The Product/Executive Connection: Building Trust by Playing Small Ball

In solving any highly complex challenge, like building trust with executive stakeholders, product managers should start by leaning into delivering consistently instead of trying to hit a home run every time at bat.

STAKEHOLDER COLLABORATION

1/27/20262 min read

Building a bridge between the executive suite and product management isn't about reporting lines; it’s about building trust in the dark. Executives live in the world of "big bets" and market outcomes, while we live in the "how" of execution and empathy. If those two worlds don't talk to each other, the product loses its soul.

I’ve learned that the C-suite doesn't just want a status update; they want to know you have a handle on the risk.

Here is how you keep that relationship from fracturing:

Executives focus on Outcomes and Risk: They care about burn rates and market share. Your job is to translate feature lists into how you are de-risking the company’s future.
PMs focus on Execution and Detail: We represent the customer’s voice. Our value lies in showing how ground-level reality supports the 30,000-foot strategy.
The Shared Language Mandate: Establish a cadence of radical transparency. If a project is slipping, say it; if a customer insight changes the roadmap, prove it.

Earlier in my career, I was a consultant for a Fortune 500 client on a massive project: setting up a reviews support desk. It was a mammoth task, and honestly, the complexity was daunting. My Executive Director and CTO took a massive chance on me, and I knew I had to earn that trust every single day, as well as that of the customer.

My plan wasn't some grand, rigid 12-month roadmap. It was simpler: Start small, win daily, and optimize the process as I went.

I built feedback loops directly into our deliverables, something they hadn't considered before. Because I had stacked up early wins and built deep empathy with the customer, they gave me the room to run. By the time we were done, we hadn't just delivered; we had built a bridge to repeat sales because the executive team finally saw the methodology behind the "magic".

If I were your product coach, I’d ask you this: Are you trying to sell your executives on a finished masterpiece, or are you inviting them to trust the process you’ve built?

The best products are built when executive vision meets product discipline. Don't wait for a quarterly review to find that alignment.

How are you keeping your leadership team "plugged in" without communicating all the boring (to them) little details?