Why the product operating model is more important than ever — SVPG keynotes PendomoniumX

While AI is changing how we build, the foundations of good software—understanding your users, delivering value, and driving real business outcomes—are more critical than ever.

Silicon Valley Product Group (SVPG)’s Marty Cagan, Christian Idiodi, and Lea Hickman know this deeply. They’ve helped software leaders worldwide grow and thrive with The Product Operating Model, written a bestselling book series, and now, they’re bringing their insights to PendomoniumX as keynote speakers. 

Hickman is speaking at PNDMx NYC (June 17), Idiodi is speaking at PNDMx San Francisco (September 17), and Cagan is speaking at PNDMx London (November 12). 

Prioritizing value over features with SVPG’s Product Operating Model

The Product Operating Model reminds us that while our methods of software development have changed, our end goals remain the same. It’s not about shipping more software faster—it’s about delivering value. 

As one of the most influential voices in modern product management, Cagan’s career has included leadership at companies like Hewlett-Packard, Netscape Communications, and eBay. Hickman brings her own track record of executive leadership at some of the world’s most iconic software companies (think InVision, Adobe, and IBM). Last (but not least), Idiodi has forged the path for household names like Starbucks and Microsoft in his 15+ years of tenure.

Together, they’ve written “TRANSFORMED: Moving to the Product Operating Model,” which establishes timeless principles for software that’s not just used, but loved. We’re thrilled to welcome Cagan, Idiodi, and Hickman to the PNDMx stages. 

A quick Q&A with Lea Hickman, Partner at SVPG

Q: What principles have remained constant throughout your career despite AI’s disruption?

A: The most important thing is to have alignment in the organization about where you ultimately want to go for your customer. This focus on alignment before technology is refreshingly grounded in a time when many are racing to implement AI without clear direction.

When you consider the strategic context of where you want to take your solution, you still need to use specific insights—from your business, your industry, your customers—to determine your direction and what will drive the most value and impact for customers. Obviously, this is an area where AI can help tremendously. Being able to synthesize a lot of insights into actionable work will change the focus of where the PM spends their time.

Q: What’s the biggest challenge software experience leaders are currently facing?

A: One of the problems we see, especially with AI, is that most of the stakeholders in the organization want to understand how they can use new tools as soon as possible. So, ensuring that we temper expectations and drive customer value continues to be important. The human elements of how we work are more important than ever, including the focus and skills required to engage appropriately with the models.

Q: What are some common pitfalls companies have made as they shift to the product operating model? 

A: One of the biggest anti-patterns that we see for companies moving to the product operating model is that they look at this at the surface level. For example, A typical legacy IT department might have project owners or business analysts, and when they move to the product operating model, they simply change those titles to “Product Manager.”

This creates such an anti-pattern because they don’t set those people up for success as PMs, even though that’s their title. Because of this, expectations are completely mis-set in the organization. As software experience leaders, we need to ensure that if we truly want to move to that operating model, we’re equipping the company to operate that way—including employee skills and development, not just title changes.

Get the full story at PNDMx 

Whether you attend NYC (June 17), San Francisco (September 17), or London (November 12), PNDMx is your time to learn from industry experts, meet peers in your community, and get the toolkit you need to thrive. 

Join us at PendomoniumX to learn from SVPG and other industry leaders who are defining the future of software experience. Registration is now open.