Oh sure - you don't have to understand the product/service to understand many things about a company. But if you don't understand the product/service, you are h

Oh sure - you don't have to understand the product/service to understand many things about a company. But if you don't understand the product/service, you are hosed - it's the most important thing. A company can have all the other things right and they are in all sorts of trouble if their product/service is no good. In fact, it can actively mislead because the rest looks so good. On the flip side, ask anyone who works at a really successful company - you'll hear horror stories of mismanagement and bad incentives and all kinds of stuff. Companies succeed in spite of it when the product/service is the right product in the right market. Google & Facebook are the textbook examples, but there are dozens.