Diagnose
Find the problem behind the problem.
Explore complex product, technology, process and organisational challenges to identify root causes, dependencies and practical opportunities for improvement.
Paul Vanderstraeten · Product & Technology Advisory
Turning complexity into clarity and momentum.
I help organisations tackle difficult product, technology and operational challenges — bringing technical understanding, product thinking and decades of real-world experience to problems that aren't easily solved from one perspective.
Let's talk
Melbourne, Australia · Working locally and internationally
When things get complicated, another perspective can make the difference.
Technology organisations don't always get stuck because they lack capable people.
Sometimes Product and Engineering see the problem differently. Teams disagree on technical direction. Processes that once worked no longer scale. Organisational structures create unintended behaviours. Customer needs, commercial priorities and technical realities pull in different directions.
And sometimes everyone is simply too close to the problem.
I work across Product, Technology and Engineering to help organisations understand what's really happening, create alignment and find a practical way forward.
My approach combines technical credibility with product and commercial thinking — and a strong focus on finding root causes rather than treating symptoms.
Capabilities
How I can help
Align
Get different perspectives working toward the same outcome.
Help Product, Engineering, Technology and other stakeholders establish shared understanding, resolve competing viewpoints and make difficult decisions.
Unblock
Turn stalled initiatives into forward momentum.
Bring structure, technical understanding and independent thinking to initiatives struggling with ambiguity, competing priorities or difficult product and technology decisions.
Advise
Experienced thinking when you need another perspective.
Independent product and technology advice for founders, executives and leaders — from product direction and operating models to connected products, emerging technology and AI.
Experience
Experience built in the real world
My career has taken me from Software Engineer to Engineering Leader to Global Product Leader, working across Australia, New Zealand, Europe and the United States.
For more than 25 years, I've worked at the intersection of software, connected devices, cloud services, mobile applications, engineering, customers and commercial product strategy.
Along the way, I've helped build and lead products used at significant global scale, managed commercially important product portfolios, worked with engineering teams across multiple countries and helped organisations navigate the difficult territory between what customers need, what technology can deliver and what makes commercial sense.
- 25+ years
- Software engineering, engineering leadership and product management
- 1.7M+ users
- Experience across products supporting large global user populations
- ~US$100M ARR
- Product leadership across commercially significant recurring-revenue portfolios
- 15 patent applications
- Innovation spanning software, connected products and technology
- Global experience
- Australia · New Zealand · USA · France · Switzerland
Domain experience
Complex technology. Real customers. Real-world constraints.
I've spent much of my career working with connected products and technology ecosystems where hardware, firmware, cloud services, mobile applications, professional installers, businesses and consumers all need to work together.
- SaaS & Cloud Platforms
- Mobile Applications
- Connected Products & IoT
- Security & Video
- Building & Home Automation
- HVAC
- Product Strategy
- Product & Engineering Operations
- Commercial Product Management
I'm particularly interested in how AI can improve products, product development and the way organisations work.
Approach
Independent thinking. Collaborative approach.
I don't believe the best consulting starts with arriving with the answer.
It starts with understanding the problem.
I listen to the people closest to it, examine the evidence, ask difficult questions and work across organisational boundaries to build a clearer picture of what's really happening.
I'm comfortable moving between a conversation with a CEO or founder and a detailed discussion with Product, Engineering or technical specialists.
My role isn't necessarily to take over. It's often to help capable people see the problem differently, build confidence in a direction and get moving again.
About
About Paul
I'm a Melbourne-based product and technology leader with a career spanning software engineering, engineering management and global product management.
I've spent much of that career working with complex connected-product ecosystems and multidisciplinary teams across Australia, New Zealand, Europe and the United States.
What I've enjoyed most isn't the job title — it's solving difficult problems.
I particularly enjoy situations that sit between traditional organisational boundaries: Product and Engineering, customer and technology, process and people, strategy and execution.
After more than 25 years working inside global technology organisations, I'm now making that experience available independently to businesses that could benefit from it.
I work primarily from Melbourne and welcome conversations with organisations in Australia and internationally.
Let's talk
Have a difficult product or technology problem?
Sometimes the best place to start is simply a conversation.
Whether you're dealing with a stuck initiative, a difficult product or technology decision, an organisational challenge — or you'd simply value an experienced independent perspective — I'd be happy to talk.
Paul Vanderstraeten
Founder & Principal Consultant
Product & Technology Advisory
Melbourne, Australia