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I’m Sara Hicks, a founder, product leader, executive coach, and author. Over more than 20 years in technology, I’ve built products, teams, and companies from zero to one and beyond—from founding and leading venture-backed Reaction Commerce through its acquisition by Mailchimp to later serving as Mailchimp’s Chief Product Officer.
Today I’m building HappyHQ, writing and podcasting about intentional leadership, and coaching startup founders and technology leaders navigating growth, change, and the complicated work of leading. I enjoy art, cycling, cooking, and yoga.
A few things about me:
Read more about my work and background, or explore executive coaching.
I send my newsletter about once a month or whenever I have something worth sharing. It’s often filled with recommendations, stories, photography, and things I’m thinking about.
Our Book
A Leadership and Management Guide
A practical guide to building human-centered organizations, covering meetings, strategy, feedback, delegation, and trust, with real stories and reflection questions along the way. Co-written with Mathias Meyer.
“A practical, down-to-earth handbook grounded in real-world experience — a powerful guide for breaking out of firefighter mode.”
Gina Trapani, former CEO and startup founder
More about the book →“Distills years of experience into a thoughtful, deeply human framework for leadership.”
Camille Fournier, author of The Manager's Path
Our Podcast
Season 1 is complete
Join Mathias and me for conversations about the everyday work of leading teams—from difficult conversations and feedback to meetings, values, and accountability. Choose a topic that’s on your mind.
Start here: Navigating Difficult Conversations
A conversation about one of leadership’s most familiar challenges.
1. Navigating Difficult Conversations
Why difficult conversations feel so stressful and how to approach them with intention.
3. Feedback
Make feedback a regular, specific conversation instead of saving it for an annual review.
4. Meetings
Why meetings go wrong and practical ways to make them more purposeful and effective.
Hiring, feedback, one-on-ones, and what I've learned building and running companies.
5 Things 23 postsWeekly roundups of five reads worth your time.
Reading & Watching 20 postsRecommendations and what stuck with me from the books, articles, and movies I've read and watched.
Executive Coaching 14 postsFrameworks and real, anonymized sessions from my executive coaching practice.
Philosophy 13 postsReflections on purpose, mindfulness, and the bigger questions behind the day-to-day.
Intentional 13 postsSmall, deliberate habits and choices for living and working with more purpose.
Random 8 postsTravel notes and everything else that doesn't fit elsewhere.
Photography 6 postsA few personal photos, taken on trips and at home.
Cooking & Gardening 3 postsRecipes and notes from the kitchen and the garden.
My journey through product management's evolution, from Web 1.0 producer roles and the mini CEO era to startup capital, the unbundling of product work, and the AI-native builder era.
Read post →A newsletter on product, leadership, and whatever else I'm thinking about. No spam.