In a recent LinkedIn post, Janna Bastow discusses a recurring pattern she’s observed among product leaders: repeated company “transformations” that ultimately fail to change fundamental decision-making processes. Bastow highlights how, despite new frameworks, consultants, and outcome-driven language, the core issues persist because the underlying incentive systems remain unchanged.
Bastow points to a common scenario in her post: “I keep meeting product leaders who’ve been through two, three, four ‘transformations’ at their companies. New frameworks each time. New consultants. New slide decks about being outcome-driven.” This repeated cycle, she argues, often leads to superficial changes rather than deep, impactful shifts.
The Illusion of Change
According to Janna Bastow, the language and methodologies may evolve, but the actual decisions made within organizations often remain static. She elaborates on this critical point:
“And every time, the same thing happens. The language changes, the decisions don’t.”
Bastow attributes this disconnect not to a lack of effort or competence from individuals, but to systemic issues. “It’s not that the people involved are bad or lazy. The incentive system just hasn’t moved,” she states. This highlights a fundamental challenge in organizational change: without adjusting what is rewarded and measured, new initiatives struggle to gain traction.
Misaligned Incentives: The Root Cause
Janna Bastow identifies specific areas where these misalignments typically occur. She notes that leadership often remains focused on short-term financial gains, while product managers are still evaluated based on output rather than impact.
Leadership Focus vs. Product Team Measurement
As Bastow explains:
“Leadership still gets rewarded for quarterly numbers. PMs still get measured on output.”
This disparity creates a situation where, despite aspirations for outcome-driven product development, the practical realities of performance reviews and rewards encourage a focus on easily quantifiable outputs. Bastow further emphasizes the de-prioritization of crucial product discovery activities when faced with tight deadlines:
“Discovery still gets treated as a nice-to-have when deadlines tighten.”
This is a critical observation, as effective product discovery is essential for understanding customer needs and ensuring that the right products are being built to achieve desired outcomes. When discovery is sidelined, organizations risk investing resources in features or products that do not align with strategic goals or customer value.
The Path Forward: Acknowledging Systemic Issues
Bastow’s insights suggest that true transformation in product development requires a fundamental re-evaluation of organizational incentives and reward structures. Merely adopting new jargon or processes without addressing the underlying systems that drive behavior is unlikely to yield lasting results. Her upcoming discussion with Ronnie Varghese, a seasoned product leader and coach, aims to delve deeper into these challenges, drawing from Varghese’s extensive experience in navigating such cycles.
📝 About This Content
This article is based on insights shared by Janna Bastow on LinkedIn.
📅 Originally posted on March 27, 2026 | View original post on LinkedIn →