative customer insights to guide product development.
Adapt traditional business models to meet changing consumer needs in the digital age.
Keep platform teams lean and efficient, focusing on strategic build vs. buy decisions.
Implement systems for rapid experimentation and deployment to stay agile in a fast-paced market.
Evaluate new ideas based on both potential impact and cost-effectiveness to ensure sustainable innovation.Maintain core values and quality standards while expanding into new digital product offerings.
🎧 Check out the full episode here 🎧
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Credits:
Sneha Rao
Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia
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