Imagine you are the Product Manager at Coinbase responsible for managing the bitcoin trading brokerage area. You observe a 20% decline in monthly brokerage revenue compared to the previous month. As the PM overseeing this area, what steps would you take?

Introduction

A 20% decline in monthly brokerage revenue for Coinbase's bitcoin trading area is a significant issue that requires immediate attention and a thorough analysis. As the Product Manager overseeing this area, I'll approach this problem systematically, focusing on identifying the root cause, validating hypotheses, and developing both short-term and long-term solutions.

Step 1

Clarifying Questions (3 minutes)

• Looking at the timing, I'm thinking there might be a specific event or change that triggered this decline. Has there been any significant product update or market event in the past month?

Why it matters: Identifying a specific trigger could fast-track our root cause analysis. Expected answer: Yes, we launched a new UI for the trading platform last month. Impact on approach: If true, we'd focus on user experience and adoption metrics for the new UI.

• Considering user segments, I'm wondering if this decline is uniform across all user types. Have we seen any particular user segment (e.g., high-volume traders, new users) more affected than others?

Why it matters: This helps us narrow down whether it's a broad issue or specific to certain user groups. Expected answer: High-volume traders seem to be trading less frequently. Impact on approach: We'd prioritize investigating factors affecting high-volume traders' behavior.

• Given the volatility of cryptocurrency markets, I'm curious about the overall market conditions. Has there been any significant change in bitcoin price or trading volume in the broader market during this period?

Why it matters: External market factors could be influencing our performance. Expected answer: Bitcoin price has been relatively stable, but overall market volume has decreased. Impact on approach: We'd need to compare our performance against market benchmarks to understand if this is an industry-wide trend or specific to Coinbase.

• Thinking about potential technical issues, have we observed any increase in error rates, latency, or downtime in our trading systems?

Why it matters: Technical problems could directly impact trading activity and revenue. Expected answer: No significant increase in error rates or downtime, but there have been some reports of increased latency. Impact on approach: We'd investigate the latency issues and their potential impact on trading behavior.