What A Chief Product Officer At Stanza Systems Wishes They Had Known Before Entering The Software Industry
Stacie, Chief Product Officer at Stanza Systems, emphasizes the critical role of communication in a leadership position, noting that even the "best software developer" is limited without the ability to "convey that beyond just their immediate team". This involves not only clear verbal and written communication but also the ability to "balance decision-making" by identifying necessary requirements and building a strong case for proposed solutions.
Communication, Problem-Solving, Decision-Making, Leadership, Technical Skills
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Stacie Frederick
Chief Product Officer
Stanza Systems
UC Berkeley
USC, MS Computer Science
Computer Science
Technology
Product / Service / Software Development and Management
Scholarship Recipient, Took Out Loans
Video Highlights
1. Effective communication is crucial for career advancement, enabling impact beyond immediate teams.
2. Strong communication involves written and verbal skills, active listening, and understanding the problem being solved.
3. Rational decision-making, identifying necessary requirements, and building a case for solutions are essential skills.
Transcript
What have you learned about this role that you wish someone had told you before you entered the industry?
That's a good question. The one thing I've learned is that communication pieces really make a big difference. Even if you are the best software developer and have tackled the most complex technical problems, if you can't convey that beyond your immediate team, it limits what you can do.
It also limits how much you can get into bigger problems. Most folks want to look at bigger problems that affect more parts of a system, a company, or a set of users. Software engineers are happiest when they have a broad impact across users.
Getting to a bigger place of impact often requires good communication skills. This includes written and verbal communication, and being able to listen to understand the real problem you are trying to solve.
Quite frankly, a lot of it is also being able to balance decision-making. If you have an idea, do you have the right set of requirements that you are actually solving for? Can you identify when some requirements are missing in order to make a good decision?
A lot of it comes down to balanced, rational thought. How do you build a case to show what your requirements are, what you need to do, and why it's the right solution? Being able to lay that out clearly is a skill that applies very much to software development.