Killing Features: The Art of Saying Goodbye

We spend so much time figuring out what to build, but what happens when it’s time to tear something down? Sunset, deprecate, kill—whatever you call it, retiring a feature or a product is one of the hardest things a team has to do.

Featured Product: ConnectHV
In the second half of our gathering (7-8pm), Jordan Koschei will talk about building ConnectHV. A product designer and software engineer by trade, Jordan's career spans roles at atSpoke, Okta, and beyond. He founded ConnectHV in 2017 and has since grown it into a thriving community (online and in-person) for the Hudson Valley’s technologists, creatives, and professionals.

Join us for an honest, energizing roundtable about the art of saying goodbye: managing user backlash, untangling legacy code, convincing stakeholders it’s time to let go, and keeping your product focused.
This month, we’re focusing on the truth many PMs learn the hard way: more features don't always mean more value. Sometimes, addition by subtraction is the best strategy.

We’ll talk about the metrics that signal a feature is dead weight, the communication plans needed to soften the blow for power users, and the emotional attachment we (and our stakeholders) have to the things we build. Expect real stories, thoughtful dialogue, and practical ways to handle the messy reality of product deprecation that rarely make it into standard frameworks.

(Plus pizza!)

You’ll walk away with:

• Strategies for identifying which features are draining resources and need to go
• Ways to build a strong case for deprecation and align stakeholders around the decision
• Techniques for communicating shutdowns to users without destroying trust
• Stories from other builders about their hardest product "sunsets"—and what they learned

Join us for our monthly in-person roundtable of The Product Group Hudson Valley, a local chapter of one of the world’s longest-running product management communities.

Who should attend: Product managers, aspiring PMs, product designers, founders, engineers, and anyone whose work sits at the intersection of people, decisions, and products—whether you’re just starting out or leading teams.

Takeaway: Learn practical, human-centered approaches to cleaning up your product and moving work forward when it's time to say goodbye to a feature.

Format: Interactive roundtable discussion. Everyone participates, shares experiences, and learns from one another.

This is your invitation to:

• Be a part of a growing Hudson Valley product community
• Connect with thoughtful local builders and leaders
• Leave with insights you can apply immediately in your work

Want to support The Product Group?

Join us on Patreon to unlock exclusive content, PM Select (curated personal intros to hiring managers), and help grow this global community:
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About the venue: Inspired by the coworking and localism movements in the early aughts, Beahive is a pioneering network of hives for work and belonging — the first and only of its kind in the Hudson Valley, one of only a handful in all of NY, and one of probably only a few hundred in the world when it opened.