SLSimone Lacava

Product Manager · Data products · AI-native · London

I turn complex data into tools experts actually use.

I started as a sports scientist, translating GPS data for coaches. Since then I've led products in performance analytics, broadcast and media tech, and statistical research. In every field the job is the same. Understand the specialist, simplify the data and ship what works. I also prototype in code with AI, so ideas get tested with users before engineering commits a sprint.

Portrait of Simone Lacava
BaseLondon
ZoneGMT
SpeaksIT · EN · ES

01 / The path so far, since 2010

ScopeTrend
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  1. 1 · 2010BSc Sports ScienceUniversity of Bologna
  2. 2 · 2014MSc Exercise PhysiologyLoughborough University
  3. 3 · EFLSports ScientistSouthend United FC
  4. 4 · 2019First Product ManagerIterpro
  5. 5 · 2021Product ManagerTracab · ChyronHego
  6. 6 · 2023Product ManagerSmartodds
  7. 7 · 2025Product consultantBrentford FC

02 / Approach

Three skills
that travel.

I learned this in sport, but the same pattern shows up in most industries. Specialists are buried in data, engineers need clear problems and leaders want a roadmap they can trust. I've been the user, the translator and the builder, which makes me quick at turning what people need into what gets built.

A

Learning the user's world, fast

I trained as a scientist, so I start with how people actually work. I've built for coaches, medics, analysts, broadcasters and statisticians, and I've learned to tell what users ask for from what they will actually use.

B

Product leadership

Seven years owning roadmaps for web, mobile and on-premise products. Aligning C-level stakeholders, running agile delivery and coordinating teams across the UK, Sweden and Czech Republic.

C

AI-native prototyping

I use Claude Code, Claude Design and GitHub Copilot every day to build working features in the real codebase. Users try them first, and engineering only picks up what has been validated.

03 / Where it transfers

Same playbook,
new pitch.

Fields where I'd hit the ground running, and the experience that gets me there.

Health & wearables

Exercise physiology MSc, GPS and athlete-monitoring products, and tools built with medical teams.

Data & analytics platforms

Platforms that pull data from many departments into one view, and dashboards that answer one clear question.

Media & broadcast tech

Telestration software and a media asset platform with VAR integration at Tracab.

Fintech & modelling

Product work inside a statistical research and modelling business at Smartodds.

B2B SaaS for specialists

First PM at a SaaS start-up, close to sales and support, plus my own subscription product.

Yours?

If your users are experts and your product runs on data, let's talk.

04 / Selected work

Track record

Full CV on request →
Since 2025Consulting · via Smartodds

Product consultant to Brentford FC

Leading strategy and delivery for the club's web and mobile performance platform, used across coaching, sports science, medical and performance teams. New features are prototyped in the codebase with AI and tested with staff before engineering picks them up.

Web + mobile platformMulti-team usersAI prototyping
Since 2023Smartodds · Statistical research

Product management, data products

Owning the product lifecycle from requirements to vision. Set up product metrics that blend direct and indirect user feedback, and formalised processes between development, sales and support that had never been tracked before.

Data productsProduct metricsProcess design
2021 to 2023Tracab · ChyronHego Group

Coach Paint & Tracab Vault

Coach Paint is telestration software used by elite clubs and federations. Vault brought siloed products into one media asset platform, with offside-calling technology built to integrate with existing VAR systems. I set the roadmap with the VP of Product, CTO and GM, and coordinated delivery with teams in Sweden and the Czech Republic.

Media techPlatform consolidationDistributed teams
2019 to 2021Iterpro · Sport tech SaaS

Club intelligence platform + Player & Director apps

The company's first Product Manager, shaping the roadmap with the CEO and CTO for a web platform that unifies data across a football club's departments. I also launched two Flutter apps on iOS and Android. The Player App connects players with performance staff, and the Director App gives directors a digest of scouting and contract data.

B2B SaaSFirst PM hireiOS + Android launch

05 / Side project · Founder

Loadmark

GPS load monitoring built for practitioners, not spreadsheets.

Every coach I worked with asked the same question. How hard did we work today? LoadMark answers it without anyone maintaining a spreadsheet every season. I designed, built and run it myself, from discovery and code to pricing and launch.

loadmark.app
LoadMark homepage: GPS load monitoring built for practitioners, not spreadsheets

06 / Toolkit

What I work with

AI & build

Claude · Claude Code · Claude Design
GitHub Copilot
HTML · CSS · JavaScript · Node

Delivery

Linear · GitHub · Jira · Confluence
Asana · Trello

Go-to-market

Salesforce · HubSpot · Mailchimp
Specialist content reaching 20k+ professionals

07 / Contact

Building for experts who live in data?