Product at Heart Leadership 2026
April 20–21, 2026 | Hamburg
A reimagined, stand-alone experience for 60 curious product leaders. Intentionally small.
When's the last time you had space to think about your leadership?
Most of us are moving too fast to pause. We're making decisions, shaping teams, navigating organizational dynamics—without much time to step back and reflect.
Product at Heart Leadership is becoming a stand-alone 1.5-day experience for exactly that reason. To create space for product leaders to connect with peers, explore new perspectives, and think more intentionally about how we lead.
We know stepping away for 1.5 days isn't easy. We've built this to make it worth your while—practical, peer-driven, and designed around real leadership work.
April 20-21, 2026 | Hamburg
At A Glance
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Intentionally Small
Just 60 product leaders. Small enough to actually connect with everyone.
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Peer Learning
Everyone in leadership roles. Real challenges, real conversations.
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Extended Format
1.5 days of industry talks, experiential activities, deep-dive workshops.
Many thanks to our partner!
What to expect
A 1.5-day experience for senior product leaders who want to pause, connect, and think more intentionally about how they lead. Designed for honest exchange, practical reflection, and meaningful conversations with peers — in a small, carefully curated setting.
Day 1 - Monday, April 20
Inspiration, Peer Exchange & Experiences
The day starts with a welcome to Hamburg, followed by talks from experienced product leadership practitioners—the format you know from previous editions. Perspectives from people doing the work, shared in ways that challenge your thinking.
Over lunch, you'll have your first chance to dive into deeper conversations with fellow attendees.
Out of the Office, Into Connection
Then the afternoon shifts gears entirely. We leave the conference setting and explore Hamburg in ways that have nothing to do with product roadmaps or OKRs. Think boat trips on the Elbe, unexpected explorations of the city, experiences designed to pull you out of the usual grind and into genuine connection. Some activities are open and conversational, others more structured with facilitators guiding the experience.
The day closes with an evening reception hosted by Netlight—amazing food, informal atmosphere, and plenty of time to keep conversations going.
Day 2 - Monday, April 21
Workshops & Deep Dives
Day two is all about small-group interactive sessions on topics that matter to you. We're offering six different workshop topics—you'll pre-select based on what's most relevant to your work right now. Each workshop runs twice, so you can experience two different sessions that sparked your interest.
These aren't lectures. They're working sessions with peers, diving into real challenges in a way that's only possible in small groups. You'll leave with practical tools and new perspectives from people who get what you're dealing with.
After half a day of workshops, we'll close with a final gathering before everyone heads home.
Who You'll Learn With
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Johannes Kleske
Johannes Kleske is a critical futurist and keynote speaker who helps leaders turn abstract visions into compelling stories that inspire action.
With nearly 20 years of foresight experience and a master's in futures studies, he has advised over 100 organizations—from startups to Deutsche Bahn, WDR, and Novo Nordisk—on navigating uncertainty and shaping their futures.
His approach challenges conventional vision work: instead of single, fixed futures, he advocates for thinking in multiple scenarios. Instead of abstract slogans, he creates tangible future narratives that generate energy and pull. Johannes co-hosts two podcasts: "Follow the Rabbit," analyzing cultural trends and emerging phenomena, and "Kritische Zukunftsforschung," exploring critical perspectives on futures thinking.
He also teaches "Futures, Critique & Design" at Hochschule Niederrhein. After co-founding strategic foresight consultancy Third Wave and serving as Senior Director of Foresight at Edenspiekermann, he now works independently from Berlin.
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Susanne Kaiser
Susanne Kaiser is an independent tech consultant from Hamburg, Germany, supporting organizations to design and evolve adaptive socio-technical systems to be amenable to change.
With 20+ years of software engineering experience and a background as a former startup CTO, she specializes in connecting business strategy, software design and architecture, and team organization.
Her approach connects Wardley Mapping, Domain-Driven Design, and Team Topologies as a holistic toolset to optimize systems for a fast flow of change, which is detailed in her book “Architecture for Flow” (Addison-Wesley Signature Series, 2025).
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Afonso Franco
Based in Norway, Afonso is a product leader recognized by Forbes - currently leading Product as Vice President in one of the world’s largest edtech companies for healthcare and a former Product Director at one of the fastest-growing scaleups in Europe.
He is the founder of Scandinavian Product Group, where he coaches CPOs and advises companies on product operating model transformations.
Afonso serves on several advisory boards advising startup and scaleup Founders & CEOs, and is the host of the Scandinavian Product Podcast - the #1 Product podcast in the Nordics with thousands of listeners - where he interviews global product & growth thought leaders and Scandinavian-based product
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Björn Waide
Björn Waide is a strategist and CEO with over 20 years of experience in digital product development and organizational transformation. He guides organizations as founder of net positive ventures (AI transformation, product strategy) and has led Lynqtech as CEO since 2025 (AI-first transformation, digital agency).
His work rests on a clear conviction: people and organizations should shape their own future—empowered by technology, not driven by it. In his roles, he combines strategic thinking with practical sensibility and empowers teams rather than managing them. -
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Francesca Cortesi
Impact, innovation, and sustainable growth are the cornerstones of Francesca Cortesi’s career.With nearly two decades of experience, she has built and scaled technology-driven businesses across industries, working with some of Europe’s fastest-growing companies — from early-stage startups to IPOs — shaping some of the Nordics most beloved products.
Francesca knows what it takes to turn digital product potential into real business impact. Her biggest lesson? Sustainable results are rarely linear, they come from clear focus and from creating environments where diverse perspectives can challenge, build, and move forward together.
A recognized voice in European product leadership, Francesca shares practical insights on the exciting (and messy!) reality of scaling products and organizations through LinkedIn and her blog.
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Petra Wille
Petra Wille is an independent product leadership coach, speaker, and author of STRONG Product People and STRONG Product Communities.
For more than a decade, she has supported product managers and product leaders in building confidence, navigating complexity, and shaping outcome-oriented product organizations. Petra’s work is deeply rooted in practical experience and a strong belief that great product leadership starts with clarity, reflection, and people development.
Her coaching is supported by a range of practical frameworks and tools, including the Product Leadership Wheel (PLwheel), a self-assessment framework she created in 2024 to help leaders clarify responsibilities and reflect on product maturity.
Petra also co-organizes Product at Heart.
https://www.petra-wille.com/ -
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Chris Heimann
Dr Chris Heimann led the improvisation curriculum at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London for 19 years, from 2005-2024.
During his time at RADA, his Impro students included Cynthia Erivo (Wicked), Taron Egerton (Rocketman), Amy Lou Wood (White Lotus) and Marisa Abela (Back to Black), among others.
As a theatre director and author, he won Fringe First Awards at the Edinburgh Festival. He earned his doctorate with a dissertation on improvisation applied in the context of the arts, business and life in general: The Promise - Searching for the Creative Moment in Theatre, Business and Life.
For 20 years, Chris has been coaching executives and teams on communication, collaboration, creativity and leadership. Chris is now based in Berlin.
Who is this event for?
This event is exclusively crafted for those at the helm of product leadership—individuals who guide, mentor, and manage product people. This includes but is not limited to Product Team Leads, Heads of Product, Directors of Product, VPs of Product, and Chief Product Officers.
Please take note: This gathering is dedicated to the exchange of strategic insights and leadership experiences. It is not designed for individual contributors or those in non-leadership roles.
In the interest of ensuring a diverse mix of perspectives, we allow a maximum of 4 tickets per company or organization.
In order to maintain the integrity and focus of the event, attendance is limited to those currently holding senior product leadership positions within companies. Agency professionals, coaches, and consultants, while valued for their contributions to the product community, do not fall within the criteria for this particular event, which is centered on in-house leadership experiences.
We respectfully reserve the right to review attendee roles and cancel and refund tickets if they fall outside of these stipulated categories.
Join us on April 20-21, 2026
Product at Heart Leadership Event
Bring a peer
Leadership can feel isolating. It doesn't have to be.
If there's someone in your network—a fellow Head of Product, a trusted peer from another company—who would benefit from this experience, bring them along. The conversations are richer, the connections stronger, and the insights more diverse when we gather as a community.
Location
Netlight Offices Hamburg
Kaisergalerie
Große Bleichen 23-27
20354 Hamburg
Germany