What Does Engineering Excellence Look Like in the Age of AI? (with Anish Dhar, Co-founder and CEO of Cortex.io)
The “AI is coming for your job” headlines have been exhausting—especially if you're a software engineer. But as Cortex.io founder Anish Dhar explains, engineering isn’t dying; it's evolving. In this episode, Hannah sits down with Anish to unpack what engineering excellence actually means in 2025, why measuring developer productivity is still wildly misunderstood, and where AI coding tools fit into the real world of production-scale systems. Spoiler: you can’t vibe-code your way to a million users.Anish draws from his time at Uber and Cortex to break down how engineering leaders can better align technical initiatives to business outcomes, adopt AI without sacrificing code quality, and avoid getting swept up in hype cycles that don’t serve the organization.Resources from this episode:Subscribe to The Product Manager newsletterConnect with Anish on LinkedIn and XCheck out Cortex.ioIDPCON — in-person event dedicated to Internal Developer Portals
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How to Make Passion Your Differentiator in an AI-Driven World (with Norma Løvhaugen, VP Strategy at Neat)
What does passion really look like on a product team? In this episode, Hannah sits down with Norma Løvhaugen, VP Strategy at Neat, to unpack how passion fuels team collaboration, customer empathy, and a culture of innovation. They explore the difference between building products with passion versus simply shipping features—and why that distinction matters more than ever in an age of generative AI.Norma shares how Neat channels passion into a uniquely cohesive product experience, from obsessing over fabric swatches to translating human nuance into video conferencing. It’s a conversation about ownership, trust, and the magic that happens when design and engineering speak the same language (and respect each other's craft).Resources from this episode:Subscribe to The Product Manager newsletterConnect with Norma on LinkedInCheck out Neat
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Mastercard’s SVP of Global Products on How to Enter New Markets (with Simone Paul Tamussin)
Expanding internationally is more complex than ever, with economic uncertainty, shifting regulations, and unpredictable tariffs creating constant challenges. While overseas opportunities can be tempting, businesses must navigate a landscape full of blind spots and evolving risks that demand careful planning and adaptability.Simone Tamussin, SVP of Product Management at Mastercard Gateway, shares valuable insights from his experience working with companies facing these hurdles. He discusses common pitfalls growth-focused leaders encounter, proactive strategies for entering new markets safely, and practical tips for managing the overwhelming paperwork that comes with global expansion.Resources from this episode:Subscribe to The Product Manager newsletterConnect with Simone on LinkedInCheck out Mastercard
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24:49
How Parenting Made Me a Better Product Leader (with Anuj Jhunjhunwala, Director of Product at Merge)
Becoming a parent profoundly changes how you approach product leadership, blending personal and professional challenges in unexpected ways. Anuj Jhunjhunwala, Director of Product at Merge, shares how parenting teaches lessons in influence without authority, clear communication, and time management that directly apply to leading products.Anuj offers candid insights on how managing toddlers parallels managing stakeholders, why career growth feels more like navigating a mountain than climbing a ladder, and the paradoxes that trip up many product managers today. This conversation reveals the surprising overlaps between parenting and product leadership, offering fresh perspectives for anyone balancing both worlds.Resources from this episode:Subscribe to The Product Manager newsletterConnect with Anuj on LinkedInCheck out Merge
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The AI-Enhanced Team: A New Playbook for Product Leaders (with Andrew Saxe, VP of Product at Smartling)
As we navigate the AI revolution, we’re collectively creating a new reality that’s far from utopian, and both leaders and individual contributors are struggling to find their way through the uncertainty. Questions around workplace ethics, output quality, and long-term impacts are top of mind for many, but this presents an opportunity to learn from each other’s breakthroughs and shape the future we want to see.Andrew Saxe, VP of Product at Smartling, shares his experience leading a company that has evolved from manual translation services to integrating AI-driven workflows. He discusses how to distinguish real AI value from hype, the ethical considerations leaders must consider, and the rapid shift in the skills that are in highest demand in today’s AI-driven landscape.Resources from this episode:Subscribe to The Product Manager newsletterConnect with Andrew on LinkedInCheck out Smartling
Successful products don’t happen in a vacuum. Hosted by Hannah Clark, Editor of The Product Manager, this show takes a 360º view of product through the perspectives of those in the inner circle, outer perimeter, and fringes of the product management process. If you manage, design, develop, or market products, expect candid and actionable insights that can guide you through every stage of the product life cycle.
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