Driving Digital Transformation: A Conversation with Monika Portman
As Associate Vice President of Product Management at Cox Automotive, Monika Portman has spent over 20 years honing her skills in product management, sales management, and product strategy. With a background in manufactured goods, Monika has successfully transitioned into the technology space, bringing a unique perspective to her role. We sat down with Monika to discuss her experiences, the importance of market discovery, and her approach to driving digital transformation initiatives at Cox Auto.
The Benefits of Starting in Sales
Monika’s career began in sales, a path that has proven instrumental in her success as a product management leader. “Getting a start in sales was probably one of the biggest advantages for my product management career,” she reflects. “It helped me understand the importance of figuring out what drives customer purchasing decisions, how product messaging can impact sales, and the challenges of selling against the competition.” This foundation in sales has allowed Monika to develop a deep understanding of the customer and their needs, a crucial aspect of effective product management.
Creative Problem Solving in Product Management
Monika’s approach to product management is centered around creative problem solving. She believes that successful product managers must be curious, creative, and unwilling to walk away from a problem. This mindset has been essential in her current project, a large-scale digital transformation initiative aimed at modernizing an aging software solution. “We’re less than 30 days away from rolling out this transformation initiative, and it’s probably one of the hardest problems I’ve had the opportunity to help solve in my career,” she notes.
Managing Digital Initiatives
Monika’s experience in manufactured goods has provided a unique perspective on managing digital initiatives. While the problems she faces are similar, the creative space in technology is vast, and the possibilities are endless. “In technology, there’s a lot more creative space because everything is a possibility,” she explains. This freedom to experiment and innovate has been both exciting and challenging, as Monika must balance the need for creativity with the importance of market feedback and financial viability.
Prioritization and Healthy Friction
Effective prioritization is critical in product management, and Monika believes that involving engineering in the solution aspect of things is key. By presenting identified problems to engineering and architecture partners, Monika encourages a team effort to find solutions. This approach fosters healthy friction between product and engineering, leading to more innovative and effective solutions.
A Push for Human-Centered Design
Monika is a strong advocate for human-centered design, which has been implemented as a best practice at Cox Auto. By encouraging on-site interactions with clients and using tools like Mural to consolidate feedback, Monika ensures that the customer’s voice is heard throughout the product development process.
Balancing Customer Requests and Technical Debt
Monika acknowledges the importance of balancing customer requests with technical debt. By modeling work and budgeting for tech debt, she ensures that there’s no excuse not to address it. Aiming for a 70/30 split between product features and tech debt, Monika negotiates with her teams to identify the outcomes they’re looking to achieve with their budget.
Retention and Team Motivation
As Monika reflects on her approach to team leadership, she emphasizes the importance of addressing the big questions that employees have: “Do I have a voice?”, “Am I energized by my work?”, and “Am I part of a community?” By keeping these questions in mind, Monika has been able to motivate her team and keep them focused on their goals, even in the face of intense projects like the digital transformation initiative.