Episode 155: Mastering the Art of Coaching in Product Leadership with Kate Leto, an Executive Coach for Product Leaders

In this episode of Product Thinking, Kate Leto, an Executive Coach for Product Leaders, joins Melissa Perri to unveil the value of coaching skills for product leaders and how to incorporate coaching into the workplace. They explore the difference between coaching and mentoring, how effective coaching nurtures successful product leaders, and how to master the art of coaching in product management.

Kate is the author of "Hiring Product Managers: Using Product EQ to go beyond culture and skills" and an established public speaker. From the trenches of Yahoo! to the strategic heights of The Ready and MOO.COM, her journey has shaped her into a sought-after consultant.

Kate’s diverse background, spanning disruptive startups to Fortune 500 giants, positions her as a controversial yet insightful expert in the corporate world, advocating for a more human-centric approach to building teams and products that resonate in today's business environment.

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You’ll hear them talk about:

[03:03] - Coaching represents a tool for self-development rather than divertice guidance. Real coaching empowers individuals to find solutions within themselves, differing sharply from traditional mentoring or leadership approaches that often prescribe solutions. Effective coaching involves asking good questions and listening rather than instructing or solving problems for others, fostering personal growth and problem-solving skills, and relieving the burden on leaders.
[10:50] - Effective product leadership goes beyond just instructing team members; it's about fostering a partnership built on trust and understanding. This means adopting a coaching style that is less about control and more about enabling team members to find their own solutions. Some key skills include being fully present in conversations, engaging in active listening that goes beyond simple nods and smiles, and understanding the subtleties of body language and pauses.
[26:39] - Despite lacking authority, product managers can stimulate change and foster problem-oriented thinking among peers, especially developers, and designers, by embracing a coaching mindset. However, you must discard a know-it-all attitude and engage team members through open-ended, reflective questioning. This will help you clarify all the challenges and opportunities, guide colleagues to self-discover limitations and solutions, as well as foster a collaborative and thoughtful work environment.
[32:26] - To manage tension and conflict through coaching techniques, Kate introduces the Karpman Drama Triangle, a concept where individuals oscillate between being a victim, a prosecutor, or a protector in different situations. Leaders often identify with the protector role, striving to be heroes. But the real growth lies in transcending these fixed roles. There's another coaching method called the Empowerment Dynamic, where individuals move from directive to coaching roles, encouraging empowerment and insight into others.

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Previous guests include: Shruti Patel of US Bank, Steve Wilson of Contrast Security, Bethany Lyons of KAWA Analytics, Tanya Johnson Chief Product Officer at Auror, Tom Eisenmann of Harvard Business School, Stephanie Leue of Doodle, Jason Fried of 37signals, Hubert Palan of Productboard, Blake Samic of Stripe and Uber, Quincy Hunte of Amazon Web Services

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