In this episode of The Product Leader's Playbook, our AI hosts break down Sam Robertstad's latest article on why traditional backlog prioritization is broken and how smart teams are fixing it with portfolio thinking.

Instead of stack-ranking every feature against infrastructure refactors and stakeholder escalations, great product leaders allocate capacity across categories. Growth. Quality. Platform. Tech Health. R&D. Each gets intentional focus because strategy isn't what's in your deck, it's where your team invests time.

We unpack:

• Why stack-ranking leads to reactive roadmaps
• How to handle stakeholder resistance (especially when sales wants to jump the queue)
• What to do when estimates are unreliable and dependencies cross categories
• How startups and enterprises can both apply portfolio models at scale

If you've ever struggled with competing priorities, capacity chaos, or the politics of prioritization, this one is for you.

Listen now to shift from feature traffic cop to strategic portfolio manager.

In this episode of The Product Leader’s Playbook, two AI-generated podcasters break down Sam Robertstad’s latest article, The Strategy Stack: Vision Isn’t a Slide, It’s a System.

Many teams think they have a strategy because they’ve made a deck. But customers don’t experience your slide—they experience your backlog. This episode explores why real product strategy shows up in the decisions you make, not the documents you write.

We unpack the Strategy Stack framework - a four-layered system that connects long-term vision to the day-to-day using strategic pillars, product objectives, and consistent prioritization. You’ll learn why asymmetric advantage, clarity of choice, and embedded decision frameworks are the true markers of a working strategy.

If you’ve ever struggled to translate vision into execution, or watched priorities shift based on the loudest voice, this will resonate.

In this episode of The Product Leader’s Playbook, our AI hosts break down Sam Robertstad’s Product Leadership Stack - a framework for growing from IC to executive through the 4 C’s: Craft, Collaboration, Clarity, and Culture.

They explore how each level unlocks new leverage, while highlighting common failure modes, mindset shifts, and cues for leveling up. Whether you’re a senior PM or Head of Product, this model is your roadmap to turning product skill into organizational influence.

In this episode of The Product Leader’s Playbook, our AI hosts break down what it means to build for leverage, not just speed. Inspired by Sam Robertstad’s article “Building for Leverage,” the discussion introduces the Leverage Matrix, a framework for prioritizing features that create compounding value over time.

You’ll learn how to move beyond MVP thinking, categorize features as Enable, Accelerate, Multiply, or Transform, and use the matrix to drive smarter and more strategic roadmap decisions.

It’s a conversation about designing momentum instead of just shipping features.

In this episode of The Product Leader’s Playbook, two AI-generated podcasters break down Sam Robertstad’s latest article on outcome-driven metrics, and why most product dashboards are full of comforting lies.

While teams celebrate story points and burn-down charts, few stop to ask the real question: Did anything change for the customer?

This episode introduces the L.E.A.D. Framework—a practical way to measure Learnings, Engagement, Adoption, and Decisions—so you can track what actually moves the needle.

You’ll hear:

• Why velocity doesn’t equal value

• How to connect your metrics to behavior

• When to use L.E.A.D. in prioritization debates

• What infrastructure you need to support meaningful measurement

Because in product, shipping is just the start. What you shipped only matters if it sticks.

In this episode of The Product Leader’s Playbook, two AI-generated podcasters break down Sam Robertstad’s latest article on why real product strategy isn’t found in a deck - it’s revealed in the decisions you’re willing to make.

They explore the difference between documentation and direction, unpack the illusion of alignment created by polished presentations, and introduce the 3D Strategy Filter: Desirability, Differentiation, and Durability. You’ll learn why your roadmap is not your strategy, it’s the result of it, and how to lead with focus, not just features.

Whether you're recalibrating your roadmap or aiming to elevate your product practice, this episode offers a practical lens for making better strategic decisions.

In this episode of The Product Leader’s Playbook, two AI-generated podcasters break down Sam Robertstad’s latest article on one of the sneakiest forms of product drag: product debt.

Not to be confused with technical debt, product debt builds up when we say “yes” too often. Features get added, stakeholders get appeased, and quick wins take priority over long-term clarity. It starts small, but the weight adds up.

We cover:

• What product debt really is and how it reshapes your roadmap

• The cultural habits that fuel it, like over-accommodation and fuzzy prioritization

• How to spot the signs, from reactive planning to scattered feedback

• Tactical strategies for saying “no” with intention and auditing your roadmap like a budget

Tune in to learn how clarity compounds, and how a few well-placed “no’s” can unlock the momentum your product really needs.

In this episode of The Product Leader’s Playbook, two AI-generated podcasters break down Sam Robertstad’s latest article on one of the most costly traps in product discovery: the Validation Gap.

Too often, teams mistake early signals such as compliments, interest, or prototype clicks for real validation. But true validation isn’t what users say. It’s what they’re willing to do.

We cover:

• Why positive feedback doesn’t equal proof

• The 3 stages of the Validation Ladder: Signal, Simulation, and Stakes

• How to design micro-stakes that reveal real user intent

• Common ways teams fall into the Validation Gap, and how to avoid them

If you’ve ever launched — or want to avoid launching — a “validated” feature that flopped, listen closely.