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
May 5, 2026
S5E4: Authenticity Over 'Fake It': Lessons in Leadership and Life wit…
At some point in your career, you have to decide who you’re going to be when things are uncomfortable. In this episode of Productly Speaking, returning guest Reese Gifford joins Karl Abbott to talk about authenticity and humi...
April 28, 2026
S5E3: Navigating the Complexity of Product Leadership with Rick Lewis
What if the moment everything tilts sideways at work could actually make you better at your job? In this episode, Rick Lewis sits down to talk about the messy middle of change, the kind that knocks the wind out of a team long...
April 21, 2026
S5E2: Finding Balance in Product Management with Katie Tamblin
Ever had one of those weeks where the roadmap is bursting at the seams, everyone wants one more thing , and you can practically feel your balance slipping through your fingers? This conversation with Katie Tamblin goes right ...
April 14, 2026
S5E1: From Punk Rock to Product Management with Scott McCarty
Ever wonder how a punk‑rock kid hauling amps through Midwest basements ends up helping steer one of the world’s most widely used pieces of enterprise software? Yeah… us too. In this episode, Scott McCarty invites us into the ...
March 31, 2026
Season 5 Trailer: The Human Side of Product Management
Product management gets talked about like it’s all clarity, confidence, and momentum. But most of the time, it’s not. Season 5 of Productly Speaking explores the human side of product work — authenticity, balance, uncertainty...
Feb. 10, 2026
S4E4: AI, Product Failure, and the Skills PMs Need for What’s Next wi…
AI is transforming the way we work, but building great AI products takes more than hype. In this episode of Productly Speaking , Karl Abbott talks with Dina Atia, an AI Product Manager at Microsoft, about how to navigate the ...
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