A lot has been written about the big $19B acquisition of Whatsapp by Facebook. My intent is not to write specifically about the acquisition and its merits, or critique it, or debate if the price was too high or too low. Instead, I wanted to share some thoughts about why Facebook finds itself in this position of having to acquire young upstart companies for insane amounts of money. What has brought Facebook to this point? Will its next acquisition cost Facebook much more than $19B? Continue reading “The Real Reason Facebook Had to Spend $19B”
Category: Markets/Competition
The Insanely Great Product Manager – Part 1: Understand Value
This post is the first of a five part series. October 5 marked the anniversary of Steve Jobs’ passing. Many people remembered him as a visionary and the uncompromising leader who scripted one the greatest turnaround acts in corporate history. And many remembered his keynotes and the mesmerizing spell cast on people, called the reality distortion field. As I was reflecting further on Steve Jobs’ contributions, it occurred to me that, more than anything, Steve was a great Product Manager. Continue reading “The Insanely Great Product Manager – Part 1: Understand Value”
What If You Are Not Like Steve Jobs?
Some days back I started reading Walter Isaacson‘s “Steve Jobs” all over again. Chapter fifteen, titled “The Launch” is about the launch of the first Macintosh in 1984, and ends with the following sentences: Continue reading “What If You Are Not Like Steve Jobs?”
On Product Leadership 