BitTorrent is a company made up of inventors, engineers, scientists, designers; makers and breakers of technology. The BitTorrent Interview is an introduction to the people of peer-to-peer: notes from the edge of distributed technology, and a few words from the team we’re lucky enough to call our own. In this week’s edition: Building a great product and a great team with Jaehee Lee
Somewhere in the depths of Fort Client, you’ll find Jaehee Lee working hard as the Product Manager of the BitTorrent and µTorrent client. We made him leave his fort for a bit so we could ask him what exactly it is he does here. He was happy to explain that and more. Read the full interview below.
Jaehee, you’re a Product Manager here at BitTorrent. What the f does product management mean?
There are a lot of opinions about what product managers do. One is that they lead a team. Another is that they own a product. A better way to understand the role of a product manager begins with understanding what goes into making a great product: team members responsible for essential parts. You need people who can build the product. You need people who make sure it works. You need people who can make it beautiful, usable, and human.
But, you also need someone who understands the market and the business side of it: someone who considers what users need and how to create solutions to address that need. The product manager is a member of the team, responsible for that one (of many) essential parts.
“Great products solve a problem in the the simplest way possible. Many great products have a lot of features, but do a couple of things really well. That’s what’s important: Doing a couple of things really well.”
So, we work at BitTorrent (as you might know). What do you like about it?
I’ve been at BitTorrent for 2 years, and I can honestly say, the people. They’re incredible. Being around really smart engineers and designers allows me to be as creative as possible. The vision isn’t constrained by what’s already known or to solutions other people have already come up with. You think up an exciting idea, and nobody responds “That can’t happen,” they respond, “That’s a great idea, how can we make it happen?”
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