In this special crossover episode, John joins Matt Green and Moshe Mikanovsky on the Product for Product Podcast to explore vision and strategy in the age of AI.
They discuss what vision and strategy actually mean, how AI is changing the product manager’s role, and where human judgment, creativity, context, and strategic thinking still matter. Most importantly: as AI becomes a more capable thought partner, how do product managers use it without outsourcing the thinking that makes them valuable?
In this episode
John, Matt, and Moshe explore:
- Vision vs. mission vs. strategy — What each means and how they work together.
- A practical framework for strategy — Moving from objectives to challenges, guiding policies, coherent actions, and measurable results.
- Company vision vs. product vision — Why the distinction matters, particularly as organizations grow.
- Leading when strategy is unclear — How product managers can create clarity and force alignment even when leadership hasn't clearly articulated the strategy.
- Can AI create product strategy? — Where AI can already contribute and where organizational context remains a major limitation.
- AI as a strategic thought partner — Using AI to test alignment, challenge assumptions, identify second-order effects, and pressure-test decisions.
- The future of the PM role — What product management could look like inside AI-native companies versus established organizations.
- Why humans still matter — The role of judgment, empathy, creativity, scrappiness, specialization, and challenging the status quo.
- Don't outsource your thinking — Why PMs should develop their own perspective first and use AI to expand and challenge their thinking—not replace it.
Key takeaway:
Don't get comfortable outsourcing your thinking.
AI can be an incredibly powerful thought partner, but product managers still need to do the deep thinking themselves. Develop your perspective, wrestle with the problem, and make the connections—then use AI to challenge your assumptions and help you see what you might have missed.
