What 13+ Interim CPO Roles Taught Him About Leading People | Harpal Singh

When you walk into a product organization as an interim leader, everyone knows you are temporary. There is no slow ramp to build trust. Credibility comes from one place: visible action that demonstrates genuine investment in the team's success.Harpal Singh has been in that position more than a dozen times. As an interim CPO managing teams of 10 to 12 product managers, he developed a philosophy that carries real cost: he would rather compromise the quality of the product than fail to give his people what they need to succeed.In this clip, Harpal traces how that philosophy developed over two decades. He shares the early career habits he had to unlearn, why interim roles forced a clarity that permanent positions often allow leaders to defer, and what it looks like when a team recognizes that a leader's commitment to their growth is backed by consistent action.Harpal Singh is CPO-in-Residence at Rothschild & Co, with previous interim CPO engagements at Ada Health, Automata Robotics, Lendis, and Epica.ai. He holds degrees from the University of Oxford and UCL.🎙️ If the people side of product leadership is where you want to grow, TPW members get actionable strategies on building teams, earning trust, and leading through complexity. Plus PM Select, a curated service that introduces PMs to hiring managers looking for product talent: https://patreon.com/theproductway/membership#productmanagement #leadership #interimCPO #theproductway #productexcellence