NPA and NAHJ Team Up to Support the Next Generation of Latino Product Leaders

The News Product Alliance and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) have teamed up to support the next generation of Latino news executives and entrepreneurial leaders through hands-on news product training and mentorship through NAHJ’s Adelante Leadership Academy. 

With guidance from the NPA team, participants are learning how to apply product thinking to their work —a user-centered, iterative approach to building journalistic initiatives that respond to real audience needs. Through tailored 1-1 sessions, they will familiarize themselves with tools and strategies including audience research methods, metrics and goal setting, project management approaches, and the Lean Product Canvas.  

Photo by AX Mina.

"We’re thrilled to collaborate with NAHJ in supporting Latino media leaders as they incorporate audience-centric practices that deliver value and impact for their communities,” said Felicitas Carrique, Executive Director of the News Product Alliance. “This partnership is directly connected to the NPA’s mission of expanding the diversity of news product thinkers in decision-making roles, by ensuring that leaders from diverse backgrounds have access to product tools, resources, and support that can help them push for change in the industry and create more representative journalism and editorial products.”

The collaboration includes four months of one-on-one mentorship, running from April through July 2025. During this time, NPA mentors will work closely with participants to help them refine their projects, develop strategic plans, and explore how product practices can be used to achieve tangible outcomes and drive impact in their newsrooms and communities. The partnership will culminate in July at the NAHJ Annual Conference, where participants will present their projects.

“This collaboration combines two of the most powerful elements of innovation – unique perspectives and product thinking,” said NAHJ Executive Director Yaneth Guillén-Díaz. “By immersing these diverse, emerging leaders in product development, we are not just preparing them for the future, we are empowering them to shape it.”

This collaboration builds on both organizations’ shared commitment to equity, innovation, and leadership. NAHJ brings a longstanding focus on bolstering Latino talent in the journalism industry, while NPA contributes deep expertise in supporting news product professionals through knowledge exchange, training, and capacity building.