What defines the essence of a product is what it chooses to decline, not what it chooses to add. The product owner must carefully review proposals and update existing features thoughtfully.
A friend once suggested avoiding open-sourcing customer-facing products: it aligns with this philosophy of carefully evolving core features while protecting against unnecessary complexity. This approach helps maintain a focused product vision.
Unfortunately, this is where I often see products fail or underperform in large corporations. Credit is frequently given to new launches rather than to maintenance efforts or proposals that were wisely turned down. The incentive system often works against fostering a well-maintained product. Many teams across the organization tend to work on similar projects, driven by their own incentives, which adds unnecessary complexity to the overall system.
In my opinion, a strong product owner must be a highly opinionated leader who protects the product by saying no to proposals that may benefit sub-product teams but deviate from the overall product vision. While this might sound simple, it has proven to be challenging during my tenure. It requires a strong culture that encourages and fosters this environment without harming team dynamics. People gain influence in many ways—rejection is rarely one of them. Therefore, finding a way to protect the product while maximizing influence is, in my view, what a strong culture should aim to achieve.