Richard Abi-Chahla on Fractional Leadership & Building Smart
Episode Summary
In this episode of Grown Up Product, host Brian welcomes Richard Abi-Chahla, a fractional CPO with 18 years of product management experience and founder of Purple Brains agency. Broadcasting from Beirut, Lebanon, Richard shares invaluable insights from his work across 50+ products in 15 different industries.
Key Topics Discussed:
The Fractional Advantage
Why fractional executives are often listened to more than full-time employees
How fractional leaders reduce risk while increasing success chances
The importance of having "skin in the game" versus traditional consulting
Managing Stakeholder Dynamics
Strategies for handling C-level executives who return from conferences with disruptive ideas
Using resource constraints and prioritization as diplomatic tools
The art of saying "not now" instead of "no"
Innovation Through Cross-Industry Experience
How working across 15 industries enables breakthrough solutions
Why enterprises miss simple solutions that startups find obvious
The Shift from Traditional Consulting
Why companies are moving away from McKinsey/Bain to fractional experts
The difference between theory and implementation
How consultants have become expensive scapegoats rather than solution providers
Building in the Age of AI
How AI tools like Lovable, Replit, and Cursor are changing the validation process
Why you should still validate, just faster (weeks not months)
The importance of building slow while shipping fast
Key Takeaways for Founders & CEOs:
Always think from your user's lens
Be comfortable taking assumptions and building on them
Build slow, but don't wait for feedback
Hire people who will get their hands dirty, not just provide presentations
Use testing frameworks to shortcut argumentative cycles
Listen to your existing employees - they often have the solutions
About the Guest:
Richard Abichala is a fractional CPO and founder of Purple Brains, an agency established in 2011 that creates products and helps startups, SMBs, and enterprises build successful products with minimum risk and resources.
About Grown Up Product:
The podcast for founders, CEOs, and operators curious about building successful product organizations in a post-product market fit environment.
Listen to the full episode for deep insights on fractional product leadership, stakeholder management, and building products that truly serve user needs.
In this episode of Grown Up Product, host Brian welcomes Richard Abi-Chahla, a fractional CPO with 18 years of product management experience and founder of Purple Brains agency. Broadcasting from Beirut, Lebanon, Richard shares invaluable insights from his work across 50+ products in 15 different industries.
Key Topics Discussed:
The Fractional Advantage
Why fractional executives are often listened to more than full-time employees
How fractional leaders reduce risk while increasing success chances
The importance of having "skin in the game" versus traditional consulting
Managing Stakeholder Dynamics
Strategies for handling C-level executives who return from conferences with disruptive ideas
Using resource constraints and prioritization as diplomatic tools
The art of saying "not now" instead of "no"
Innovation Through Cross-Industry Experience
How working across 15 industries enables breakthrough solutions
Why enterprises miss simple solutions that startups find obvious
The Shift from Traditional Consulting
Why companies are moving away from McKinsey/Bain to fractional experts
The difference between theory and implementation
How consultants have become expensive scapegoats rather than solution providers
Building in the Age of AI
How AI tools like Lovable, Replit, and Cursor are changing the validation process
Why you should still validate, just faster (weeks not months)
The importance of building slow while shipping fast
Key Takeaways for Founders & CEOs:
Always think from your user's lens
Be comfortable taking assumptions and building on them
Build slow, but don't wait for feedback
Hire people who will get their hands dirty, not just provide presentations
Use testing frameworks to shortcut argumentative cycles
Listen to your existing employees - they often have the solutions
About the Guest:
Richard Abichala is a fractional CPO and founder of Purple Brains, an agency established in 2011 that creates products and helps startups, SMBs, and enterprises build successful products with minimum risk and resources.
About Grown Up Product:
The podcast for founders, CEOs, and operators curious about building successful product organizations in a post-product market fit environment.
Listen to the full episode for deep insights on fractional product leadership, stakeholder management, and building products that truly serve user needs.
