Beyond Software: Product Management for Hardware and Physical Products

We’re excited to team up with Hardtech Innovators Meetup for a special edition of ProductTank you won’t want to miss.

Ever wondered what it’s like to manage a product that you can actually hold in your hands? This session dives into how product management principles apply to hardware, manufacturing, and physical products — and how that compares to the software world we know so well.

Location to be confirmed shortly

✨ Our Speakers

• Anabel Alarcón, Product Manager Manufacturing, Design and Research @ EXFO
  Anabel Alarcón is a seasoned professional with over 20 years of experience in the telecommunications industry. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Telematics Engineering and has built a strong career in product management. Anabel spent a decade at Nokia before joining EXFO, a Quebec-based leader in test and measurement solutions for fiber optics and network infrastructure. Over her nine years at EXFO, she advanced from Junior Product Manager to Senior Product Manager, leading projects that integrate both hardware and software. Her role has provided her with deep expertise across product development, business strategy, marketing, and validation.
• Claudia Cloutier, Product Manager @ ISAAC Instruments
  Claudia Cloutier brings 13 years of product management experience across communications, media, advertising, and trucking industries. For six years, she built software products constrained by hardware realities: balancing software ambition against physical limitations and managing backward compatibility across hardware generations with 5+ year lifecycles. She's learned to navigate the complexity of deploying innovation within the constraints of hardware you can't change.

🤝Our Partners
About Hardtech Innovators Meetups

• Hardtech Innovators Meetups are a series of events designed to bring together the brightest minds in the hardtech startup ecosystem. These meetups provide a platform for entrepreneurs, engineers, scientists, investors, and industry experts to connect, collaborate, and share ideas on the latest advances in hardtech and deeptech.

About Garage&co

• ​​​Garage&co mission is to build a collaborative platform that fosters the development and growth of the hardtech ecosystem in Quebec and Canada. For startups, we offer tailored support covering all stages of product development, emphasizing a local, sustainable, and responsible approach.

🔧📅 Agenda
5:30 pm: Doors Open
6:30 pm: Welcome
6:45 pm: 30 min Presentations
7:15pm: Community announcements
7:30 pm: Break / Networking
7:45 pm: Q&A Session
8:05 pm: Break / Networking
8:30 pm: Doors Close