Why Product Managers Need to Level Up in 2026: Carla Jarrett

What does the future of product management actually look like?In this episode of the Everyday Agile Podcast, I sit down with Carla Jarrett to talk about:Why traditional product management skills are no longer enough.How AI is changing product roles.The rise of engineering fluency and “product engineers”.Why Scrum and Agile often become “agile theatre”.Product Manager vs Product Owner debates.Customer discovery, product leadership and proving product value.Building SaaS products and surviving acquisitions.The Liverpool tech scene and the launch of Build Better Liverpool.Carla shares practical insights from working as a Head of Product, scaling B2B SaaS platforms, leading teams, and helping shape Liverpool’s growing tech community.If you work in Product Management, Agile, Scrum, SaaS, UX, Engineering Leadership or Tech Leadership, this conversation is packed with useful insights.Topics covered:Product Management, Agile, Scrum, AI in Product, SaaS, Product Leadership, Product Strategy, Discovery, Stakeholder Management, UX, Engineering, Customer Feedback, Product Teams, Product Owner vs Product Manager, Liverpool Tech, Build Better Liverpool.▶︎Subscribe for more conversations on Agile, product, and delivery https://www.youtube.com/@EverydayAgile▶︎Our Newsletter https://substack.com/@betweenthestandups00:00 – Why Product Managers Need More Than Traditional PM Skills00:50 – The Future of Product Management Is Changing01:25 – Engineering Fluency, UX & Commercial Thinking Explained01:56 – How AI Is Changing Product Management Roles02:44 – Why Product, Design & Engineering Roles Are Blurring03:33 – The Rise of the Product Engineer04:13 – Best Podcasts & Resources for Product Managers05:11 – Best AI & Vibe Coding Tools for Product Teams06:22 – Carla Jarrett’s Journey Into Tech & Product Management07:40 – Building a SaaS Product From Scratch08:10 – What It Feels Like When Your Product Gets Acquired09:42 – What a Head of Product Actually Does Day-to-Day10:36 – Customer Discovery & Getting Honest Feedback11:47 – Managing Teams as a Head of Product12:46 – How Product Managers Can Prove Their Value16:16 – Scrum, Agile & “Agile Theatre” Explained18:13 – Why Story Points Don’t Equal Customer Value19:04 – Why Carla Started Posting on LinkedIn21:37 – Why Build Better Liverpool Was Created22:30 – Liverpool vs Manchester Tech Scene24:08 – Breaking Down Silos Between Product, Design & Engineering25:53 – The First Build Better Liverpool Event27:08 – Product Manager vs Product Owner Debate30:12 – Carla’s Solution to the Product Role Confusion31:24 – Final Thoughts & Where to Connect With Carla Jarrett▶︎ The Everyday Agile Podcast brings you interviews with Agile, Product, business, and tech folk that will leave you with actionable, relevant advice. ▶︎ About Everyday Agile We might be little, but we’ve got great, big ideas – and lots of them. Transformative ideas that can make a massive difference to your business, your team and how things run. Revolutionary ideas that give our clients the tools they need to nail the basics, create problem-solving products and smash strategy out of the park. Metamorphic ideas that – okay, you get the point.