Highlights From ProductCon New York 2024

We recently brought together the product community for an inspiring series of talks, networking, and great times in the Big Apple. With 1,500 product leaders attending in person and thousands more joining online from around the globe, ProductCon New York 2024 was a roaring success!

Check out what people had to say on LinkedIn using the hashtag #ProductCon.

Catch up on presentations by product executives from Slack, American Express, Amplitude, The New York Times, Beats by Dre, Warner Music Group, and Amazon Games on our Rewind page.

ProductCon is the largest product conference in the world, occurring four times a year. This was our second conference of the year, following ProductCon London on February 20th. You can catch the highlights from London here.

Next up, ProductCon Online on August 8th, followed by ProductCon San Francisco on October 16th. Hope to see you there!

AI for Every Business: Unlocking Your Product's Universal Potential

Jaime DeLanghe VP of Product at Slack started us with her fantastic talk on the future of AI products to solve real user problems while building trust with customers.

“Using AI effectively starts with your user needs, broadening the scope of solvable problems, and eventually considering commodification.”

Mission to Decommission: Importance of Decommissioning Products to Increase Enterprise-Wide Efficiency

Purvi Shah, VP Data Platform at American Express kept up the energy with her rousing presentation about the importance of decommissioning legacy systems to boost enterprise efficiency.

“Employ a diverse communication strategy by leveraging multiple channels like emails and 1:1 meetings. Effective communication is key to ensuring product success.”

From Daily Decisions to Bottom Line: Connecting Product Work to Revenue

Then it was time for Ibrahim Bashir, VP of Product at Amplitude to take the stage. He had the comment section on fire with his highly relatable talk on how to align daily product decisions with revenue growth, retention, and margins.

“For every company, revenue falls into three buckets: generating revenue, preserving revenue, and sustaining revenue.”

From Siloed Products to Connected Ecosystem: Building a Sustainable and Scalable Platform

Sneha Rao, VP of Product at The New York Times, took us through her incredible journey of transforming siloed products into connected ecosystems through platform investments.

“The more users engage, the more valuable the platform becomes for everyone. It’s a snowball effect, creating a richer and more dynamic user experience.”

Designing Great Products: The Power of Design and Leadership

We were all looking forward to Robert Brunner's talk. As Chief Designer at Beats by Dr. Dre, he's as legendary as the game-changing headphones he helped launch. His insights into how designers can harness the power of technology to create transformative products did not disappoint!

“Technology enables, but design establishes. Amazing tech does not matter if nobody gets it, needs it, or wants it.”

Maximizing User Satisfaction for Increased Revenue

Next up was a dynamic panel discussion among a group of excellent Product leaders with a diversity of experience:

• Rebecca Geraghty SVP of Product Marketing at Publicis Media (Moderator)
• Adam Dille SVP, Product and Engineering at Quantum Metric
• Joseph Crawford VP of Professional Services at Glassbox
• Scott Harper CEO at Dialexa, an IBM Company
• Rahul Jain Co-Founder & GM/SVP of Expansion Products at Pendo

It was fascinating listening to these smart professionals discuss the critical connection between user satisfaction and revenue growth. One of my favorite quotes came from Joseph Crawford: “Not making assumptions and truly understanding your customers’ needs when building a product is essential. This approach helps to drive customer satisfaction and build stronger relationships.” 

How World-Class Product Teams Are Winning in the AI Era

Then it was my turn, and I decided not to pull any punches this time! I talked about what makes or breaks digital transformations, and what it takes to get ahead in the age of AI. I wanted to bring home the message that the main reason 70% of digital transformations fail is a lack of clear vision and strategy. If a digital transformation is treated as a side project, it will end up dying.

It sounds pretty bleak, but I actually had a lot of fun on stage! It was great to laugh with everyone, even about a serious topic.

De-mystifying Zero to One: Design Informed Techniques for Greenfield Innovation With Your Product

Christina Goldschmidt, VP of Product Design at Warner Music Group took us through some tried-and-true techniques to design-informed techniques for driving new ideas from conception to reality. She urged us all to leverage innovative design thinking to create lasting value and stand out from the crowd.

“Facilitating systematic brainstorming is a fundamental tool for solving any problem. It empowers you and your team to consistently access creative solutions from your subconscious, providing a reliable and repeatable approach to innovation.”

Unsubscribed: Combat Subscription Fatigue With a Membership Mentality

Now for the closer! Penny Szeto, Head of Product at Amazon Games kept us riveted to the very end with her dynamic presentation on boosting brand loyalty and retention by applying a membership mindset to the subscription models that are so prevalent in today's consumer landscape.

“Social interaction increases the odds of survival in humans by 50%. It's not just good for your business, but also for your customers.”

And that's a wrap! We are so grateful to the speakers, attendees, and sponsors who made ProductCon London and ProductCon New York possible once again in 2024. Hope to see you at ProductCon Online on August 8th and ProductCon San Francisco on October 16th!