New product expertise,
built for easy engagement.
Operative is a different approach to consulting, designed for startups and small businesses that are focused on product.
You can see pricing before we even talk. Getting started doesn’t require a major commitment. No lengthy sales process, no elaborate scope negotiations, no wondering what the quote will be. See the model.
Just experienced product leadership, straightforward engagements, and perspectives that can change how you see the problem. See the approach.
Help should start helping fast. Not make you jump through hoops first.
Time and money
are tight.
Expectations
are high.
Building great products is hard enough. Getting expert support when and how you prefer shouldn't make it harder.
That's why I built Operative this way.
Hello.I’m Eric.
Operative is me.
I’ve turned twenty years of leadership and hundreds of launches into a structured approach to solving product challenges.
I’ve built the systems as well as worked inside them. I’ve spent enough time with retailers, sales teams, marketers, engineers, founders, and investors to know when one group is paying for another’s decisions.
Most famously, I ran global product for Stanley when the Quencher, a very large and even more famous cup, was developed and launched. I ran the global brand and business when it started blowing up. Then there's Indigo, a pack that saves lives with sand. Just a hair different. Here’s my LinkedIn if you want more details.
If you're hoping I'll tell you what your Quencher is, hey, maybe. But that's probably not how this works. What I can do is help you make sense of the constellation of information, decisions, and conditions behind a product strategy. And put the systems in place to reliably get the work done.
I started Operative because I love the excitement of small businesses, and because it's newly possible to make serious product consulting work on their terms.
If this seems like an unusual way to build a consulting business, there's a reason for that. I approached Operative the same way I'd approach any product: get obsessed with the customer, develop an angle on what the market needs, make a real decision, and build something that works.