Skip to content
Lenny's PodcastLenny's Podcast

Building high-performing teams | Melissa Tan (Webflow, Dropbox, Canva)

Melissa Tan is an advisor, investor, and growth expert. She’s worked with fast-growing startups like Dropbox, Canva, Grammarly, and Miro, and for the past 2.5 years has been the Head of Growth at Webflow. There, she led the company's self-service business across Product, Marketing, and Growth, in addition to leading the charge on pricing and packaging. Prior to Webflow, she was Head of Growth for Dropbox’s B2B product, where she played a pivotal role in propelling their growth. In today’s episode, we discuss: • Attributes of high-performing teams • Tips for developing talent and seeking a mentor • How to create a strong culture of ownership • Frameworks for hiring PM and growth talent • Common pitfalls companies face when implementing growth strategies • Lessons from scaling Dropbox • The DACI framework for increasing team velocity • How to actually embrace first-principles thinking — Brought to you by AssemblyAI—Production-ready AI models to transcribe and understand speech | Mixpanel—Product analytics that everyone can trust, use, and afford | Eppo—Run reliable, impactful experiments Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/building-high-performing-teams-melissa Where to find Melissa Tan: • Twitter: https://twitter.com/melissamtan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissamtan/ Where to find Lenny: • Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com • Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ In this episode, we cover: (00:00) Melissa’s background (04:12) What’s next for Melissa (06:45) Lessons learned from Dropbox (11:49) When to add sales to product-led products and vice versa (14:28) Managing people with a people-focused and results-oriented approach (17:14) An example of people-focused leadership (20:26) The importance of talent development and why Melissa invests in it (22:26) Tips for finding a mentor (24:58) Specific questions to ask when you are interviewing for a role (27:49) Companies Melissa has worked with (28:33) Attributes of high-performing teams (31:38) Creating a sense of ownership among team members (34:36) Building a team-first culture (36:54) Avoiding burnout by knowing your limits (39:24) Developing talent and unlocking potential within your organization (42:45) Melissa’s hiring practices and what she looks for in a product manager (44:40) The exact interview sequence Melissa utilizes (49:58) Common pitfalls when creating growth teams (53:43) “Flying formation” and the DACI framework (56:48) Who should own revenue (58:19) When to invest in growth (1:01:06) What to look for in your first growth hire (1:04:35) When it’s appropriate to hire an advisor (1:06:19) First-principles thinking (1:09:50) Lightning round Referenced: • Jiaona Zhang on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jiaona/ • Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead: https://www.amazon.com/Lean-Women-Work-Will-Lead/dp/0385349947 • Tim Ferriss: How to Find a Great Mentor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVo1aZCyfO4 • Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity: https://www.amazon.com/Radical-Candor-Revised-Kick-Ass-Humanity/dp/1250235375/ • How to Monetize a Freemium Business: https://www.ycombinator.com/blog/how-to-monetize-a-freemium-business • DACI framework: https://www.productplan.com/glossary/daci/ • Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don't: https://www.amazon.com/Leaders-Eat-Last-Together-Others/dp/1591848016/r • The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself: https://www.amazon.com/Untethered-Soul-Journey-Beyond-Yourself/dp/1572245379/ • The Four Agreements: https://www.amazon.com/Four-Agreements-Practical-Personal-Freedom/dp/1878424319 • Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty on HBO: https://www.hbo.com/winning-time-the-rise-of-the-lakers-dynasty • ChatGPT: https://chat.openai.com/ • Webflow: https://webflow.com/ Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com. Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.

Melissa TanguestLenny Rachitskyhost
Jun 18, 20231h 14mWatch on YouTube ↗

CHAPTERS

  1. 0:00 – 4:12

    Melissa’s background

  2. 4:12 – 6:45

    What’s next for Melissa

  3. 6:45 – 11:49

    Lessons learned from Dropbox

  4. 11:49 – 14:28

    When to add sales to product-led products and vice versa

  5. 14:28 – 17:14

    Managing people with a people-focused and results-oriented approach

  6. 17:14 – 20:26

    An example of people-focused leadership

  7. 20:26 – 22:26

    The importance of talent development and why Melissa invests in it

  8. 22:26 – 24:58

    Tips for finding a mentor

  9. 24:58 – 27:49

    Specific questions to ask when you are interviewing for a role

  10. 27:49 – 28:33

    Companies Melissa has worked with

  11. 28:33 – 31:38

    Attributes of high-performing teams

  12. 31:38 – 34:36

    Creating a sense of ownership among team members

  13. 34:36 – 36:54

    Building a team-first culture

  14. 36:54 – 39:24

    Avoiding burnout by knowing your limits

  15. 39:24 – 42:45

    Developing talent and unlocking potential within your organization

  16. 42:45 – 44:40

    Melissa’s hiring practices and what she looks for in a product manager

  17. 44:40 – 49:58

    The exact interview sequence Melissa utilizes

  18. 49:58 – 53:43

    Common pitfalls when creating growth teams

  19. 53:43 – 56:48

    “Flying formation” and the DACI framework

  20. 56:48 – 58:19

    Who should own revenue

  21. 58:19 – 1:01:06

    When to invest in growth

  22. 1:01:06 – 1:04:35

    What to look for in your first growth hire

  23. 1:04:35 – 1:06:19

    When it’s appropriate to hire an advisor

  24. 1:06:19 – 1:09:50

    First-principles thinking

  25. 1:09:50 – 1:14:41

    Lightning round

Get more out of YouTube videos.

High quality summaries for YouTube videos. Accurate transcripts to search & find moments. Powered by ChatGPT & Claude AI.

Add to Chrome