Hey! Thanks for taking out the time to go through this. I enjoy delivering compelling product experiences. So, I have been part of some cool things that I have built or helped build. Here are some of them that I believe are relevant for you to know. I’d love to hear what you think!
I am sharing this because I’d love to make you look like a genius for hiring me!
1. SpotiKai
SpotiKai is an app to provide insights about users’ streaming trends using Spotify data
https://spotikaiapp-test.herokuapp.com/
(will take 30s to startup, i’m on a free plan)
I use Spotify APIs to dynamically retrieve the data for a users’ playlists, process multiple dataframes to derive insights from them, and present those insights using plotly. I’ve used Dash to build the UI, and added flavor to it with some HTML and CSS.
I am currently comparing the trends of the audio features for streaming trends and comparing them with global streaming trends. I’m planning out data collection to create a model that predicts a users’ personality traits based on their music preferences.
2. In-House
At In-House, we were building a platform for truly anonymous employee feedback. We aimed to help employees have open conversations and lead better lives. I joined In-House as an Associate Product Manager for Summer 2019. At that time, I was the only PM there and was responsible for working across teams to deliver our MVP.
Here, I worked with UX researchers and research data to identify core user journeys through a user-centered design process. I delivered the wireframes and prototypes for these journeys thus defining the design language for our MVP. Here are 2 of the core journeys i.e. searching for your house and electing a new entry password (Mink):
You can go see the demo house at https://www.in-house.com/houses/demo.
As a part of my role, I also worked with the VP of Strategy to create a product roadmap for 2Qs including our product launch. Using my knowledge of agile organization structures, my final project was to drive an agile transformation at In-House and define a new workflow to improve operational efficiency.
3. My Website
The core competency of a Product Manager is communication. I wanted to start honing this skill to ensure I am up to the mark when the times presents itself. That compelled me to start writing and sharing my knowledge with my peers.
Here, I write about product, strategy, and data. Since I started this website a couple of months ago, I have seen over 5k visitors with 700 returning visitors (returned thrice a month).
My first post was about my Design Thinking project focused on user-centered experience creation for Duke’s Distance and Online Masters programs.
Rethinking Executive Education at Duke
My latest update on the website is about my new project where I am going to share analyses about something I love; sound.
https://kaivalyapowale.com/sound/
4. Travicano
One of my first experiences would be my work with Travicano. I worked with Travicano during my Senior year in undergrad. Travicano was a multivendor marketplace for tour and travel packages.
My title at Travicano was Product Lead and as a Co-founder, I did everything that goes into a product. I helped with user interviews across demographics and validation of our concept.
I, then, defined the use cases and requirements to realize the concept into a product. I worked with our developers, shared PRDs, and defined the UI concepts for our website.
On the business end, I recruited a team for tech support, business development, marketing, and B2B enterprise partnerships. I led these teams to drive the company and while working here at Travicano, I decided that I wanted to be a PM. I realized that to be a PM, I needed to learn more and hence I decided to pursue my Masters at Duke.
That’s all the things I have built/ helped build. You can take a look at my resume to learn specifics about these experiences.
Why I believe anyone can be a PM
Coming from a family of amazing cooks, I inherited the love for cooking. In Ratatouille, Chef Gusteau famously says, ‘Anyone can cook.’
This is later explained by saying: ‘Anyone can cook does not mean that everyone can become a great cook, but a great cook can come from anywhere!’
And that resonated with me, I did not need to have a specific background to be a PM. All I needed was to work towards my dream. Because being a Product Manager is in many ways like cooking.
You bring together all the necessary ingredients in a perfect blend and serve your customers with the thing they so dearly crave!
Yes, I can be a PM!
Thanks for reading through!
Kaivalya Powale 