In this episode of the How to Succeed in Product Management Podcast, marketing professor Jeff Shulman and The Product Management Center advisory board member Red Russak and Soumeya Benghanem welcome Wade Pinder (Mainline), Ana Maria Garcia (The Home Depot), Carol Tyger (Vivante Health), and Martie K. Burris (Salesforce) to talk about strengthening mentorship. For new PMs, finding the right mentor is essential while learning the foundations and disciplines of product management, therefore, it is important to take note that forming a genuine connection between the mentor and mentee is the root of all successful mentorships.
 
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What to Listen For:
00:00 Intro
07:50 The three types of mentors
10:43 How do you find the perfect mentor?
12:13 Asking someone to mentor you is a huge commitment
16:15 How do you reject a mentee?
22:28 The best type of mentor-mentee relationship is the informal type
25:33 Finding some sort of personal connection makes relationships last
28:08 How do you decide whether to take somebody on as a mentee?   
31:54 How to make sure that the mentor-mentee relationship runs smoothly
35:46 Look for frameworks for prioritization and discipline
40:36 PMs should know about the ins and outs of product management
43:13 The difference between a mentor and a sponsor
47:33 Once you learn the discipline, you can be any type of PM
50:47 It’s important to find a mentor early on in your career
52:17 Go back to the fundamentals when communicating
55:04 Mentorship is helping people identify their blind spots 
57:20 Transparency is key and always share your intentions