The hardest aspect of product strategy is deciding what not to do, but it’s also the most powerful lever. Product focus is critical for small and growing companies because, almost invariably, they’re going up against larger, better-resourced rivals. When you don’t have the resources to be everything to everyone, having a narrower product strategy helps ensure that your product is fantastic for someone. I’ll share examples of how focus can help streamline operations and drive revenue, and how to tell whether you’re focused enough.

Kate Hopkins is a Director on the Operations Team at Mainsail Partners, where she helps the firm’s portfolio companies accelerate growth through product management and market strategy. Prior to Mainsail, Kate earned her MBA at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business and worked in product management at Amazon and strategy consulting at Bain. She loves thinking about product strategy in niche industries and B2B companies, which she writes about at recurringly.blog. Though she lives in San Francisco now, Kate is a native Coloradan with 20+ 14ers under her belt.