Real Stories for Product Managers
Productly Speaking is where product management gets real.
While many podcasts focus on frameworks, systems, and strategy, Productly Speaking explores the human side of product work. We focus on the messy moments, quiet failures, and hard‑won lessons that surface when uncertainty grows and execution is no longer the hardest part of the job.
Hosted by Karl Abbott, each episode features candid, story‑first conversations with experienced product managers and builders who have been in the trenches. These are the conversations that rarely make it into playbooks or conference talks. They are about judgment, trust, listening, burnout, responsibility, and how people actually work together when things get complicated.
This is not a podcast about theory or optimization. It is a space to reflect on what really happens when real people try to build meaningful products in an uncertain world.
Recent Episodes
S4E4: AI, Product Failure, and the Skills PMs Need for What’s Next wi…
AI is supposed to feel magical. So why does it so often leave product teams confused, overpromised, or quietly disappointed? In this episode, Karl sits down with Dina Atia, a PM working on AI products at Microsoft, to talk ab...
S4E3: Beyond Dogfooding: Balancing Complexity and Market Insight with…
What if the thing you are closest to is actually what is blinding you? In this episode, Karl talks with Jake Bowen-Bate about the quiet, human challenges of building products in fast‑moving environments. Jake shares what it r...
S4E2: Why Lean and Agile Struggle in Chunky Corporates with Katie Tam…
What happens when all the advice you followed turns out to be wrong for the job in front of you? In this episode, Karl talks with Katie Tamblin about the lived reality of building products inside what she calls “chunky corpor...
S4E1: From Failure to Breakthrough: The Product Manager’s Journey wit…
Have you ever realized a mistake only after you hit send? In this episode, Karl sits down with Lee Fischman to talk about the very human side of product work, the part that rarely makes it into neat success stories. Lee share...
Season 4 Introduction
Welcome to Season 4 of Productly Speaking! In this short kickoff episode, host Karl Abbott introduces the theme for the season: Why do products fail and what can we learn from those failures? We’ll explore the hidden risks, o...
S3E5: The Truth About Roadmaps: Why Dates Don't Deliver with Janna Ba…
Have you ever put something on a roadmap knowing, deep down, it probably was not going to happen on that date? In this episode, Karl talks with Janna Bastow about the uncomfortable truth behind most roadmaps and the moment sh...
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