Pendo CPO on Accountability From AI Innovation to Strategic Leadership | Trisha Price | E226 | #TheProductPodcast
“I’m accountable to company outcomes. I’m accountable to reducing churn. I’m accountable to improving growth rates and ARR. I’m accountable to people using my products as a leading indicator to both of those other pieces.”
In this edition of # TheProductPodcast newsletter, we explore the transformative insights of , Chief Product Officer at . With a career spanning leadership in product innovation and strategic decision-making, Trisha shares how AI has reshaped product strategies, the importance of customer-centricity, and her approach to aligning product development with business outcomes.
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There are many incredible lessons to learn from Trisha. Here are a few of the top ones:
Harnessing AI for Customer-Centric Innovation
“We revisited what are the hardest problems that our customers need solved where AI could play… What takes too long? What’s too hard?”
Trisha shared how Pendo pivoted its AI strategy after OpenAI’s breakthrough with ChatGPT, moving from building custom machine learning models to leveraging AI across teams. By identifying key customer pain points-such as guide localization, analytics insights, and summarizing qualitative feedback-Pendo developed an actionable three-bucket approach for AI integration. This included streamlining workflows like localization and using AI to provide actionable recommendations for product managers. Through hackathons and rapid iteration, Pendo demonstrated how AI can solve real customer problems while maintaining a steady drumbeat of innovation.
Balancing Innovation with Business Priorities
“There’s always tension between invention and delighting your customers versus listening to their feedback and making improvements… The interesting thing about AI is it can do both.”
Trisha highlighted the delicate balance between pursuing innovative ideas and addressing quality-of-life improvements for customers. She explained how Pendo used AI not only as a tool for market differentiation but also as a means to tackle long-standing customer frustrations, such as simplifying guide translations. By focusing on delivering tangible value rather than just flashy features, Trisha ensures that innovation aligns with both customer needs and business objectives.
Strategic Monetization of AI Features
“When you’re making that decision about monetization, youve got to make sure its not just a whiz-bang magic wand but delivers real value where a customer can make a business case to pay extra for it.”
Trisha explained Pendo’s thoughtful approach to monetizing AI capabilities. While some features addressing quality-of-life issues are included in existing pricing tiers, others-like their new product Listen, built entirely on AI-are positioned as standalone offerings. This strategy ensures that monetization aligns with customer-perceived value while allowing users time to explore new features through open betas before committing financially.
Measuring Product Success Beyond Launch
“When I think about success for product marketing… it starts with pipeline in the beginning, then ARR, and then win rate.”
Trisha discussed her “rolling thunder” approach to product launches, emphasizing the importance of tracking success metrics across different stages of a product’s lifecycle. Early indicators like beta sign-ups evolve into revenue-focused metrics such as ARR and competitive win rates over time. This comprehensive measurement framework ensures continuous evaluation and refinement of product performance.
Embedding Product Marketing into Product Development
“Product marketing leadership is at the table at our product off-sites… thinking about packaging, monetization, and messaging right from the start.”
At Pendo, product marketing reports directly into the product team-a structure that fosters early collaboration on go-to-market strategies. By involving product marketing leaders in initial discussions, Trisha ensures that messaging, positioning, and monetization strategies are seamlessly integrated into the development process, avoiding last-minute pivots or missed opportunities.
Spending Time with Customers is Non-Negotiable
“I spend at least 30–40% of my time talking to customers… understanding their strategic goals and how Pendo can help them.”
Trisha emphasized the importance of direct engagement with customers as a cornerstone of her leadership style. Whether through proactive outreach or participation in strategic meetings, she prioritizes listening to customer feedback. This practice not only strengthens relationships but also ensures that Pendo’s products remain aligned with real-world needs.
🔑 Key takeaways
- Use AI strategically to address real customer pain points while balancing innovation with quality-of-life improvements.
- Monetize AI features thoughtfully by ensuring they deliver measurable value.
- Measure success beyond launch through metrics like pipeline generation, ARR growth, and competitive win rates.
- Integrate product marketing early in development cycles for seamless go-to-market execution.
- Dedicate significant time (30–40%) engaging directly with customers to gather insights and strengthen relationships.
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