Thank You for a Great Event!
Huge thank you to our sponsors, committee + volunteers, and, of course - our attendees!
View the Event Photos!Introducing rvatech/ ProductFest RVA
Join us for Richmond’s inaugural Product Management conference, ProductFest RVA, created for Product Managers by Product Mangers. Enjoy a day surrounded by the most forward-thinking voices in the industry as we gather for incredible presentations and working sessions given by a diverse lineup of speakers that will leave you feeling inspired and motivated.
Register TodayConference Details -
About the Event
Join us in Richmond, Virginia, and let’s stray away from your average workday and dedicate some time towards you. Get ready for a day of innovative sessions focused on connecting with the Richmond product community and growing your career.
ProductFest RVA promises a full day of skill development, new ideas, and connections to supercharge your product career.
Date + Time
June 8, 2022 | 9 AM – 5 PM
Venue
Science Museum of Virginia – Thalhimer Pavilion
2500 West Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23220
Parking: 2301 W Leigh Street Richmond, VA 23220
Science Museum parking is ample and free. Spaces near the front of the building are designated for guests with mobility challenges. All other guests should park in the lot located directly behind the Science Museum off West Leigh Street or DMV Drive. Signage will provide you with WALKING directions to the Thalhimer Pavilion.
You may also view a detailed parking map here.
One Room,
Two Stages + Simultaneous Content.
Two Stages + Simultaneous Content.
Welcome to our Silent Conference. Powered by Silent Events® – we’re bringing our attendees a conference experience they’ve never seen before. Each attendee will receive their own headset enabling you to listen to whatever speaker you want by tuning into that channel via your headset.
We’re making it easier for the product community to come together to learn, engage, and have fun!
Love both speakers – there’s no need for FOMO, just switch the channels.
There’s no breakout commitment – change the channel and check out what’s happening on the other stage!
Feeling Social? That’s cool too – take off your headset + chat it up without fear of disruption.
2022 Agenda
9:00 - 9:30 AM / Registration
Registration / Networking – Doors Open at 9 AM
9:30 - 9:45 AM / Welcome
Welcoming remarks from rvatech/ + ProductTank Organizers
9:45 - 10:30 AM / Morning Keynote -
RVA as a Product Town
Speakers: Garret Westlake - VCU, Bill Harney - Keeping Current Matters, Casey Humphries - UNOS + Shannon Eastwood - Aquent
RVA as a Product Town – Past, Present + Future
Speakers:
Garret Westlake – Executive Director at VCU da Vinci Center for Innovation
Bill Harney – CEO at Keeping Current Matters
Casey Humphries – Logistical Products Service Line Leader at UNOS
Moderator – Shannon Eastwood – Senior Product Manager at Aquent
Over the years, Richmond has grown significantly as a product and technology town. Our Morning Keynote panelists will share their experience and perspective regarding how the product scene has evolved in RVA, past, present, and future.
10:40 - 11:25 AM / "It Pays to Discover… Properly"
Speakers: Amy O'Callaghan - Vangst + Victoria Lawson - CarMax
Speakers:
Amy O’Callaghan – Head of Product at Vangst
Victoria Lawson – Director, Product Management at CarMax
Discovery is an incredible tool, but it’s all too easy for bias and assumptions to derail our efforts. Join Victoria and Amy as they share how cognitive shortcuts show up in discovery, and how to build a learning agenda to outwit them. You’ll walk away with actionable techniques that you can immediately apply – whether you’re an experienced pro refining an established toolkit, or just starting out.
10:40 - 11:25 AM / Storytelling with Product Analytics
Speakers:
Chandler Tyler – Product Strategist at Shockoe
With hundreds of different data analysis tools and the allure of “big data” superpowers, it’s easy to get lost in a sea of meaningless reports and graphs. As product people, we have to not only make sense of the data we collect, but also tell a compelling story about what the data actually means to the customer or the business. In this session, Chandler will explain how to effectively leverage data to tell product stories using a combination of visualizations and narratives that create actionable outcomes.
11:35 AM - 12:20 PM / "The Value of Building Inclusive Product Teams"
Speakers: Dr. Kendra Cabler - Etsy, Somiah Lattimore - U of R + Charlotte Dales - Inclusively
Speakers:
Dr. Kendra Cabler – Senior Manager, DEI at Etsy
Somiah Lattimore – Director, Creativity, Innovation & Entrepreneurship at University of Richmond
Charlotte Dales – CEO of Inclusively
Moderator – Shannon Morales
It’s easy to build high-performing product teams that get the job done. But what’s the value in the team if it doesn’t reflect its’ users or generally is not inclusive? Today, we want to unpack some of the stories, experiences, and perspectives on building inclusive product teams – from the team itself all the way to the organizational level of inclusion and diversity.
11:35 AM - 12:20 PM / "Driving Decisions From Experience Data"
Speakers:Ann Marie Guzzi - Koalafi, Jordan Silton - Apartments.com + Odean Maye - Capital One
Speakers:
Jordan Silton – Senior Director of Product, SE at Apartments.com
Ann Marie Guzzi – Senior Product Manager at Koalafi
Odean Maye – Director of Technology at Capital One
Our world is full of data. From the things we read, the content we watch, and the products we interact with daily. We need data to help understand our customers and products that help us make decisions to drive your business forward.
Making decisions with data is great in theory, but what does it mean to be data-driven in practice? Join Ann Marie, Jordan, and Odean as they share how they share some of their experiences on using data (or lack thereof) to build products and drive decisions forward. From their experience, hear how data-driven decision-making can enable you to be a more effective product leader in your organization or entrepreneur in your venture.
12:20 - 1:20 PM / Lunch + Live-cast
Lunch / Networking / LIVE Product Podcast
Lunch will be provided by local food trucks!
1:20 - 2:05 PM / "Building Healthy Product Manager Teams"
Speaker: Abhi Agrawal - VP of Product Management, Ceridian
Speakers:
Abhi Agrawal – VP of Product Management at Ceridian
A lot of time is spent discussing how to build the right roadmap (“Outcomes over Outputs!”) or the right process (Agile vs. SCRUM vs. SAFe), but little time is spent on leading healthy product teams. In this talk, Abhi will discuss some of the principles that have worked for him in the past, and the tactics that you can try as you build your PM team.
1:20 - 2:05 PM / "The Path to Yes"
Speaker: Lauren Fox - Director of Product Management, Capital One
Speakers:
Lauren Fox – Director of Product Management at Capital One
Influence is the skill of the 21st-century workplace. As a product manager, you wrangle and bring together stakeholders from numerous functions, businesses, and in many cases external partners to deliver your vision to the market. In this talk, we break down what goes into influencing successfully, especially when you aren’t leading from a position of hierarchical authority, and build you a roadmap to successfully get a “yes” to your great ideas.
2:25 - 3:00 PM / Afternoon Keynote -
The Art of Being Ridiculous
Grayson Scott @ Sony Music Entertainment
Speaker:
Grayson Scott – Director of Product Design at Sony Music Entertainment
There is a power within that endows us with a healthier, more productive, and less stressed-filled life. This superpower grants the user the ability to lead teams better, communicate more effectively, and protects them from career burnout. It even generates additional neural connections within the brain leading to a boost in memory.
However, this power has a dark side. When used inappropriately, it isolates you from your family and your coworkers. If left unchecked, it will have a corrosive effect on everyone around you. So how do you harness this amazing power without becoming a supervillain?
At the end of the session, attendees will understand:
- What multiple scientific studies and even Albert Einstein attributed to becoming brilliant
- Increase your verbal and non-verbal intelligence while managing stress and adversity
- Open the learning centers of your brain and become more creative
- Know when it’s time to save the day, and when it’s time to walk away
3:00 - 4:30 PM / Happy Hour
2022 Speakers
Amy O'Callaghan
Head of Product
Vangst
Abhi Agrawal
VP of Product Management
Ceridian
Victoria Lawson
Director, Product Management
CarMax
Jordan Silton
Senior Director of Product, SEO
Apartments.com
Grayson Scott
Director of Product Design
Sony Music
Shannon Eastwood
Senior Product Manager
Aquent
Lauren Fox
Director of Product Management
Capital One
Garret Westlake
Executive Director
VCU da Vinci Center for Innovation
Dr. Kendra Cabler
Senior Manager, DEI
Etsy
Isaiah Harvin
Product Manager
HBO Max
Charlotte Dales
CEO
Inclusively
Casey Humphries
Logistical Products Service Line Leader
UNOS
Shannon Morales
CEO
Tribaja
Bill Harney
CEO
Keeping Current Matters
Ann Marie Guzzi
Senior Product Manager
Koalafi
Odean Maye
Director, Technology
Capital One
Chandler Tyler
Product Strategist
Shockoe