A product leader I worked with recently said something that stuck with me:
“I have the title. I have the roadmap. But it feels like no one’s listening.
Sound familiar?
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Despite engineering alignment, his initiatives kept slipping. Sales didn’t push new features. Compliance dragged on approvals. Customer success didn’t even know what was launching.
At first, he blamed visibility. But after mapping his last 10 product conversations, 8 were with R&D folks.
- Not one with Sales.
- Not one with Compliance.
- Not one with CS.
That’s when it hit him: This wasn’t a visibility problem.
It was a clarity problem.
The Hard Truth
You’re not ignored because people don’t respect you.
You’re ignored because they don’t know what you do—or why it matters to them.
You speak roadmap. They speak revenue, risk, and retention.
So when your product decisions don’t clearly link to their priorities, they tune you out—even if your ideas are solid.
Are You Really Collaborating?
When is the last time you talked to someone outside R&D about your roadmap?Not design. Not engineering. I mean:
- Sales, who keeps the engine running.
- Customer Success, who defends retention every day.
- Compliance, who makes sure you don’t get sued.
If they don’t see themselves in your product, you’re not leading, not while they are guessing.
You Think You're Clear. Here's What They Hear:
"We’re optimizing cross-team workflows." → "We’re adding red tape."
"This aligns with Q3 goals." → "You never asked what our Q3 goals are."
"Improves UX." → "Sounds expensive."
Time for Clarity
Clarity means mapping your story to their world.
If your peers don’t feel reflected in your work, you’re not being strategic—you’re being vague.
Teams act with specificity - and you can’t get specific if you don’t know what’s important to the rest of the organization.
So here is my ask - no stress, just an opportunity for you.
What’s one conversation you need to have this week—outside R&D?
Hit reply. I want to know.
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