Roles in Tech: Product Manager

Projected Time

About 30-45 minutes

• Lesson: 12 min
• Guided Practice: 20 min
• Independent Practice: 15 min
• Check for Understanding: 7 min

Prerequisites

Here are links to lessons that should be completed before this lesson:

Product : What is a Product?

Motivation

It reflects the shift from shipping software to shipping the right software for customers. And it’s the product manager’s job to figure that out. According to Deloitte, customer-centric companies are 60% more profitable than their peers.

Objectives

Participants will be able to:

• Understand meaning of Product Management.
• Understand expectation from Product Manager.
• Know the skills Product Manager should have.
• Decide whether they are suitable for a future as a Product Manager.

Specific Things to Learn

• What is Product Management?
• What do Product Managers do?
• Skills PM should have?

Materials

• Techtonica Slides - Roles in Tech: Product Management
• Who are PMs? short video (8 min) - A short video by Ravijot Chugh which explains who are Product Managers and what do they do?
• Product Manager’s Role (10 min) Use this guide to know more about role of a Product Manager.

Lesson

Go through the slides given in material section to get an idea about Product Management.

Product Management

Product management can be defined as the general business structure within a company that supports and manages all the activities related to developing, planning, forecasting, marketing and selling a product all through its lifecycle.

Job of Product Manager

Product managers are the official translators within a company, helping commercial teams understand what the technical, engineering teams mean and vice-versa.

Responsibilities that a product manager usually takes are :-

1. User/market research and analysis
2. create a solid Product strategy
3. Learn to Prioritize and re-prioritize various work threads.
4. Create a product and feature roadmap.
5. Know how to make a product stable and scalable.
6. Communicate effectively with Designers, Customers, Engineers and clients.

The Role of a PM may change depending on type of product and the company stage, etc.

Qualities of PM:

• Strategic thinker
• Passion for products
• Empathizes with the customer
• Aspires to build great user experiences
• Collaborative leader
• Proper Planning and Execution

Common Mistakes / Misconceptions

• Overlook the feedback from customers.
• Tool are important for a PM. But if a PM uses too many tools it will waste both time and efforts.
• Build a Product according to current situation, not future needs.
• Fall in love with the problem, not the solution. The problem is the root of everything. If your product doesn’t solve any problems it’s useless.

Guided Practice

Go through the Links mentioned in the Materials section. Understand whatever mentioned in those turorials and try to cover it all. After watching the video and reading the article you will understand Who Product Manager are and what do they do.

Independent Practice

Learn to Identify Market Problems and to Prioritize Product Requirement to build a successful product.

Challenge

What kind of challenges does a Product Manageer have to face? Check out this blog to know more.

Check for Understanding

Try this Quiz to test your understanding about this topic.

Supplemental Materials

• Short Course — This is a complete course which gives a brief introduction on Product Management.
• Slides — This are slides related to Product Management.
• Qualities of PM — Skills required to be a Product Manager are explained on this page.