How to hire a Chief Product Officer

Hiring a Chief Product Officer (CPO) can be a critical decision for any company. This individual will be responsible for the overall strategy, development, and success of the company’s products. Choosing the right CPO can help drive growth, innovation, and profitability, while the wrong hire can lead to wasted resources and lost opportunities. In this blog post, we will explore what a Chief Product Officer is, when to hire one, and different approaches to hiring a CPO.

Contact us if you need help with your next CPO recruitment process.

What is a Chief Product Officer (CPO)?

A Chief Product Officer (CPO) is a senior executive responsible for managing a company’s product strategy, development, and delivery. The CPO works closely with other senior executives, including the CEO and other departmental leaders, to ensure that the company’s products align with its overall strategy and goals. In addition, the CPO oversees product development, product marketing, and product management teams.

A CPO’s job description would revolve around their main objectives, which typically include: 

• Developing and implementing the company’s overall product strategy, including identifying new opportunities, setting priorities, and allocating resources.
• Collaborating with other executives, such as the CEO and CMO, to ensure that the product strategy aligns with the overall business strategy and goals.
• Leading and managing the product development process, including product design, prototyping, testing, and launching.
• Overseeing the product management function, including defining product roadmaps, managing product lifecycles, and ensuring that products meet customer needs and market demand.
• Managing cross-functional teams, including product development, product management, and product marketing, to ensure collaboration and alignment.
• Measuring and reporting on key product metrics, such as revenue, profitability, and customer satisfaction, to assess product performance and inform future decisions.

When should I hire a Chief Product Officer?

It’s likely that a company looks to hire a Chief Product Officer as the business prepares for rapid scale up of its activities, and this usually coincides with a recent funding round, either series A or B, and investor cashflow into the business.

There are various situations when a start-up company might choose to hire a Chief Product Officer (CPO). Here are some examples:

Rapid growth

When a start-up is experiencing rapid growth, the product development process may become too complex for the CEO or other senior executives to manage effectively. A CPO can bring the necessary skills and experience to help manage the growth and ensure that the company’s product strategy aligns with its overall business strategy.

Complex product portfolio

Start-ups that have a complex product portfolio may also benefit from having a CPO. The CPO can help prioritise product development efforts, streamline the product management process, and ensure that each product aligns with the company’s overall strategy.

Entering new markets

When a start-up is entering a new market, it can be challenging to understand the market dynamics, customer needs, and competitive landscape. A CPO with experience in the target market can help the start-up develop a successful product strategy and ensure that the company’s products meet customer needs and expectations.

Prioritising innovation

Start-ups that prioritise innovation and want to stay ahead of the competition should consider hiring a CPO. The CPO can help identify new product opportunities, assess emerging technologies, and ensure that the company’s products are innovative and differentiated in the market.

How to hire a Chief Product Officer

So we know the best time to hire a Chief Product Officer. Now, lets discover the best way to hire a CPO effectively.

Work with a product executive search firm on retainer

Using a product executive search firm can provide numerous benefits when hiring a CPO, including expertise, time-saving, reduced risk, confidentiality, and negotiation assistance. Companies should consider partnering with an executive search firm to ensure that they attract and hire the best candidate for their CPO position. 

The benefits of using a specialist executive search on retainer includes: 

Specialised expertise

Executive search firms specialise in executive recruitment, and they have the expertise to identify the best CPO candidates with the right qualifications, experience, and cultural fit.

Time-saving

Hiring a CPO can be a time-consuming process, especially for companies with limited HR resources. By outsourcing the recruitment process to an executive search firm, the company can focus on its core business activities, while the search firm takes care of the recruitment process.

Confidentiality

Executive search firms can conduct the search for a CPO discreetly and maintain confidentiality throughout the process. This can be particularly important for companies that do not want to alert their competitors, stakeholders, or employees about their search.

Reduced risk of bad hires

Making a bad hire can be costly and disruptive to a company’s operations. Executive search firms have rigorous screening and selection processes to minimize the risk of a bad hire, ensuring that the selected candidate is a good fit for the company’s culture and values.

Help with negotiations

Executive search firms can help companies negotiate compensation packages and other terms with the selected candidate, ensuring that both the company and the candidate are satisfied with the agreement.

Employing an executive search firm to hire a Chief Product Officer may sound scary – you envisage big recruitment fees and you may be worried that you engage the wrong agency to start with. We suggest for this reason that you engage a functional specialist, an agency which places a CPO role day to day, rather than a generalist executive search agency. To help, we have compiled a list of the best 6 executive search recruitment agencies in London, all with specific functional expertise.

Read more about the benefits of engaging an executive search firm in our blog.

Networking

Networking can be a powerful tool in recruiting a CPO. Companies can leverage their existing network of contacts, including industry associations, trade shows, conferences, and other events, to identify potential candidates. Additionally, they can use social media platforms like LinkedIn to identify and connect with potential candidates. 

LinkedIn can be a great tool for reaching a large number of potential candidates; however, it can be time-consuming and may require a LinkedIn recruiter license or joining a Product Management group with an existing audience. 

Additionally, senior-level candidates often prefer to be approached by a headhunter through LinkedIn, particularly if the hiring company is a competitor. Working with an executive search firm can provide a level of confidentiality and trust that may be lacking in direct engagement with a business. 

Internal promotions and referrals

Companies may also consider promoting an existing employee to the CPO position, particularly if the employee has a deep understanding of the company’s products, processes, and culture. Internal promotions can also be an effective way to boost employee morale and loyalty.

Companies can also leverage their existing employees, investors, advisors, and other stakeholders to identify potential CPO candidates. Referrals can be a valuable source of qualified candidates, as they have been recommended by someone the company trusts.

Job ads

Posting job openings on company websites, job boards, and social media can attract a large pool of candidates. Companies should be clear about the CPO’s responsibilities, qualifications, and requirements to attract the most qualified candidates. Additionally, companies can use targeted ads to reach potential candidates who may not be actively looking for a new job.

Chief Product Officer interview questions

Before designing a Chief Product Officer interview, a company should consider the following questions:

What are the company’s product goals and objectives?

By considering these questions, a company can design a CPO interview that focuses on assessing the candidate’s skills, experience, and fit with the organisation’s product goals and culture. This can help ensure that the company hires a CPO who is not only qualified for the role but also has the potential to make a significant impact on the company’s product strategy and success.

Once you have answered the above questions, use our compilation of product management interview questions to help qualify a candidates experience against your business-specific needs.

CPO interview assessment

Providing candidates with product-specific tasks as part of their interview assessment enables the company to evaluate their strategic thinking ability, product planning and execution skills, capability to assess product success, and proficiency in leading a team.

We’ve suggested three tasks which can offer valuable insights into the candidate’s product management approach and skills, enabling the company to make a more informed hiring decision.

Develop a product roadmap

Present the candidate with a hypothetical scenario that outlines the company’s product goals, market landscape, and competitive landscape. Ask the candidate to develop a product roadmap that aligns with the company’s overall strategy and goals.

Evaluate a product

Provide the candidate with a product that the company has recently launched or is planning to launch. Ask the candidate to evaluate the product and identify opportunities for improvement or expansion, as well as potential risks and challenges.

Lead a product team

Present the candidate with a scenario that requires them to lead a cross-functional product team, such as a team of product managers, designers, and engineers. Ask the candidate to outline their approach to managing and leading the team, including their communication strategies, goal setting, and conflict resolution techniques.

Unanswered questions? Want more information? Contact us today.