EXECUTIVE ADVISORY
Product strategy for high-stakes business decisions.
I advise CEOs and product leaders navigating growth/profitability tradeoffs, platform bets, and AI-driven product direction — when the cost of being wrong is real.
Former Chief Product Officer Spryker
15+ years building global product organizations
Why Leaders Work With Me
My perspective comes from operating inside real
product organizations — not just advising from the outside
Former Chief Product Officer responsible for global product organizations
Extensive work across SMB, mid-market, and enterprise customer segments
15+ years building and scaling product strategy in complex software businesses
Global product experience across North America, Europe, and ANZ
Deep experience with platforms, marketplaces, and developer ecosystems
Entrepreneurship mentor at the University of Texas supporting early-stage founders
My work focuses on connecting product strategy to business reality. Because product strategy is ultimately about capital allocation and strategic bets, not roadmaps
Strategic Situations
I Help With
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“ When the cost of being wrong is high, leadership teams benefit from structured strategic thinking.
Most organizations don’t struggle because they lack ideas. They struggle
because product strategy becomes unclear as complexity increases. Leadership teams typically reach out in situations such as:
1/ Growth has slowed and the product strategy needs a reset
2/ The roadmap is full but leadership lacks confidence in the strategic direction
3/ Product investments are increasing but the business return remains unclear
4/ Leadership needs clarity on which strategic bets deserve focus
5/ The company is exploring platform, marketplace, or ecosystem expansion
6/ Product strategy and business strategy are drifting apart
7/ The company is expanding into new markets and product strategy must adapt
Who I Work With
I work with leadership teams building and scaling complex software products — from growth-stage companies to global enterprise platforms
Typical clients include:
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CEOs and founders of product-led companies
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Chief Product Officers and VP Product leaders
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Executive Teams navigating strategic product decisions
Typical company stage:
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Companies scaling from product-market fit to operational scale
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Organizations operating in complex product ecosystems
Across my career I worked with products serving:
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SMB
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Mid-Market
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Enterprise
and operating globally across:
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North America
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Europe
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Australia and New Zealand
Strategic Questions I Help
Leadership Teams Navigate
Most leadership teams don’t struggle because they lack ideas. They struggle because strategy requires difficult tradeoffs.
Advisory conversations often focus on questions such as:
Product Strategy Direction
When growth slows or complexity increases, leadership teams must decide how the product should evolve — and which direction the organization will commit to long term
Strategic Bets
Not every product initiative deserves equal investment. Leadership teams often need to decide which bets will truly shape the future of the business — and which ones should not be pursued
Product Investment Priorities
Resources are always limited. Leadership teams must determine where product focus and investment will have the greatest impact on the business
Connecting Product Strategy to Business
Product initiatives should not exist in isolation.Leadership teams often need clarity on how product strategy connects to revenue growth, profitability, and long-term competitive advantage
Platform, Ecosystem & Marketplace Strategy
As products grow, opportunities emerge to expand value through integrations, partners, and multi-sided platforms. Leadership teams must decide whether — and how — to pursue these ecosystem strategies
Scaling Product Organizations
As companies grow, product organizations become more complex. Leadership teams must ensure structure, decision-making, and strategy scale with the business
PRODUCT LEADERSHIP UNLOCKED
Sharp Thinking on Product Decisions, once a week.
I write about how product decisions actually get made — under pressure, under constraints, with real business consequences. That's the gap this newsletter closes.
Perspectives From Leaders
I've Worked With
Over the past 15+ years I have worked with global product teams, platform businesses, and leadership teams navigating complex strategic decisions.
Sharon Gee
SVP Product, AI, Commerce
Elena and I led omnichannel strategy at BigCommerce. She worked tirelessly to anticipate merchants' needs, plan scalable strategies to meet them, and lead a cross-functional team to deliver. She was also instrumental in the Feedonomics acquisition — BigCommerce's first after IPO.
Manishi
Singh
Global Platform & Ecosystem Strategy · Salesforce AppExchange
Elena is equally comfortable with the C-Suite, industry analysts, technology experts, or someone starting their career — and makes them feel at ease. She is a visionary product leader and a domain expert who has made a tremendous impact at every organization she's joined.
Vasiliki Chatzivasileiou
Product & Commercial Leader, Imperial MBA
Elena delivered truly transformative product leadership at Spryker. She established Product Operations, introduced Continuous Discovery, and brought clarity through an outcome-driven roadmap. Her leadership helped shift Spryker from ad-hoc project delivery to a Product-Led organization — and earned recognition as an innovator in the Gartner Magic Quadrant.
How Engagements Typically Begin
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Initial conversation
We discuss the strategic challenge your organization is navigating.
Strategic context review
I review the relevant product strategy, market context, and business drivers
Advisory engagement
We determine the most effective format for collaboration — focused advisory sessions, strategic workshops, or ongoing advisory support.
READY TO ENGAGE · ADVISORY
If the cost of being wrong is high, let's talk.
Strategic product decisions shape the future of the business. If your organization is facing a critical one — platform bets, growth/profitability tradeoffs, AI direction — that's where I work.
Former Product Exec · BigCommerce, Spryker
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