Who is Mike Bal?

Listen to a podcast-like discussion about my career (so far) to get a sense of what I’ve done and what I can do.

If you would rather read, checkout this NotebookLM or ask this Custom GPT I made.

Mike has worked at prominent tech companies like Automattic and Docusign and has consulted with major giants like Google, Microsoft, and Starbucks.

Learn more about his recent product work, check out his Linkedin, or dig into his newsletter, Leading Product.

Mike’s Background

Bragging Rights

Role: Head of Product

Company: Engineered Innovation Group

Luster.ai – 0 to 1 Build

Detailed Case Study

Accomplishments

  • Marketable sales demo in 6 weeks
  • Specialized voice to voice interaction with LLM and core microservices.
  • Multiple design partners signed prior to launch.
  • Advanced prompt engineering.

Scope

  • Realistic voice to voice call simulations
  • WorkOS Integration for user management.
  • Sales call simulations with five different scenarios at launch.
  • Realistic conversations and cold call structure.

Role: Product Lead

Company: WordPress.com + WooCommerce

Woo Express

Impact

  • 8X surge to new user acquisition
  • 2X monthly revenue
  • 3X boost to free to paid conversion
  • 60% increase to MAUs

Scope

  • Open Source
  • Ecommerce
  • SaaS + PaaS
  • Pricing & Packaging
  • Go-To-Market
  • Onboarding
  • Multi-Team
  • Rapid Build

Role: GTM Lead

Company: Automattic / WordPress.com

Blaze Ad Platform

Impact

  • 2X MoM Revenue
  • Leading source of new revenue

Scope

  • GTM Strategy
  • Messaging & Positioning
  • Notifications & Reporting
  • New User Onboarding
  • Activation & Retention
  • Product Distribution

Role: Product Manager

Company:10up

Greater Media > Beasley Media

Impact

  • Greater Media was acquired by Beasley in large part for their digital platform.
  • Significantly reduced operating costs while increasing revenue.
  • Expanded direct sold advertising inventory

Scope

  • Streaming Platform
  • Video & Display Advertising
  • Content Distribution
  • Content Management
  • Web Applications
  • Creator Experience
  • Web Performance

Role: Project Lead

Motortrend.com

Impact

  • Webby Award Winner
  • Doubled Organic Traffic
  • 2X increase in ad revenue

Scope

  • Complex Migration
  • Custom Infrastructure
  • Large Scale Testing
  • Multiple Web Apps
  • User Activation
  • Optimized Application Performance