the Executives · A Dialogue with Majid
Darinka Burovska, Product Management Consultant & Associate Professor @ Arden University
With Darinka Burovska
About this episode
In “The Art of Creative Problem Solving in Tech,” Darinka Burovska, Product Management Consultant and Associate Professor at Arden University, joins “The Executives: A Dialogue with Majid” to share insights from her experience spanning startups to Fortune 100 companies.
The episode explores tackling complex tech challenges with limited budgets, featuring detailed examples of creative problem-solving approaches. Darinka discusses how working across different countries, particularly in Asia, has enriched her problem-solving skills and contrasts European and Asian working environments.
She explains balancing academic theory with real-world tech challenges in her teaching, and provides guidance on anticipating market needs and adapting product strategy based on validation.
The conversation covers emerging technologies like AI and IoT, common product management pitfalls, and building team trust. Darinka also addresses bridging B2B and B2C product gaps, creating effective user personas, and offers practical advice for non-technical individuals transitioning into IT or Product Management.
Episode chapters
- 🎙️ In This Episode, We Discuss:
- 00:29 Introduction
- 01:06 Darinka introduces herself
- 02:23 Introduction to the topic
- 03:08 The most challenging problem seen in Darinka’s experience
- 05:05 How do you fight against unforeseen circumstances?
- 07:09 How do you do product discovery when budget is limited?
- 10:30 What is creative problem-solving?
- 12:10 An example of creative problem-solving
- 15:40 Country hoping + working experience in Asia
- 17:20 How have cultural differences during the Asian tour enhanced your problem-solving skills?
- 21:10 Differences between Europe and Asia
- 24:40 How do you balance academic theories with real-world tech challenges when teaching students?
- 28:05 How can a Product Manager anticipate market needs in the changing tech landscape?
- 30:40 When should you decide on creating a review plan for strategy?
- 32:35 Can the strategy of the product/company change with validation received?
- 34:22 How do you ensure creative solutions align with user needs and pain points?
- 36:36 From AI to IoT, which emerging technologies do you believe have the most potential to redefine creative problem-solving in the tech industry?
- 38:45 How can a product manager use the power of AI to their benefit?
- 40:40 The Most unexpected thing from 3 years ago about AI
- 42:50 Competitors of chatGPT?
- 45:35 Common pitfalls or challenges you've observed in product management
- 47:10 How can founders trust their teams, especially product managers?
- 49:40 How do you convince yourself as a founder that the other person can be correct?
- 51:39 What is adaptability?
- 54:10 Bridging the gap between product types in B2B and B2C
- 55:50 How do you look and create user personas?
- 57:55 Darinka’s inspiration to become a product manager.
- 59:40 Can non-technical people be Product Managers?
- 01:00:27 Advice for someone who wants to switch to IT/Product Management
- 01:02:01 Conclusion
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