Behind every great product, there’s a team of talented individuals driving innovation. In our Meet the Team series, we’re introducing you to the people shaping the future of search intelligence at Adthena.
This week, we’re spotlighting Andrzej Mykowski, our Product Manager. Since joining in July 2022, Andrzej has played a key role in developing our data platform and ensuring our products deliver value to clients.
Read on to learn more about Andrzej’s journey into product management, his perspective on innovation, and the superpower he wishes he had for the job.
What inspired you to become a product manager, and how did you get your start in the field?
I started my career as an Engineer—first in Data Engineering and then in Business Intelligence. Over time, I noticed that despite sharing a commitment to delivering great products, Engineering and Business teams often had different objectives. This misalignment sometimes resulted in inefficient resource allocation and features that didn’t fully address client needs. I realized my background in both Engineering and Management could help bridge that gap—so I made the leap into Product Management, where I could align product vision with business goals and customer needs.
What drew you to join Adthena?
My experience at large multinational companies revealed how bureaucracy and slow innovation can impede delivering value quickly. Adthena was different. As a mid-sized company, it had the agility to move fast, plus a team of smart, motivated people who were just as passionate about building great products. The prospect of bringing high-quality products to market more rapidly and collaborating closely with clients to refine our offerings through tight feedback loops, made joining Adthena an easy choice.
What skills are most essential for a product manager to succeed in a tech company like Adthena?
A successful Product Manager at Adthena needs three key skills:
- Communication: Bridging the gap between Engineering, Business, and clients.
- Domain expertise: Truly understanding client needs and how they use our products.
- Adaptability: The digital landscape changes fast, and so do customer expectations. Staying ahead means being flexible, learning constantly, and pivoting when needed.
How does your role as a Product Manager contribute to the success of the Product team?
I oversee the data platform at Adthena, ensuring our data is efficiently sourced, transformed, and prepared for client-facing solutions. By providing a robust data foundation, I enable my colleagues to develop high-quality products that effectively serve our clients’ needs.
If you could have any superpower to help you with your job, what would it be and why?
If I could choose any superpower to help me at Adthena, I’d want the ability to read people’s minds—and hearts. Understanding our clients’ unspoken needs and deeper motivations would let me anticipate challenges and design products they haven’t even imagined yet. That level of insight would create true “wow” moments and ensure we’re delivering our customer needs before they even realize they need them.
What are your passions/hobbies outside of work?
I’m passionate about sports and the outdoors. I love anything that involves mountains! Pursuits like rock climbing, ice climbing, and trekking are my go-to activities. I also enjoy freshwater sports such as ice skating, hockey, open-water swimming, and even winter swimming. These activities help me unwind and clear my mind after a demanding day.
If you had to build a product for a completely different industry, which one would it be and why?
If I ventured into a different industry, I’d focus on the green transformation space. I’d build a product that identifies and flags instances of greenwashing or misleading sustainability claims. By exposing fraudulent practices, such a product would promote genuine environmental improvements and contribute to a healthier planet.
As an Adthenian we live by four values, which one resonates with you the most and why?
- Get stuff done
- Freedom with responsibility
- Deliver remarkable quality
- Smart and always improving
“Smart and always improving” resonates with me the most. We operate in a fast-paced industry, and I’m fortunate to be surrounded by intelligent, driven colleagues who inspire me to keep learning. Adapting quickly to maintain our competitive edge—and consistently delivering outstanding results to our clients—requires continuous learning. This value captures the mindset I bring to work each day: staying curious, staying sharp, and always looking for ways to improve.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
Don’t focus on the career, focus on what you’re good at and your career will follow.
