Product Management in a startup vs a mature organization with Nicholas Hinrichsen & Chris Coleman, former Directors of Product at Carvana and Co-Founders of WithClutch

On today's episode, I sat down with Nicholas Hinrichsen & Chris Coleman, former Directors of Product at Carvana and Co-Founders of WithClutch.

Here's what we discussed:

• Who the product manager is in a startup versus a mature company
• What differs in product priority at these different stages
• How communication goes from informal to more formal the more your company matures
• Why innovation seems to slow down as companies grow
• One of the reasons breaking into product management is so difficult
• When product managers are the mini-CEO and when they're not
• The mindset shift when going from a PM in a startup to a mature organization and vice versa
• A very interesting interview question to find where you best fit as an aspiring product manager
• Why you have to know what company and industry you're in before you try to "move fast and break things"
• How to take on risk without risking the brand of an established organization
• Why there's always risk, but defining it helps you make better decisions on what level of risk you're willing to take on
• How to balance shipping fast and risking embarrassment in an established product or org
• Why in Blue Ocean markets, value trumps design but why things change in competitive markets
• And what is true about product management, regardless whether you work in a startup or an established org