The second edition of Inspired is even better than the first (which used to be my favorite product management book).
It is the best articulation of how to be successful in product management and how to create successful products that I have ever read. It is impossible not to run into into insights about challenges you are having or have had as a product manager when reading it. (This can be a little creepy, how does he know about all these mistakes I have made, is he a psychic?)
Do you want to get a job as a product manager? Read and re-read Marty’s book and steal at least a few of his insights for the interview - you’ll sound like a genius.
Some of the topics that resonated for me (I’m sure there will be different ones for you):
-Product management is distinct from other essential roles: design, engineering, product marketing, and project management (Chapter 1).
-Two inconvenient truths that often cause failed product efforts are: at least half our ideas are just not going to work (customers ultimately won’t use it - which is why you need customer validation early in the process) and it takes several iterations to implement an idea so that it delivers the necessary business value (Chapter 6).
-The three overarching product development principles from Lean and Agile which help you create successful products are (Chapter 7)
-Risks should be tackled up front, rather than at the end.
-Products should be defined and designed collaboratively, rather than sequentially.
-Its is all about solving problems, not implementing features.
-You need a team of missionaries, not mercenaries to create the smallest possible product that meets the needs of a specific market of customers (Chapter 8,9).
-A product manager must bring four critical contributions to their team (Chapter 10):
Deep knowledge
1) of your customer
2) of the data
3) of your business and its stakeholders
4) of your market and industry
-Product managers (PMs) need product designers - not just to help make your product beautiful - but to discover the right product (Chapter 11).
-Typical product roadmaps are the root cause of most waste and failed efforts in product organizations (Chapter 22). It is all too easy to institute processes that govern how you produce products that can bring innovation to a grinding halt. You need to try to wean your organization off of typical product roadmaps by focusing on business outcomes, providing stakeholders visibility so that they know you are working on important items, and by eventually making high-integrity commitments when critical delivery dates are needed (Chapter 60). Part of this is managing stakeholders which includes engaging them early in the product discovery process ideally with high-fidelity prototypes (Chapter 61).
-Products should start with a product vision in which the product team falls in love with the problem, not the solution (Chapter 25).
- Strong product teams work to meet the dual and simultaneous objectives of rapid learning and discovery while building stable and solid releases in delivery. Product discovery is used to address critical risks: (Chapter 33)
-Will the customer buy this, or choose to use it? (value risk)
-Can the user figure out how to use it? (usability risk)
-Can we build it? (feasibility risk)
-Does the solution work for our business? (business viability risk)
- PMs can’t rely on customers (or executives or stakeholders) to tell us what to build: customer doesn’t know what’s possible, and with technology products, none of us know what we really want until we actually see it (Chapter 33).
- While Amazon has a culture of “write the press release first”, Marty suggests PM should write a “happy customer letter first." Imagine a letter sent to the CEO from a very happy and impressed customer which explains why he or she is so happy and grateful for the new product or redesign. The customer describes how it was changed or improved his or her life. The letter also includes an imagined congratulatory response from the CEO to the product team explaining how this has helped the business (Chapter 36).
- Product managers need to consider the role of analytics and qualitative and quantitative value testing techniques (Chapter 54).
- What it really means for a PM to be the CEO of Product is testing business viability: listening to Marketing, Sales, Customer Success, Finance, Legal, BD, Security, etc. before building the product (Chapter 56).
-Establishing a strong product culture requires (Chapters 66-67)
-Innovation culture: compelling product visions, strong product managers, empowered business and customer savvy teams product teams often in discovery
-Execution culture: urgency, high-integrity commitments, accountability, collaboration, results orientation, recognition, strong delivery management, frequent release cycles
(and it is hard to do both)
Inspired: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love, Second Edition MP3 CD – MP3 Audio, Unabridged, Audiobook, 22 May 2018
by
Marty Cagan
(Author, Reader)
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Product details
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 1978631626
- ISBN-13 : 978-1978631625
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Most helpful customer reviews on Amazon.com
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4.4 out of 5 stars
165 reviews

John Gibbon
5.0 out of 5 stars
Want to ace a product management interview? Read Marty's book and steal at least a few insights - you'll sound like a genius
19 April 2018 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
98 people found this helpful

L. Page
2.0 out of 5 stars
Overview for the novice PM
7 December 2018 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
If this is the only book you read on developing technical products you will be ill informed. There is really little new here from when I read the first edition several years ago. Most of the thinking and approach is still mired in a project perspective and delivering outputs. The emergent principles and practices of agile/lean product development are for the most part ignored. There is much better information out there. I would suggest Lean Enterprise or the Lean Product Playbook as much better jumping off points and references.
52 people found this helpful

Oscar
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good on theory, lacks practical information
27 August 2018 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
This book has a lot of good information about product management. In my opinion it’s mostly theory of a perfect product management world, I feel like it was written for a startup with millions of venture capital to spend on an iPhone app with thousands of customers.
As a product manager who is just starting in the role, I find it useful as one could find useful a history book, I was expecting more information about the actual day to day of a product manager.
As a product manager who is just starting in the role, I find it useful as one could find useful a history book, I was expecting more information about the actual day to day of a product manager.
22 people found this helpful

Matt and Erin K.
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Product Bible
20 June 2019 -
Published on Amazon.comVerified Purchase
This has become my bible for my career in product. Marty Cagan gets it. He quickly and concisely points to how to run product "right" and how to avoid the pitfalls that are so common in this profession.
While I doubt any company is perfectly aligned with his principles, he gives vision for where you can be. If you are in product or work in close proximity of product you will smile as he describes the things we do (the good and bad) and turn thoughtful as you consider his ideas. Cagan does not tell you exactly what to do, but names the problem, and gives guidance that is helpful for you to create your own solution in your specific situation.
Much of the content can be found in his blog posts found on the Silicon Valley Product Group site which I see as a good thing for two reasons. 1) you can pass on the info easily by just sending a link and 2) it shows that he did not just write a book to write a book, but this is an accumulation of experience and thought that has culminated in this book.
Thank you Mr. Cagan.
I took gobs of notes. Here are some of my favorites:
* Two Inconvenient Truths about Product
1. The first truth is that at least half of our ideas are just not going to work.
2. The second inconvenient truth is that even with the ideas that do prove to have potential, it typically takes several iterations to get the implementation of this idea to the point where it delivers the necessary business value.
* typical roadmaps are the root cause of most waste and failed efforts in product organizations.
* If you want to DISCOVER great products, it really is essential that you get your ideas in front of real users and customers early and often. If you want to DELIVER great products, you want to use best practices for engineering and try not to override the engineers' concerns.
* the product organization is not there “to serve the business” but, rather, to solve problems for our customers in ways that work for our business.
While I doubt any company is perfectly aligned with his principles, he gives vision for where you can be. If you are in product or work in close proximity of product you will smile as he describes the things we do (the good and bad) and turn thoughtful as you consider his ideas. Cagan does not tell you exactly what to do, but names the problem, and gives guidance that is helpful for you to create your own solution in your specific situation.
Much of the content can be found in his blog posts found on the Silicon Valley Product Group site which I see as a good thing for two reasons. 1) you can pass on the info easily by just sending a link and 2) it shows that he did not just write a book to write a book, but this is an accumulation of experience and thought that has culminated in this book.
Thank you Mr. Cagan.
I took gobs of notes. Here are some of my favorites:
* Two Inconvenient Truths about Product
1. The first truth is that at least half of our ideas are just not going to work.
2. The second inconvenient truth is that even with the ideas that do prove to have potential, it typically takes several iterations to get the implementation of this idea to the point where it delivers the necessary business value.
* typical roadmaps are the root cause of most waste and failed efforts in product organizations.
* If you want to DISCOVER great products, it really is essential that you get your ideas in front of real users and customers early and often. If you want to DELIVER great products, you want to use best practices for engineering and try not to override the engineers' concerns.
* the product organization is not there “to serve the business” but, rather, to solve problems for our customers in ways that work for our business.
7 people found this helpful