Welcome to another episode of the ProductVibes Podcast! This time, I’m joined by two incredible guests, Pavel Bartoš and Petr Mandík, both Google lectors in design thinking.

In this episode, recorded in 2021 for my previous podcast "Generace XYZ" but still highly relevant today, we dive deep into how to turn ideas into successful startups, how to work with ego, and the surprising lessons adults can learn from their kids. We also discuss building the right mindset for continuous iteration and so much more.

Please note that this episode is recorded in Czech, so it’s a special one for our local audience! I hope you enjoy this inspiring conversation—don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode. Let’s dive in!

Spotify 

In the second episode, I’m joined by Zbyněk Novotný, Talent Acquisition Lead at BetterStack and formerly at Productboard. We dive into how startups can hire great people, when it’s time to bring in a hiring expert, and tips to stand out in a competitive job market. Zbyněk also shares how AI is changing hiring, how stakeholders can help during interviews, and what founders should do to stay attractive to top candidates. I hope you enjoy this episode—don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss future stories and insights. Let’s dive in!

Chapters:

00:00 Episode Intro

00:40 Talent Acquisition Lead role explanation

08:27 When to hire a Talent Acquisition person

10:44 Internal person, hiring agency, or both?

12:26 Difference in working for a company with and without market-fit

16:51 Characteristics of a great hire

21:23 Hiring process in Better Stack

30:12 How to get the prospect on the call easier

34:35 What about offering company benefits?

36:46 How to close a candidate

41:49 No toxic geniuses

48:09 How to shine on the hiring call as a candidate

52:08 Cooperation with stakeholders

57:06 What do you enjoy the most about your role

Today’s guest is Michal Novovesky, also known as Mišo. Michal’s journey is fascinating, starting in sales and rising to become the Head of Product. He was crucial in scaling a B2B marketing automation platform called Exponea, today Bloomreach, from zero to 100 million dollars in annual recurring revenue. 

Along the way, Michal transformed traditional top-down product management into a culture of fully decentralized and empowered product teams. Let’s dive in!

Michal Novoveský:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michalnovovesky/

Jan Bělohlávek:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/honza-belo/

Chapters:

0:00 Episode Intro

0:43 Looking for a market-fit

5:34 Young leader is growing a team of 80 people while learning as he goes

11:50 How to build an honest feedback culture

15:07 Looking for new opportunities in a Growth team

21:00 Crisis and becoming efficient

32:53 Company acquisition via Zoom

42:14 Building empowered and decentralized product teams

44:44 How product team can help to Sales reps

47:55 How to find a balance between work and family life

49:26 How to deal with stress while scaling startup globally

52:55 Moments of appreciation and biggest learnings