What High-Performing Product Ops Teams Do Differently

Insights from Ross Webb’s Product Team Success episodes on improving communication and streamlining processes

What separates good product teams from great ones? According to a cohort of experienced product leaders, it goes beyond frameworks. It’s how effectively teams communicate, how intentionally they standardize, and how they use tools to scale clarity, not complexity.

In two recent episodes hosted by Ross Webb, ten product ops leaders shared their real-world insights on what it takes to build high-performing organizations. Here's what they had to say across three core pillars: process, tooling, and communication.

Process: Streamlined, Standardized, and Purposeful

For many product teams, “process” feels like a dirty word. But as Graham Reed puts it, “Businesses are run on process. That’s just a fact of life.” The difference is how you implement them. For product ops teams, that means designing processes that:

• Reduce duplication
• Clarify decision-making
• Remove unnecessary friction

“We should be writing information in a way that’s universal and consumable by the rest of the business. You do it once—you share it out many times.” — Graham Reed, Head of Product Operations, HeliosX Group

Ankit Kumar highlights that broken handoffs and unclear roles often lead to inefficiencies between product, ensign, and engineering. His fix? Standardize what’s standardizable: RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) matrices, PRD (Product Requirements Document) templates, and acceptance criteria, to name a few.

“When there’s no defined handoff, so many tasks are gray. Those are the ones that fall through the cracks.” — Ankit Kumar, Head of Operations, Product & Transformation, Hudson Insurance Group

Meanwhile, Jerry Limber emphasizes balancing structured governance with flexibility. Product ops, he says, should define artifacts and scope where needed—without overprescribing how every team should operate.

“Product operations should define what’s getting standardized and how success is measured. But we can’t dictate to others how to solve problems. You need to leave room for teams to think, innovate, and work how they do best.” — Jerry Limber, Co-Founder, COO, PenguinHub.ai

And when processes are well-defined, feedback loops work better. Holly Holbrook explains how clear documentation builds confidence and reduces micromanagement:

“You shouldn’t have to babysit your engineers. Clear acceptance criteria and daily alignment help teams move independently, with confidence.” — Holly Holbrook, Senior Product Operations Manager, Nylas

Tooling: Clarity Over Chaos

The right tools can supercharge your product ops function… but only if they reinforce your process and reduce disorder. Justin Woods offers a practical framework: start with clearly defined processes, then introduce tools that reinforce them. Otherwise, tools become “black holes.”

“It’s no good having a sophisticated ideas portal where customers submit things and ideas go to die. Set SLAs, like ‘we’ll get back to you within 48 hours, even if it’s a no’. Have an escalation process. Review submissions regularly.” — Justin Woods, Consultant and Founder, Roadmap Heroes

He recommends separating intake channels—like ideas, feedback, requests, and defects—and ensuring internal voices are heard alongside customer input. From there, leverage tools like Productboard Pulse to identify trends, deduplicate ideas, and surface signal from noise.

Craig McDonald adds that while new tools and AI-powered tech are exciting, they should serve decision-making—not distract from it.

“As product managers, we geek out over tools. But the goal is to find ones that actually make our lives easier while being accurate.” — Craig McDonald, Head of Product Operations, Tricentis

Ross summarizes it best: “Processes and tools should enhance collaboration, not replace it.” Tools that centralize the roadmap, stakeholder feedback, and customer insights empower teams to act more decisively and transparently.

Communication: The True Superpower of Product Ops

If there's one theme that unites every leader Ross spoke with, it’s this: great product ops teams are master communicators. They don’t just send information. They translate it, tailor it, and transmit it with purpose. 

Graham calls this “audience-led communication,” urging product teams to shift from what we want to say to what others need to hear.

“We have to think about what our audience needs, not what we want to tell them. If salespeople don’t understand it or care, what’s the value?” — Graham

This principle applies to everything from launch announcements to stakeholder updates. Product ops helps product teams sharpen their messaging, energize internal audiences, and build enthusiasm around even the most technical features.

Justin extends this thinking to roadmaps. Instead of static documents, he encourages teams to treat roadmaps as living communication tools.

“If a roadmap is about communication and alignment, then you need to make sure that it is actually communicated and aligned. Some of the best roadmaps that I've seen are where they’ve evolved over time. Tell stakeholders what’s important—give them context for customer impact. Ask for feedback to make sure it landed.” — Justin

Anna Peterson shares how she built her team by first creating a compelling narrative around the why of product ops, then aligning her strategy to the real pain points of the business.

“We started with the problems. What are the things product managers and designers complain about all day long? Then we built our pillars and found the right people to partner with for each one.” — Anna Peterson, Senior Director of Product Operations, Housecall Pro

Ray Carvill emphasizes the power of trust across all levels of the business—from C-suite to analysts. If you don’t build those relationships, he says, “you miss opportunity.”

“We’re not successful unless we’re helping other teams. You need to build, forge, and foster relationships top to bottom.” — Ray Carvill, Vice President of Product Operations, GroundGame.Health

Denielle Booth underlines this sentiment. She advocates for authentic, human-first connections.

“If I ask you a question, it means I genuinely care about the answer. That’s how I approach partnerships—understanding your day, your pain points. That’s how you create value.” — Denielle Booth, Manager, Product Operations, Instacart

The Takeaway

What makes product ops a force multiplier in high-performing organizations is the ability to simplify complexity through:

• Thoughtful processes
• Smart tooling
• Audience-first communication

Whether it’s standardizing how work moves through the lifecycle, choosing tools that encourage transparency, or building partnerships across the org, these leaders show that product ops isn’t just support—it’s strategic. 

Ready to elevate your product ops strategy?

Download our free guide on How to Build an Agentic AI Workflow for Product Management to learn how AI can further enhance your decision-making, processes, and customer alignment.