Acknowledgements
for Product Management for UX People
Sometime in early 2022 Rosenfeld Media will be publishing my book Product Management for UX People: From Designing to Thriving in a Product World (you may sign up there to be notified when it is available for order), the culmination of a multiple-year project that has unfolded with the input and support of the Design in Product community.
When they do I will be taking down the draft chapters I shared (redirecting readers to the book site) but before that happens I wanted to share these acknowledgements from the book’s “backmatter” because like just about any worthwhile effort, this book only came into being through the skilled work of many eyes, hands, and hearts:
So many people have helped me both literally write this book and also to develop the material over the past several years. Both one-on-one chats and threaded conversations in the Design in Product community helped persuade me that a book like this could reach and a growing cohort of product-curious UXers, design-sensitive product managers, and product leaders with a firm foundation in user-centered research and design.
To start with, I have been blessed with some stellar product mentors, advisors, wise compadres, and soundingboards over the years, especially Christina Wodtke, Matte Scheinker, Jay Zaveri, Rich Mironov, Laura Klein, Ellen Chisa, Matt LeMay, Ha Phan, Tom Kerwin, and Angelica Quirarte.
Some of the above folks, along with many others, made their time available to me for one or more interviews, or provided an example of a day in the life of a product manager, including Bibiana Nunes, Noreen Whysel, Peter Boersma, Madonnalisa Chan, Dawn Russell, Alëna Iouguina, Clement Kao, Marvin Cheung, Ana Giraldo-Wingler, Harry Max, B. Pagels-Minor, Kristen Ramirez, Sara Menefee, Brent Palmer, Michael Curry, Janet Bruckhorst, Benoit de Ligneris, Ian Johnson, Nicholas Duran, and Adam Connor.
Quite a few folks from the Design in Product community read early chapters of this book or otherwise contributed ideas and resources to the material. (You can join this community yourself, if you wish. Just drop by and introduce yourself.)
These people include (and I apologize if I am overlooking anyone) Jenn Downs, Ryan Rumsey, Bogdan Stanciu, Felipe Delgado, Austin Govella, Erin Stratos, Boon Sheridan, Shelby Bower, Jake Krajewski, Chris Chandler, David LaCroix, Jo Ho, Jeppe Kruse, Brad Peters, Rebecca Bar, Tania Schlatter, Lukas Bergstrom, Brian Durkin, Iga Gawronska, Vinish Garg, and Christopher Filkins.
Any mistakes or errors in judgment in this book are mine and mine alone.
Rosenfeld Media is my kind of publisher, incorporating user research, strategy, and design into the bones of each book. I was overjoyed when I realized the topic I had in mind for this book might be a great fit for their list.
I still remember sidling up to Lou Rosenfeld at my first Information Architecture Summit, in 2006, to introduce myself, and today I am proud to consider Lou a friend as well as a colleague. What a treat to get to work with your heroes and friends!
Everyone I’ve worked with at Rosenfeld is top notch. Karen Corbett is a wonderful operations manager. Adeline Crites-Moore takes an approach to marketing that is in perfect harmony with ethos of the press. Jason Shuler takes a thoughtful and inquisitive approach to social media, imagine that!
Danielle Foster did an amazing job laying this book out. Seriously, flip through the pages and tell me I’m wrong. She also turned my scribbly stick-figure illustrations into well mannered images and diagrams that perfectly complement the text. The critical work of indexing (Marilyn Augst) and proofreading (Sue Boshers) a book often get taken for granted, but they are what distinguish a high quality reading experience from the sort of stuff you can find for free everywhere you look. Thank them both!
My editor, Marta Justak, is the gold standard. She sets the bar. I don’t think I’ve ever had an editor so in tune with my voice, so able to encourage me when I needed it and nudge me along when I felt stuck. I literally watched this book turn from a messy stream of consciousness under her hands into the well wrought narrative you hold today. Every author should be so lucky.
