Conference Themes
Theme 1
Aligning and partnering
Nailing the basics of alignment and partnership are table stakes for getting past the friction that often plagues the PM/UX relationship. We’ll explore:- What projects and tasks we should we should—and shouldn’t— work on together
- How we should make decisions together
- How to understand each other enough to truly get aligned
- How do we establish norms and negotiate in good faith through new challenges
- How we can build on alignment to become effective partners
Theme 2
Setting and defending priorities
Product managers and UX practitioners need to work together to set priorities, develop roadmaps. We’ll explore:- How transparent your team’s process is—or should be—for establishing priorities
- Ensuring that the right disciplines are involved in the process of setting priorities
- Who should negotiate priorities—and with whom
- Factors for establishing the right priorities
- Making decisions and setting priorities in ways that strengthen our shared goals of customer obsession, outcome focus, and presenting a united front to the rest of the organization
- How to say no to stakeholders who try to hijack the roadmap
Theme 3
Influencing and politicking
Product managers seem to have mastered the trick of influencing without authority. Can UX practitioners learn to do the same? We’ll explore:- Who we can effectively reach, and who is outside of our spheres of influence
- How we can ensure that politics doesn't interfere or obstruct our mission of delivering customer value
- How can we manage the range of personalities and opinions that we encounter day to day as we sweat the details
