Oji Udezue

Who is Oji Udezue? 

Oji Udezue has an extensive history in product management. He began his career with Cisco in 2001, before spending 10 years at Microsoft, overseeing a number of key Windows products — including Windows Live services and Visual Studio.

He is currently Chief Product Officer at Parsable, while also sitting on the board of directors at Quitch, (a mobile e-learning platform).

What is Oji Udezue known for? 

When it comes to developing new products, Oji has built his personal brand on his keen eye for innovation and customer focus.

These skills were put into good use when Oji became head of product at Atlassian in 2016. Udezue’s attention to detail and strong leadership skills were instrumental at his time at Atlassian, where he led product strategy for Hipchat and Stride for two years.

During his role as VP of product at Calendly, he has further solidified his status as one of the best product managers in the business.

Udezue’s most praised attributes at work naturally spill over into his personal life, too. Keen to empower others, he founded the Kernel Fund, an angel fund that invests seed capital into sub-Saharan tech companies.

What is Oji's advice in creating a growth culture? 

In Oji’s own words: "One of the hardest things to do, as a product leader, is harnessing the intelligence of all the people in the organization".

Oji believes that understanding this issue is the first key step in creating growth culture. If everyone involved can’t input their expertise, there’s a higher chance of a product failing — and with a substandard product comes substandard growth.

Udezue is a champion for creating "flat spaces" when it comes to product innovation. Put simply, this involves creating a space where everyone in a team has equal opportunity to contribute to the creation of a product, regardless of their position in the company.

Where can you learn more about Oji Udezue? 

As one might expect, Oji is proud of the work he does and is happy to share insights into his methodology via the usual social media outlets.

If you’re looking for more in-depth articles, have a look at his Medium account. Oji often posts articles regarding his views on inequality, corporate culture, and advice on how to create "flat spaces" and product-led growth.