Last week we ran #mtpcon Digital – our 20th conference but also our first that was fully online. We’ll admit that none of us were quite sure what to expect from a digital conference, or whether an experience limited to your browser could live up to the 19 conferences that preceded it, all of which have been held in iconic venues around the world. Now, the results are in – and I think it’s fair to say that #mtpcon digital more than lived up to its predecessors – in fact, 85% of you agreed and said it exceeded your expectations!
We don’t feel alone anymore as a Product Manager. .@MindtheProduct is always with us. We are more crowded than ever today. 🥳 pic.twitter.com/BXvDRdewBa
— Ezgi Erdem Aytaç (@pmezgi) July 13, 2020
Each day started with some light-hearted socialising, whether over coffee, yoga, or in a heated omelette making challenge. We then had a keynote speaker set the tone for the day, before we jumped into intense breakout sessions and eventually had fun meeting new people in the speed networking before closing out with more breakouts and a final keynote.
As with all #mtpcons some of the best conversations were the ones at the after parties. It was at this point of the day that we could digest and discuss what we’d taken away from the talks and sessions over drinks, in a hilarious bad advice salon, during quiz nights and even in the odd cocktail masterclass.
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Every single speaker, attendee, and sponsor jumped in with both feet and engaged with each other in ways that only an online conference can support. There were debates, shared insights and lessons learned, laughs, and general product therapy. Thank you, one and all.
Deliver value beyond empathy. 🙌 Such a powerful message and a kickass talk from Nancy Douyon on inclusive design, humanizing impact, and questioning assumptions! #mtpcon #productmanagement #InclusiveCreativity pic.twitter.com/gTsrquSEpC
— pelagiya dragomirova (@pelagiya) July 14, 2020
Here’s to the Future
And that is why coming together like this is so important – we’re all facing new realities, and the 2020s will look very different from the decade before. But these monumental changes happening all around us make good product management practice more important than ever. Only by focusing on the first principles of our craft – like customer centricity, agility, and strategic thinking – will we be able to thrive in this new environment.
So what have we learned from this new event?
Going online might have been an adjustment, but it’s one that’s allowed us to shift from a model where you might only get 1-2 days per year of focusing on your craft at a conference to a one where you can still enjoy those big inspirational events, just in a digital setting.
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We’ve been overwhelmed by some of the lovely feedback we’ve received and have been so happy to hear that this new event made attending possible for some who might not have been able to attend otherwise. Ultimately, we’re grateful that our planning and efforts to design a classically #mtpcon experience in this format paid off.
The event provided a super engaging experience with a pathway into an ongoing learning experience through our membership. So, not only are we delighted that the conference itself went so well, it’s great that our attendees are now members – together, we can continue to come together to improve our craft, our practice, and our careers all year!
Watch the Keynotes
As a Mind the Product member you can enjoy all the keynotes again, right now! You’ll find each one linked from this post and we’ll leave them on your dashboard for the time being so that they’re easy for you to find. You can also enjoy the video and complete writeup of opening keynote Incomplete by Design by Matt LeMay. Further writeups will be released as follows:
- 24 July: Every Problem is a People Problem by Christian Idiodi
- 31 July: Your Product Career by Gibson Biddle
- 7 August: Inclusive Design: Dreams and Disasters by Nancy Douyon
- 14 July: Product Positioning by April Dunford
- 21 August: Thinking Outside the Product Box by Jimena Almendares
AND we’ll be releasing the Breakout Session videos (weekly) in groups, starting this Wednesday (July 22)! Here’s whose sessions you can see, when:
- 22 July: C Todd Lombardo, Gabrielle Bufrem, Jeff Gothelf and Jeff Patton
- 29 July: Joe Leech, Kristen Berman, Steve Portigal and Alicia Dixon
- 5 August: Denise Jacobs, Christina Wodtke and Adam Thomas
- 12 August: Petra Wille, Hope Gurion and DeVaris Brown
- 19 August: Bruce McCarthy, Jonathan Hassell, Amber Kearney, Maggie Crowley
Keen to get in on the action? Mind the Product membership is designed to help you discover new ways to level up your career, build better products, and lead successful product teams. Become a member today to access all of the amazing content from #mtpcon Digital 2020 (and more) plus access to exclusive member events.
Thanks to Our Supporters
It goes without saying that an event like this couldn’t go ahead without the support of fantastic sponsors and we were delighted to have this fabulous bunch backing #mtpcon Digital.
Miro (our Gold Sponsor!), Split, InVision, Delivery Hero, User Testing, Auth0 and Pendo were all on hand to offer advice to attendees and spent time getting to know new people in the community. Some put on demos while others hosted coffee mornings and Happy Hours – to our awesome sponsors, thank you!
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