My name is Yeji Kim-Barros (pronounced yay-jee, as if you’re ecstatic then mildly shocked). I’m most proud of the relationships I’ve built and teams I’ve helped–not in their delivery, but discovery: seeing people say yes to the right things is inspiring.

My thank you cards “I hope I’ve told you this before: you’re such a good manager. Having you as my first manager I think I took that for granted but in my time since then I’ve gotten to appreciate…and I was so lucky to have you as my first manager.”

Previously, I was a Director of Product at Nexamp, a clean energy enterprise specializing in the construction and management of solar farms. During my time, I coached Product Managers to make informed product decisions. Together, we achieved cost savings through optimized OpEx, improvements in conversion rate, and opened opportunities into new markets to fuel growth.

Before Nexamp, I was the first product management hire for CollegeVine, a startup with a mission to democratize college admissions guidance. I worked with the founders and VPs at Fidelity Labs to launch a B2B2C product that provides college application assistance. I also worked as a “0-to-1” product manager and subsequently worked on activation, retention, and product-led growth (PLG) after finding product-market fit (PMF). The work led to 15% WoW growth and improvements to the retention curve.

Before CollegeVine, I was the seed PM for the Merchandising Product department at Wayfair, an e-commerce enterprise, that opened their office in Berlin. I built new systems to improve in-house brand creation process and coached product managers, analysts, and QAs based in Boston and Berlin. I also worked for the Boston office where I worked with suppliers and several internal departments to revamp the product catalog structure and improved customer lead time, increased wholesale revenue, and optimized the warehouse and delivery network.

Beyond consulting and coaching product managers to enhance their product intuition, I frequently make small product bets and document my successes and failures in blog posts.

Why am I writing this blog?

In the early days of my career, I hastily put together an MVP for “product validation.” It stayed that way for several years, much to the disappointment of users. Along the way, I added every conceivable feature to the front page of the product. I have grown since then. The same goes for the philosophy behind creating product value and usability.

When I wanted to learn how to improve, I read a lot of helpful literature. But it was often too theoretical and not actionable. I gained a lot of knowledge about product creation, but it wasn’t useful when I was faced with real-world challenges. I needed more product intuition. And that comes with experience.

Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. - Mike Tyson -

This blog aims to document my experiences with the realities of product creation and management–including the times I get punched in the mouth. I know there are people who can relate: Dr. Frankenstein cobbling together a spaghetti-code monster, a zookeeper feeding HiPPOs, a border collie trying to herd the masses, Professor X trying to read minds, or an imposter left wondering, “maybe it’s a me problem.” You’re not alone.