Teams are accountable to outcomes. What about product leaders?

In a strong product company context, product teams are accountable to solving customer problems in a way that delights customers, and also works for the business. To achieve this, they are empowered: given (bounded) autonomy to come up with solutions. In exchange for that autonomy, the team signs up to be accountable that the solutions they invent drive the outcomes the business needs.

So… what is a product leader accountable for in this?

Product leaders are accountable for the business results (impact) of the outcomes they assign to product teams.

If the team invents a great solution that delivers on the outcome we assigned them, but those outcomes don't actually move the needle for the business... that's on us as product leaders. This is why outcomes thinking is central to product leadership.

Don't expect your CEO to be the product leader. They are busy thinking about the business-level impacts. It's our job as product leaders to translate that into product outcomes our team's can deliver on.