⚡ #5: March 25 Issue

Meet Poppy Bensberg, senior product manager at Lawhive, find out where to find free & cool stuff to do in London, and discover 2 new authentic saunas opening this spring.

Author

Beatriz Cunha
March 02, 2025

Welcome to the London Tech Bear ✨

As I write this March edition, I can only think of new beginnings. I can feel the first signs of spring approaching, the days are longer, the sun is shinning, some early flowers are starting to pop (hello, daisies!) and the trees are stretching to bloom. There was also a new moon at the end of February, and my hippie side likes to think this is a great time to set intentions to a new phase.

Personally I am going through a bit of a spring phase now. I am joining a new workplace on Monday and I’ve been preparing for that for some time now. This new professional challenge is super exciting and I can’t wait to tell you more in a few days.

Time to plant some seeds!

In This Tech Bear:

  • Meet Poppy, senior Product Manager at Lawhive

  • 3 great in-person tech & design events this month

  • Sauna friends: London will have 2 new authentic saunas this spring!

  • My London newsletter gems to find out free and cool stuff to do

Read time: 5-7 minutes.

This Month’s Guest

Poppy Bensberg is a senior product manager currently working at Lawhive. Lawhive is on a mission to make the law more accessible to people, by building an online case management that uses artificial intelligence to work alongside the lawyers to make the cost of doing work cheaper and easier for both the solicitor and the client. 

We recently met when I was looking for brilliant professionals to join me on a SXSW London panel submission (yes, London will host its first edition this year!). At first I loved her courage to join me on this idea, and then I found out she’s got such a broad experience as a PM!

Poppy previously worked in a variety of different industries and company sizes from John Lewis, Conde Nast to Thrive and now Lawhive. She has found that she likes working for mission driven companies that are smaller in size as she has found that you can usually have more of an impact and can ship products faster. 

She lives in Surrey with her partner and 1 year old labrador puppy. They recently moved to Surrey after living in Wimbledon for 10 years and are loving the change to the country. In her spare time you can find her running (she completed the London Marathon last year and has firmly caught the running bug), or playing badminton which she played since she was 9 years old.

Find Poppy on Linkedin

Poppy on working life 🤓

What's one thing you wish you knew before starting your tech career?

One thing I wish I knew before starting my tech career is the incredible variety of roles and opportunities available within the industry. Early on, I participated in a graduate scheme that had me rotate through different roles before choosing one to specialize in. At the time, I saw this as a major decision, thinking it would define my entire career path.

Over time, I've discovered that I actually thrive as a generalist, collaborating across teams and with subject matter experts. There’s so much room to grow by learning new skills, working in different teams, and expanding your knowledge beyond a specific focus.

If I had known this earlier, I wouldn't have been so hesitant about making lateral moves to broaden my skillset. These moves have proven invaluable in my career, particularly when aiming for senior roles. They’ve given me a deeper understanding of how different teams operate and how to work effectively across functions.

If you could fire one buzzword from the tech world, what would it be?

I’d probably fire ‘low hanging fruit’.

As a product manager anything referred to as low hanging fruit is assumed to be an obvious prioritisation choice for you to make however I think it often doesn’t take into account impact.

Just because something is easy to do does not mean it is worth doing as lots of easy tasks can end up being a big distraction away from something that will have a larger impact.

The role of the product manager is often to say no to lots of product suggestions from stakeholders as you have knowledge of the larger company goals and you need to make sure you are prioritising work that will help you hit those goals. 

Poppy on getting the most out of London 💂‍♀️

What's your favourite London neighbourhood and why?

I’d have to say Wimbledon as I lived there for 10 years and loved it. It’s got plenty of green space with Wimbledon common and Richmond park, has great shopping in Wimbledon village and great food markets at the weekend. You’ve also got Wimbledon tennis every summer which brings a lot of atmosphere to the town.

What's your favourite London park for a tech-free day?

I love Hyde Park, I have cycled many laps round Hyde park over covid when the roads were empty. It’s a great place to play rounders with friends in the summer with lots of great restaurants and pubs nearby to go to when you’re tired. 

Poppy on self & wellbeing 🧘‍♂️

What’s your hobby and how did you get into it?

I’ve played badminton since I was 9. I joined a local club with my friend and we both fell in love with it and got into the junior county squad the following year. I have gone on to play junior and senior county, represented my university and now I run a badminton club with Battersea.

How do you celebrate your achievements?

I love eating out so I tend to celebrate any occasion with a dinner out with my partner or friends with a good bottle of wine.

Poppy’s recommendations:

Tell us your favourite…

…podcast?
Bit of a guilty pleasure but I love My therapist ghosted me. It never fails to keep me entertained on dog walks. 

…TV series?
I just finished Parenthood on Netflix which is great.

…app?
I love the running app Runna. I used is to get me through marathon training last year and hits a great balance between being motivational and helping you push yourself. 

Hot March Events & Meetups

  • When: Tuesday, 11th/Mar

  • Organised by: WIP London

  • Price: £15 (💸)

  • About: ​​In this IRL panel (specially curated for International Women's Day), we have a powerhouse panel of 4 female executives who'll share their stories of how they found their unique "voice" as they climbed the corporate ladder, and how they have used their leadership voice to inspire the next generation of leaders. 🚀

  • Speakers: ​Jamie Mercer, CPO @TrustedHousesitters, ​Caz Brett, Senior Director of Product @Smartsheet, ​Asavari Moon, CEO & Founder, FutureEdge Leadership Academy.

  • When: 10th - 11th/Mar

  • Organised by: Mind The Product

  • Price: £250 online pass (🆓) or £999 in person (💸💸💸)

  • About: ​The ultimate celebration of product at the Barbican. #mtpcon London is the gateway to the global product community - a place to learn, brainstorm, and network with product professionals from around the world.

  • Speakers: From Ebi Atawodi, Director of Product at Youtube, to Jose Quesada, VP of Product at Amex, you can check the whole list on the link here.

  • When: Thursday, 20th/Mar

  • Organised by: ffsc.club

  • Price: From £4 (💸)

  • About: ​an intimate gathering of female founders to share experiences, insights, and support. This is a safe space for women entrepreneurs and freelancers to connect, learn, and grow together. Expect small circles around tables with activities and time to connect. Some refreshments available, BYOB if you wish.

  • When: Tuesday, 25th/Mar

  • Organised by: the Female Product Led

  • Price: Free (🆓)

  • About: ​​This session provides an open space to share experiences, discuss challenges, and explore how to balance personal and professional life. The event features a fireside chat, interactive polls, and breakout discussions, offering valuable insights and support on navigating these important life transitions.

Great event directories:

Hot Resources

🌱 A Wild deodorant journey. The £50m marketing funnel created by tl.dr.agency

London Lifestyle & Fun

🧖🏻‍♀️ Is London going to become a sauna-nordic-type-of-city? This community sauna will open this spring 2 new sauna facilities in London.

🆓 Cost of living Cheap tips to enjoy London at any time. This is one of my favourite newsletters to find out about free stuff happening in London.

I will test migrating the Tech Bear content to Substack platform to understand if it help me spread the word about it better than here (I currently use Beehiiv). You might receive an email in the next month saying you’ve been subscribed to the new tool. You don’t need to do anything if you wish to keep receiving my emails.

See you on the next one!

Beatriz 👋

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