I’m Athan Makansi.
I’m on a mission to help 1 million people achieve their career goals and wellbeing.
When I first started looking into a career as a product manager, I read every blog I could find, I picked up the top 10 books on product management, I learned frameworks, and I kept applying to product roles.
But, I kept getting rejected.
One nagging question kept coming up.
Why is it so hard to break into product?
I had no tech degree, and my background was in project management. Applying to jobs was my full-time job for more than 6 months. I was hyper-focused on continuous self-improvement, I'd tweak my resume, talk to peers, and hone my tradecraft. And with any luck, someone would be willing to take a chance on me. I only wish I had a coach to help me understand how to craft my unique product story and take the stress out of growing a career in product management. Maybe then it wouldn't have taken 6 months.
I founded Product Wellbeing so that you can break into product without the stress I had. I love helping people make big life decisions. And your career is the most significant impact on your happiness and wealth. If you want to break into a product career, I’m here for you.
My tech background
Director of Product
@ The Muse
www.themuse.com
Product Lead
@ Ribbon
www.ribbonhome.com
I lead product for a job marketplace of 5million MAUs, helping jobseekers find a career they love.
First PM for a Greylock & Bain backed real estate marketplace.
Results: 30% increase in user growth, 85% increase in transactions, and reduced manual operations for the sales team by 90%.
Senior Product Manager
@ Commonbond
www.commonbond.co
Built first direct student SaaS lending product. Went from zero lines of code to working product in 5 months.
Results: 2x growth in first year, $90MM in loan originations, 40k customers on company’s first SaaS stu’s first SaaS student lending product. +20% increase in funnel conversion.
Product Manager
@ OnDeck Capital
www.ondeck.com
UX Research Lead
@ Booz Allen Hamliton
www.boozallen.com
Scaled term loan product for $900MM B2B SaaS business unit focused on small businesses.
Results: +$6million revenue. +3% increase in booking rate, +6% increase to funnel conversion.
I led user research for large scale SaaS products for the public sector.
Results: I Authored 75 user manuals designed to improve real estate management processes.