Why half of product managers are in trouble | Nikhyl Singhal (Meta, Google)
- 产品经理需更注重数据驱动决策能力
- 跨职能协作能力成为核心竞争力
- 传统PM技能已无法满足现代需求
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Why half of product managers are in trouble | Nikhyl Singhal (Meta, Google)
Lenny's Podcast 41,352 views 2 days ago
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1:52:49 Head of Growth (Anthropic): Anthropic is automating its own growth Lenny's Podcast 101K views • 2 weeks ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)1:39:51 An AI state of the union: We’ve passed the inflection point & dark factories are coming Lenny's Podcast 169K views • 2 weeks ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)35:59 Rain x Connex Partners: Fireside Chat on Financial Health Strategy Sho FWRD 11 views • 5 days ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)12:17 Shrimp Forever | Trump: I Would Have Won Vietnam | Jet Fuel Running Low The Late Show with Stephen Colbert 709K views • 7 hours ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)39:25 From Idea to $650M Exit: Lessons in Building AI Startups Y Combinator 252K views • 5 months ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)11:55 Ex-Google Recruiter Explains Why "Lying" Gets You Hired Farah Sharghi 1M views • 3 months ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)56:51 Turing Award Winner: Disagreeing with Google, Postgres, Future Problems | Mike Stonebraker Ryan Peterman 38K views • 1 day ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)1:22:40 Hard truths about building in the AI era | Keith Rabois (Khosla Ventures)Lenny's Podcast 62K views • 9 days ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)2:50:45 Retired Amazon VP: How Corporate Politics Work And How To Win | Ethan Evans Ryan Peterman 274K views • 3 weeks ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)14:11 Trump Extends Iran Ceasefire Again, Reads from Bible & Tucker Carlson Apologizes for Supporting Him Jimmy Kimmel Live 1.1M views • 7 hours ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)1:30:57 OpenAI's Identity Crisis, Datacenter Wars, Market Up on Iran News, Mamdani's First Tax, Swalwell Out All-In Podcast 447K views • 4 days ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)1:14:11 Urgent: The Final Phase of the Global Reset Is Here – Iran Update | Simon Dixon BTC Sessions and Simon Dixon 28K views • 21 hours ago Live Playlist ()Mix (50+)
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Why half of product managers are in trouble | Nikhyl Singhal (Meta, Google)
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41K views 2 days agoLenny's Podcast
41,352 views • Apr 19, 2026 • Lenny's Podcast
Nikhyl Singhal is the founder of The Skip, a community for senior product leaders; a former product exec at Meta, Google, and Credit Karma; and a many-time founder. He’s also one of the most honest, unfiltered voices on what’s actually happening in product management right now.…...more
...more
Chapters
View all
#### Introduction to Nikhyl Singhal
0:00
#### The big picture: what’s changing for product managers
2:25
#### Are product leaders doing better than 2-3 years ago?
10:00
#### What will change in the next couple of years
11:44
#### How companies are changing the way they build products
14:23
#### What “judgment” really means for PMs
15:51
#### Why there won’t be any more bad software
17:46
#### The skills you need to be effective today
20:25
Explore the podcast
Lenny's Podcast
Lenny's Podcast
Transcript
Follow along using the transcript.
Show transcript
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[](http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2fLjt2dG0N6unOOF3nHWYGcJJIQR1NKm)Lenny's Podcast
Why half of product managers are in trouble | Nikhyl Singhal (Meta, Google)
41,352 views 41K views
Apr 19, 2026
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[@masterfunk79](http://www.youtube.com/@masterfunk79)
A prompt will not fix the ego behind a bad idea and worse it will appease that ego because it’s trained to do so
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[@aquaticape68](http://www.youtube.com/@aquaticape68)
I enjoyed hearing Singhal’s perspective but he exemplifies the real problem in America with tech. These people are suffocatingly anti-intellectual and unwordly - to the point of being anti-human. These are the people who will side with the machines.
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[@mustaphmond42](http://www.youtube.com/@mustaphmond42)
I 100% agree that builders are about to have the time of their lives. For years, a lot of us ICs have watched good ideas die in meetings, approvals, and layers of coordination theater. Bureaucracy not only slowed things down it killed initiation and stalled creativity.
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[@JoshAtlas-b3x](http://www.youtube.com/@JoshAtlas-b3x)
At minute 8, Nikhyl made a core observation that is resonating with me. This isn't just about PM, it's about the realities of life. Thank you.
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[@devibal](http://www.youtube.com/@devibal)
Loved the intro comments. The excitement and fatigue - both feel so real.
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[@terrysapartment](http://www.youtube.com/@terrysapartment)
Shipped my own iOS/Apple Watch app recently as a PM, designed everything on my own, made the AI pipeline, backend, frontend, all solo - WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE
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[@IntricateJason](http://www.youtube.com/@IntricateJason)
Another great episode Lenny. I am a Doctor of Physical Therapy and own a continuing education company. Zero coding skills. I built 95% of a piece of AI medical marketing software based on my proprietary material I built a new company around. It’s ready for testing next week. Working awesome! I have 2 coders finishing up the details and fixing bugs now. I would love to share my experience with vibe coding a large piece of medical marketing software plus the need for real coders to get to a fully sellable piece of software to other doctors. Love your show. Thanks Lenny.
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[@k0nd10](http://www.youtube.com/@k0nd10)
57:00 is the most important thing. The difference between a job you hate and the career you love. I wish everyone the joy of finding what they love. No matter ai or wood carving
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[@rkatta](http://www.youtube.com/@rkatta)
Spot on, it’s time to stop babysitting the backlog and actually bridge the gap between vision and execution. This shift is definitely hitting way more than just the PM world!
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[@RahulKahani_](http://www.youtube.com/@RahulKahani_)
Shoutout to your editor Lenny! Been levelling up the visual intro narrative
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[@TristanBailey](http://www.youtube.com/@TristanBailey)
People having difficulty communicating and agreeing is still going to be an issue. It doesn’t matter how fast you can iterate, hippos and customers will still make it messy.
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[@Xmhusain](http://www.youtube.com/@Xmhusain)
Lenny, thanks again for another great session with the Product Management Think Tank. If I had to distill one key takeaway, it’s this: AI-first product management will demand more judgment, not less, but that judgment will come at the cost of significantly reduced headcount. Companies are quickly realizing they don’t need as many highly paid PMs to make decisions, and this shift will likely compress the entire org structure, from PMs to Directors, VPs, and even CPOs. The future feels decidedly flatter. That raises a harder, less-discussed question: what happens to the many professionals who have spent decades honing their PM craft? This is the part that rarely gets addressed, even by leaders like Jensen Huang. On a side note, it's so easy for him to state "choose it or leave it" since he is in a different financial position and can afford to give his un-biased view from the side lines.
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[@jesset55](http://www.youtube.com/@jesset55)
8:00 Literally my life.
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[@aayushsawhney9054](http://www.youtube.com/@aayushsawhney9054)
Amazing insights and pragmatism by Nikhyl… In this week, I came out watching an agent demo what my analytics team took 3 days to create in 5 mins, and the SVP of our Product Org (200+) at one of the global payments giants, asking what a PR is during the demo… so some strong takes may definitely become a reality..
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[@jerrycalex89](http://www.youtube.com/@jerrycalex89)
Loved this video, great insights
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[@ythaker25](http://www.youtube.com/@ythaker25)
Great session, food for thoughts !Image 40: 🎉
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[@nastunjka](http://www.youtube.com/@nastunjka)
Great episode! It resonated so much! Tension between automating PM function / delivery processes and stepping in as a builder is real.
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[@FabsWilliams](http://www.youtube.com/@FabsWilliams)
Great episode! Love the ‘Dinos Christianopolous’ derived saying “they thought they were burying us, but they forgot we are seeds” … & Nikhyl emphasis on ‘obsoleting yourself’ as a way to hone that engineering mindset… love the framing around the 59:00 min mark
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[@npc9710](http://www.youtube.com/@npc9710)
the gap between reality and your understanding is so wide it is mind boggling. how you got hired? i understand that product ppl are not the most educated. but you are on a totally different level
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[@haze1123](http://www.youtube.com/@haze1123)
A renaissance of "building" in an age of mass unemployment for a majority of office workers. This will be fascinating to watch.
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In this video
Chapters
Transcript
Chapters
#### Introduction to Nikhyl Singhal
0:00
#### The big picture: what’s changing for product managers
2:25
#### Are product leaders doing better than 2-3 years ago?
10:00
#### What will change in the next couple of years
11:44
#### How companies are changing the way they build products
14:23
#### What “judgment” really means for PMs
15:51
#### Why there won’t be any more bad software
17:46
#### The skills you need to be effective today
20:25
#### Why there are more PM roles than ever
23:31
#### The builder versus information-mover divide
24:27
30:14
#### Should PMs code?
30:53
#### Why experienced leaders still matter
34:15
#### The diversity setback nobody’s talking about
35:44
#### Why your brand doesn’t matter as much anymore
37:21
#### How valued skills are flipping upside down
39:54
#### Why change is so hard for humans
40:49
#### The “equal disappointment” algorithm
43:53
#### You must cross the threshold
46:39
48:37
#### Finding your moment of joy
53:19
#### Nikhyl’s AI stack and what he’s building
58:50
1:00:53
#### Specific advice for PMs right now
1:05:24
#### The four jobs that will exist in the future
1:08:58
#### Why alignment is changing (but not disappearing)
1:11:59
#### How engineering is changing even more than PM
1:15:40
#### The surprising design plateau
1:17:04
#### Finding optimism in the chaos
1:18:49
#### Lightning round
1:21:12
Sync to video time
Description
Why half of product managers are in trouble | Nikhyl Singhal (Meta, Google)
810 Likes
41,352 Views
Apr 19 2026
Nikhyl Singhal is the founder of The Skip, a community for senior product leaders; a former product exec at Meta, Google, and Credit Karma; and a many-time founder. He’s also one of the most honest, unfiltered voices on what’s actually happening in product management right now. In our in-depth conversation, we discuss: 1. Why the next two years will be the most chaotic period in product management history 2. Why half of current product managers are at risk, and what separates those who’ll do well 3. Why you need to find your “moments of joy” with AI 4. The “smiling exhaustion” he’s seeing across the product community 5. The psychological barriers that prevent people from reinventing themselves 6. Why your resume’s fancy logos matter less than ever, and what matters now 7. His prediction that companies will shed 30,000 people and rehire 8,000—all AI-first Brought to you by: WorkOS—Modern identity platform for B2B SaaS, free up to 1 million MAUs: https://workos.com/lenny Vanta—automate compliance, manage risk, and accelerate trust with AI: https://vanta.com/lennyEpisode transcript:https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/wh...Archive of all Lenny's Podcast transcripts:https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/yxi4s2...Where to find Nikhyl Singhal: • LinkedIn:  • X: https://x.com/nikhyl • Podcast & Newsletter: https://skip.show • Skip Community: https://skip.community • Skip Coach: https://skip.coach • Skip.help: https://skip.helpWhere to find Lenny: • Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com • X:  • LinkedIn: In this episode, we cover: (00:00) Introduction to Nikhyl Singhal (02:25) The big picture: what’s changing for product managers (10:00) Are product leaders doing better than 2-3 years ago? (11:44) What will change in the next couple of years (14:23) How companies are changing the way they build products (15:51) What “judgment” really means for PMs (17:46) Why there won’t be any more bad software (20:25) The skills you need to be effective today (23:31) Why there are more PM roles than ever (24:27) The builder versus information-mover divide (30:14) The non-builder problem (30:53) Should PMs code? (34:15) Why experienced leaders still matter (35:44) The diversity setback nobody’s talking about (37:21) Why your brand doesn’t matter as much anymore (39:54) How valued skills are flipping upside down (40:49) Why change is so hard for humans (43:53) The “equal disappointment” algorithm (46:39) You must cross the threshold (48:37) This chaos will settle (53:19) Finding your moment of joy (58:50) Nikhyl’s AI stack and what he’s building (1:00:53) The obsolescence mindset (1:05:24) Specific advice for PMs right now (1:08:58) The four jobs that will exist in the future (1:11:59) Why alignment is changing (but not disappearing) (1:15:40) How engineering is changing even more than PM (1:17:04) The surprising design plateau (1:18:49) Finding optimism in the chaos (1:21:12) Lightning round Referenced: • Building a long and meaningful career | Nikhyl Singhal (Meta, Google): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/bu... • COBOL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COBOL • United Airlines: https://www.united.com • State of the product job market in early 2026: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/st... • Head of Growth (Anthropic): “Claude is growing itself at this point” | Amol Avasare: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/an... • Demis Hassabis on X: https://x.com/demishassabis • Sam Altman on X: https://x.com/sama • Dario Amodei on X: https://x.com/DarioAmodei • Cross on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/Cross-Season-1... • Jack Ryan on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/Tom-Clancys-Ja... • 24 on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/24-Season-1/dp... • Claude Code: https://code.claude.com • Codex: https://chatgpt.com/codex • Lovable: https://lovable.dev • Sonos: https://www.sonos.com • “There are only four jobs” on X: https://x.com/yrechtman/status/203901... • Paradise on Hulu: https://www.hulu.com/series/paradise-... • Lioness on Paramount+: https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/l... • Albert Einstein’s quote: Recommended books: • James: https://www.amazon.com/James-Novel-Pe... • The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn: https://www.amazon.com/Adventures-Huc...Production and marketing by https://penname.co/.For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com. Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.…...more
...more Show less
Chapters
View all
#### Introduction to Nikhyl Singhal
0:00
#### The big picture: what’s changing for product managers
2:25
#### Are product leaders doing better than 2-3 years ago?
10:00
#### What will change in the next couple of years
11:44
Explore the podcast
Lenny's Podcast
Lenny's Podcast
Transcript
Follow along using the transcript.
Show transcript
Transcript
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