Scott Brinker, HubSpot's VP of Platform Ecosystems and "Godfather of MarTech," unpacks the chaos of marketing tools, why AI won’t replace human strategy, and how vertical solutions beat bloated platforms. He reveals why marketers must balance brand-building with data myopia and why usage-based pricing is the future.

Timestamps & Segments

00:03:36 – 00:07:00 | MarTech’s Explosion (And Why It’s Harder Than Ever)
Scott explains why marketing has never been more complex despite tech advancements, citing fragmented channels and operational overload.

00:10:16 – 00:13:00 | Attribution’s Illusion & Brand Marketing’s Comeback
Why “data-informed” beats “data-driven,” and why brand-building trumps funnel obsession.

00:18:43 – 00:22:00 | Platform Wars: HubSpot vs. Salesforce vs. AI
Debating centralized platforms vs. micro-tool constellations—and why vertical solutions will dominate.

00:34:21 – 00:38:00 | Pricing Shakeup: From Seats to Outcomes
Scott predicts the death of seat-based SaaS pricing and rise of usage/outcome models.

Hot Takes
🔥 “AI is a sparring partner, not a CEO—if you let it make decisions, you’ve already lost.”
🔥 “Vertical market tools will eat horizontal platforms alive. Specialized domain expertise is the only moat left.”

Send us a text

Leah on Linkedin / Twitter / Youtube

Larry Robinson, CPO of Bright Plan and Salesforce veteran, unpacks how to balance data with gut instinct in product leadership. From hiring dilemmas to prototyping emotional reactions, he reveals why sometimes the "soft" skills of intuition and storytelling outpace spreadsheets. Hot takes on why your next MVP should prioritize passion over precision.

Timestamps & Segments

• 00:00:00-00:07:00 | Data vs. Gut: The Product Leader’s Tightrope
  Larry’s framework for blending analytics with instinct in high-stakes decisions.
• 00:07:55-00:16:00 | Hiring Hack: Why 5-Minute Gut Checks Beat 9 Interviews
  How to spot A-players faster using presentation-based interviews and thin-slicing.
• 00:22:00-00:30:00 | Prototypes ≠ MVPs: Build to Spark Emotion, Not Just Data
  Why showing two excited customers beats a perfect metrics dashboard.
• 00:35:00-00:44:00 | Innovation Fuel: How to Sell Leadership (Not Features)
  Positioning products as category-defining tools instead of incremental updates.
• 00:44:00-00:54:00 | Budgeting Rebellion: Why Simplicity Trumps Spreadsheets
  Larry’s contrarian approach to financial planning that pissed off tinkerers (but worked).

Hot Takes
🔥 “If your prototype doesn’t make someone’s eyes light up in 5 minutes, kill it.”
🔥 “Hiring processes with more than three interviews are just cowardice in spreadsheet form.”

Send us a text

Leah on Linkedin / Twitter / Youtube

Etie Hertz, CEO of Loris.AI, breaks down how AI isn’t replacing humans - it’s unlocking superpowers for customer service teams. From analyzing 100% of customer conversations to predicting emerging issues before they blow up, he reveals how enterprises can turn empathy into a scalable strategy. Plus, why chatbots are headed for commoditization and the real value lies in the intelligence layer above.

Timestamps & Segments

1. 00:02:00 – From Lawyer to AI Disruptor
   Etie’s journey from predicting the 2008 crash to building AI that tackles agent burnout.
2. 00:09:00 – AI’s Hidden Superpower
   Why and how analyzing every customer conversation (not just samples) transforms decision-making.
3. 00:20:00 – Data Sanity vs. Stale Insights
   How Loris.AI keeps models dynamically updated—no more “cup of water in the ocean” bias.
4. 00:31:00 – The Chatbot Commoditization Trap
   Frontend bots are racing to the bottom; the real gold is in routing intelligence.
5. 00:38:00 – Enterprise AI’s Dirty Secret
   Why 2025 will force consolidation—and how CX leaders are becoming the new data powerbrokers.

Hot Takes
🔥 “AI agents using the same LLMs will have identical outputs within 2 years—it’s a race to the bottom.”
🔥 “If your AI isn’t making CX leaders the loudest voice in the boardroom, you’re doing it wrong.”

Send us a text

Leah on Linkedin / Twitter / Youtube

Andres Glusman, experimentation expert and former Meetup product leader, unpacks why 89% of experiments fail - and why that’s a good thing. From redesign pitfalls to balancing data with intuition, he shares hard-earned lessons on turning failure into explosive growth.

It’s not about running more tests, but smarter ones.

00:01:02 – 00:10:00
The Experimentation Conundrum
Andres breaks down why most experiments fail, the "VC mindset" for testing, and why a 65% loss rate is better than industry standards.

00:10:05 – 00:20:00
Low Traffic, Big Swings
Strategies for companies with limited traffic: why timid tweaks waste time and how to bundle changes for measurable impact.

00:20:05 – 00:30:00
Redesigns: When to Rip the Band-Aid
Why most redesigns backfire, how to test without tanking metrics, and the political minefield of shipping "VP-approved" flops.

00:30:05 – 00:40:00
Storing (and Ignoring) Experiment Data
The lifecycle of experiment insights, why social proof is overrated, and how to avoid repeating past mistakes (hint: spreadsheets).

00:40:05 – 00:49:00
Hot Takes & Must-Reads
Andres’ controversial read on stale A/B testing dogma + book recs to overhaul your product playbook.

Hot Takes
🔥 “89% failure rate? You’re doing it right.” – Andres
🔥 “If stats aren’t significant after 4 months, ship it anyway—your samples are probably garbage.” – Leah

Send us a text

Leah on Linkedin / Twitter / Youtube

Evie Brockwell unpacks why 92% of PMs are crispy-fried – and why "just meditate more" isn't the answer. We dissect toxic sprint culture, ADHD-friendly boundary hacks, and why treating burnout like a product churn problem might save your sanity (and your career).

🕒 Timestamps

00:02:28 - The Burnout Recipe
High-driven PMs + chaotic orgs = guaranteed burnout. It’s not your fault – it’s the cult of "ASAP" as a personality trait.

00:11:38 - Boundaries Aren’t B.S.
Why "I’ll just answer this Slack at 10 PM" destroys teams – and how to weaponize app blockers, second phones, and "No." as a full sentence.

00:18:46 - Leah’s ADHD Warfare
"Losing parking tickets is my superpower." Tactical tips for neurospicy PMs: rigid routines, external accountability partners.

00:27:28 - Leaders: Stop the Overwork Olympics
Why celebrating "Peter works 80-hour weeks!" backfires – and how to spot promotion-induced burnout traps.

00:40:41 - The Feedback Lie
"Improve your quant skills" vs. "Be more reliable" – why managers secretly crave PMs who say "This launch can wait".

00:46:26 - Burnout Doesn’t Care About Your Gender
Surprise! Men suffer equally – they just hide it better. The real divider? Whether your boss thinks "hustle" is a compliment.

00:52:14 - Exit Strategies
When to fix the org vs. flee – and how job hunting (even casually) boosts your boundary-setting muscles.

🔥 Hot Takes

1. "Burnout is a product problem – treat it like churn."
   If 72% of users quit, you’d fix the UX. Why blame PMs when 92% are drowning?
2. "Your 'high performer' is a liability."
   Promoting hustle addicts to leadership? Congrats – you just weaponized burnout.

Send us a text

Leah on Linkedin / Twitter / Youtube

Melissa Perri drops truth bombs about why most companies fail at AI integration, how legacy giants self-sabotage innovation, and why "slapping AI on it" is the fastest way to irrelevance.

Timestamps & Key Moments

05:59 – AI: Innovation vs. Lipstick on a Pig
Why QuickBooks is losing to startups like Digits. Melissa’s rule: If AI doesn’t make the problem 10x easier, you’re just checking a box.

12:36 – Corporate Innovation’s Dirty Secret
Legacy companies fear self-disruption. Spin out autonomous teams with clear goals-not just “innovation theater” with beanbags and zero accountability.

20:19 – Boardroom Pressure & AI Hype
When investors demand AI, ask: Is this solving a real problem or chasing valuation multiples? Most boards care more about exit multiples than customer value.

24:33 – The “Latent Need” Blind Spot
Customers tolerate broken workflows (looking at you, QuickBooks). Spot problems people don’t even know they have.

29:55 – AI’s Mundane Superpower
Forget flashy chatbots-AI shines in automating daily struggles (e.g., Superhuman’s email shortcuts). If your team isn’t 10x faster, you’re doing it wrong.

44:10 – AI Ethics: When Algorithms Attack
Healthcare horror stories and why AI’s “brilliant insights” can backfire. Treat AI outputs as signals-not gospel-or risk ruining lives (and products).

Hot Takes

1. “AI Is a Terrible Strategist”
   Slapping AI on your product without solving a core customer problem is like putting a rocket engine on a horse cart. It’ll move faster… straight into a dumpster fire.
2. “Legacy Companies Are Their Own Worst Enemies”
   Corporate innovation fails because leaders prioritize protecting outdated revenue streams over killing them.
   If your “innovation team” isn’t scared of disrupting you, they’re not trying.

Send us a text

Leah on Linkedin / Twitter / Youtube

Forget corporate utopias—John Cutler spills the real tea on why work sucks and why we are messy. On "organized anarchies," why 50% of your team is checked out, and how to turn chaos into strategy. Perfect for you if you are tired of performative frameworks.

Timestamps & Key Moments
00:00 - Intro to the Chaos
John’s AI-generated roast sets the tone: “Product management’s most unhinged mind” dissects why companies are glorified dumpster fires.

01:56 - Why Work Sucks
The “garbage can theory” of organizations: Companies aren’t rational machines—they’re battlegrounds for competing agendas. 30-50% of your team? Pragmatists who’ve stopped rocking the boat.

16:48 - Empowered Teams ≠ Chaos
Why autonomy beats bureaucracy: Faster decisions, local context, and fewer dependency hellscapes. Plus, the “mandate levels” model to avoid micromanagement meltdowns.

23:06 - Simplicity vs. Complexity
Leah’s restaurant metaphor: A simple menu (3 priorities max) beats a crowded one. Cutler counters: Complexity isn’t the enemy—bad interfaces are.

31:35 - The Physics of Scaling
Why SaaS companies implode: Multi-product sprawl and “sublinear complexity” myths. Spoiler: Design decisions > org charts.

40:49 - Force-Ranking Priorities
The dark art of saying “not this year” to shiny objects. Why your #4 priority is the silent killer.

49:32 - Skills for the Future
Read sociology, not another agile book. Cutler’s pick: Images of Organization to see companies as brains, prisons, or flux.

Hot Takes
🔥 “Your ‘A Players’ Are Mythical”
50% of your team is smart-but-checked-out pragmatists. Healthy? Maybe. Terrifying for founders? Absolutely.

🔥 Companies Are Organized Anarchies
Profit? Nah. Work is just humans negotiating needs. If your org chart looks rational, you’re lying to yourself.

Send us a text

Leah on Linkedin / Twitter / Youtube

CJ Gustafson (ex-PWC tech CFO, finance provocateur) unpacks how tariffs and economic chaos are gutting SaaS valuations, why AI budgets are CEOs’ midlife crisis splurges, and how to recession-proof your product strategy.

Timestamps & Key Moments
00:00 - Tariffs: The SaaS Killer You Didn’t See Coming

$1.8T wiped from global equities overnight (worst drop since COVID).

Median SaaS multiples crash below 5x forward revenue: “Your customers move atoms, even if you don’t.”

07:46 - CFO Survival Tactics

Freeze hires, kill multi-year contracts, and review budgets monthly.

Track pipeline exposure to non-tech buyers: “Lululemon’s cloud spend matters more than your roadmap.”

13:42 - Product vs. Finance: The Gross Margin Gap

“PMs who ignore unit economics are selling features off the back of a truck.”

Why product teams must align with CFOs: “If you don’t understand how you make money, you’re just hanging art in the Louvre.”

20:36 - Valuation Apocalypse: Who Survives?

Infrastructure software (Snowflake) vs. niche tools: “Investors treat DCF models like horror movies now.”

Recommerce platforms could quietly thrive as luxury retail stalls.

27:22 - The Silent Recession Playbook

Over-communicate with employees: “Silence breeds panic.”

Pivot to maintenance/workflow tools and re-commerce: “Nobody’s buying new brake pads? Fix the old ones.”

33:23 - Growth Teams: RIP?

49% of engineering budgets go to growth… for now.

“AI nukes influencer marketing. Own niche communities or die.”

40:36 - “How Do We Make Money?” (The Only Question That Matters)

CJ’s #1 question for PMs: “Stop building for the Louvre. Build for margins.”

Why deodorant-branded swag won’t save your burn rate.

🔥 Hot Takes

“Your SaaS Isn’t Tariff-Proof”
Even if you sell software, your customers (Lululemon, Ralph Lauren) rely on physical supply chains. Their budget cuts will strangle your ARR.


My Blog / Newsletter: www.leahtharin.com
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leahtharin/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LeahThar

#productledgrowth

Send us a text

Leah on Linkedin / Twitter / Youtube