Debugging Product vs Engineering: Breaking Down Silos and Building Trust

“This collaboration and making it work really well is such a critical factor to delivering great software for your clients.” In theory, product and engineering teams share the same goal - building great software that solves real problems. Yet in practice, these teams often find themselves working in silos, dealing with misalignment, and sometimes even engaging in blame games. What separates organizations where this partnership thrives from those where it struggles? In this episode, Lena and product leader Reina unpack the complexities of the product-engineering relationship and share practical strategies to strengthen it. Drawing from her extensive product management experience across multiple organizations, Reina shares candid insights about: What makes some product-engineering partnerships succeed while others falter How to identify and address common friction points between teams Building trust and psychological safety across organizational boundaries Setting clear expectations and aligning incentives Moving from finger-pointing to shared ownership Creating feedback loops that actually work Together, they explore actionable approaches for both product and engineering leaders to foster better collaboration, improve communication, and ultimately deliver more value to users. ___ ⁠⁠Full episode transcript link⁠⁠. ___ Resources ⁠Goblin Tools ___ Why this podcast exists  I make this podcast as a space for honest conversations about the hard parts of leadership that most leaders only dare to talk about behind closed doors—after all, we're supposed to be “in charge”, and “on top of things" at all times. But from my close work with dozens of leaders every week, I know that more leaders than you may think are struggling with topics like self-confidence, imposter syndrome, unclear expectations, or difficult bosses. This podcast is where we talk about it. About your host I’m Lena Reinhard (she/they), a fractional VP Engineering, leadership coach, mentor, and facilitator. Having served as an engineering executive with companies like CircleCI and Travis CI, and as a SaaS startup co-founder & CEO, I have dedicated my career to helping fast-paced organizations across the globe succeed in times of high change and challenging markets. You can regularly find me speaking at tech conferences and read my practical guides for leaders in the technology space ⁠⁠on my website⁠⁠.