#69: Why product leaders should embrace politics instead of avoiding it | Rich Mironov (Product Management Veteran & Coach)

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What happens to product management when building becomes nearly frictionless—and AI threatens to replace the “busy work” PMs have traditionally done?

In this episode of Supra Insider, Marc and Ben sit down with legendary product coach Rich Mironov to explore the shifting value of product leadership in the AI era. They unpack why great PMs must now double down on customer insights, business understanding, and organizational influence rather than execution—and how this shift impacts hiring, mentorship, and career paths.

From the dangers of AI-washing and backlog bloat to the rise of lifestyle businesses and the blurred line between product and business leadership, this conversation is packed with perspective for Product Leaders, aspiring founders, and anyone navigating today’s chaotic tech landscape.

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In this episode, we covered the following topics:

* (0:50) Why Rich wrote “Bottlenecks, AI, and Where the Product Adds Value”—and his concern about AI hype replacing meaningful product work.

* (02:55) The swing from “PMs are obsolete” to “PMs are the bottleneck”—and why AI-first valuations fuel unrealistic expectations.

* (07:57) The case for experimentation: why PMs must waste time and money to discover real value in AI tools.

* (10:00) Core PM value areas that don’t change in the AI era: customer insights, judgment, understanding business economics, and maintaining focus.

* (13:39) The danger zone: faster building increases pressure to ship everything—and why resisting feature bloat matters more than ever.

* (16:14) The vanishing junior PM ladder: AI’s impact on entry-level roles and why career pathways may shift toward customer-facing functions.

* (30:04) Building alliances inside the C-suite: CFOs, marketing leaders, and others who share a long-term mindset.

* (36:06) The shift from doing product work to leading product organizations—navigating politics, incentives, and coaching the next generation.

* (51:43) Lifestyle businesses, founder tradeoffs, and why not every great PM needs to chase unicorn-scale outcomes.

* (59:44) The intrinsic joy of building products (and teams) that grow up to thrive—why mentorship is the legacy of great product leaders.

* And more!

Links:

* Rich Mironov: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richmironov/

* Rich’s post: https://www.mironov.com/ai-bottlenecks/

* Rich’s website: https://www.mironov.com/

* Marc: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbaselga/

* Ben: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benerez/

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