Marty Cagan’s Inspired: Empowered Teams vs. Feature Factories

20/07/2025 18 min

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Episode Synopsis

In this episode of The Product Handbook, we unpack the impact of Marty Cagan’s Inspired — the book that launched a thousand product managers and sparked debates across tech orgs everywhere.You’ll learn:What Cagan really means by empowered product teams — and why most companies struggle to get thereHow Inspired draws the line between real product discovery and glorified delivery workThe clash between Cagan’s vision and traditional, top-down org structuresWhy many PMs feel stuck in “feature factory” mode despite best intentionsHow to apply the book’s principles in environments that aren’t (yet) idealWhether you’re a Cagan disciple, a skeptical realist, or someone just trying to build better products without losing your mind — this one’s for you.