If you’ve ever wondered how to make test-driven development more than a coding technique, this episode is for you. Ashok Sivanand and producer Doug Branson answer listener and Reddit-sourced questions about building better product teams—covering everything from mindset shifts to hard truths about performance reviews and strategic alignment.

Ashok connects TDD to the principles of Essentialism by Greg McKeown, revealing how teams can define success before they begin and cut through the noise of Slack and OKRs. Hear practical advice for first-time founders struggling to articulate value without a 20-minute demo, plus techniques to scale beyond early adopter customers using real-world interviews and Jobs to Be Done.

Later, they explore how to recover from a tough performance review, especially in remote roles, and why communication—not effort—is often the missing ingredient. The episode wraps with a conversation about the dangers of leadership ambiguity when a company isn’t sure whether it’s selling a service or a product.

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Unlock the full potential of your product team with Integral's player coaches, experts in lean, human-centered design. Visit integral.io/convergence for a free Product Success Lab workshop to gain clarity and confidence in tackling any product design or engineering challenge.

Episodes referenced in this episode...

From Code to Culture: How Shopify Thrives Under Farhan Thawar’s Thought Leadership - https://youtu.be/tKEKfjACv3k

The POWER of Small Data With High Signal - A Jobs To Be Done masterclass with Andrew Glaser - https://youtu.be/0X1RKZWJgOU

Building Customer-Centric Teams: Josh Seiden on OKRs and Agile - https://youtu.be/0dPoDNCQmyc

Best of 2024 - Derisking and Evolving on your OKR (Objectives and Key Results) Implementation - https://youtu.be/6HcRd6qUq1A

Inside the episode...

• TDD as a mindset beyond code, inspired by Essentialism

• How to recover from a tough performance review in a remote org

• Tips for first-time founders explaining product value without demos

• Jobs to Be Done and using customer language in sales

• Diagnosing product vs service strategy confusion in your org

Mentioned in this episode...

• Essentialism by Greg McKeown

• The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick

• Jobs to Be Done framework

• Calendly

• Integral

Unlock the full potential of your product team with Integral's player coaches, experts in lean, human-centered design. Visit integral.io/convergence for a free Product Success Lab workshop to gain clarity and confidence in tackling any product design or engineering challenge.

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