A product manager (PM) is a specialist who aids in the management of product development, research, design, testing, and market entry strategies. A product manager must combine soft skills and hard talents to manage needs and create excellent products that correspond with corporate goals.
As a product manager, you’d be in charge of overseeing the entire lifecycle, whether it’s software, hardware, or services. For this function, balancing input from a variety of sources such as product designers, marketing and sales teams, major stakeholder groups, CEOs, and other top business executives is a must-have skill as you’d have to work together with these set of specialists to ensure a product’s success from conception to market introduction.
Product Manager Job Information
| Official Job Title | Product Manager, Product Development Manager |
| Average Salary | 95,815 – 125,726 (per annum) |
| Stress Level | Above Average |
| Work/ Life | Average |
| Job Satisfaction | Average |
| Career Advancement | Very High |
Job Description
Who Is a Product Manager?
Simply put, a product manager’s primary responsibility is to decide what to produce and how to build it, to benefit both the company and its customers.
What Does a Product Manager Do daily?
Given that a product manager brings to life the “product” of the organization, the day-to-day activities of a Product manager revolves around: finding out what the customers want, making decisions on what to build (which products to create) first in order of relative importance, bringing up a team around the plan, delivering the features of the product, and providing support to the product-building team.
Responsibilities, Duties & Roles of A Product Manager
The responsibilities of a product manager might change significantly during a company’s lifespan and development stage. However, the primary duties and job roles of a product manager are:
- Recognizing and expressing user requirements.
- Analyzing competition and keeping track of the market.
- Creating a product vision statement.
- Getting stakeholders on board with the product’s vision.
- Emphasizing the functions and capabilities of the product.
- Developing a collective brain among larger groups to enable more autonomous decision-making.
Product Manager Salary
- Average Salary: 113,000/year
- Starting Salary of a Junior Product Manager: 62,000
- Average Salary of a Senior Product Manager: 125,000
How To Become A Product Manager
The Entry Level: Certification, Training & Degree
Staring a product management career requires at least a Bachelor’s degree in any discipline, the ability to see the big picture, and lots of product management training.
A second option is to take an MBA course, as this helps you develop a clear vision for developing products and services and help you build your leadership abilities.
A third option is to learn on the job, although this takes an awful lot of time, which could range anywhere from five to ten years.
Other Skill Sets, Requirements & Qualifications
Product management requires superb communication skills, high storytelling skills, and top-notch leadership skills. Tech experience is also an added advantage, and enrolling for Associate Product Management programs.
How Long Does It Take To Become A Product Manager?
Becoming a Product Manager takes about three to five years, and in some cases, it could take more time depending on the route you take.
Taking the MBA route takes an average of three years, while taking Product Management Courses could take less time than a year or two.
Is It Hard To Become A Product Manager?
Just like every other profession, once you’re willing to take on both the hard and soft skills and ready to learn, becoming a product manager should be easy.
Product Manager Career Paths
The Product Manager Roadmap
The Product Manager Career Roadmap takes off from a Junior Product Manager to Associate Product Manager to Product Manager, then Senior Product Manager; Director of Product; VP of Product; Chief Product Officer and much more into Executive C-Suite roles and Board of Director roles.
Projections For Growth In Product Manager Jobs
Progression into an executive leadership role will be made easier thanks to increased product management career path recognition.
In Summary: Is Product Manager A Good Career?
There’s no better time to get into product management than now, as product management positions in high-tech and traditional businesses are opening up than ever before. This dynamic is currently helping product management become more well-known.
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Working Conditions
Can A Product Manager Work Remotely From Home?
Yes, and be the very best at it.
How Many Hours Does A Product Manager Work?
An average of 40-50 hours per week.
Can A Product Manager Work Part-Time?
Yes.
What Are The Average Vacation Days Of A Product Manager?
About ten to fourteen days’ vacation per year.
Resume Tips
Given that a product manager directly impacts a company’s long-term performance. You need to know whether a product will be an effective and profitable one for the company or not. For this, you need to highlight on your resume your results from previous roles, with specific metrics and tangible outcomes from the earlier products alongside your achievements, and not just a list of prior responsibilities.
Also, highlight your knacks for problem-solving. What methodologies, such as Agile, are you familiar with? Do you have a thing for bringing together disparate groups? Do you have a great deal of resource efficiency?
Your resume should be packed with important information about your work style by delving further into specific topics like these as you write.
Product Manager Interview Questions
Q1: When you have two critical tasks to perform but cannot complete them both, how would you prioritize your resources?
Why it works: This is a test of your ability to work under pressure, manage priorities, as well as that of limited resources. To be successful in this role, you must prioritize tasks confidently.
Q2: Describe a situation in which you were forced to say no to an idea or project that you were passionate about.
Why it works: Hiring managers can see how you respond to hypothetical or real-world circumstances by asking questions like this.
Jobs Related to Product Management
- Program Manager
- Sales Manager
- Marketing Manager
- Project Manager
- Marketing Director
- Technical Program Manager
For HR Manager: Tips for Hiring A Product Manager
Key Characteristics To Look For In A Product Manager
#1. Possessing The Ability To Solve Problems
Some product managers have cited problem-solving skills as the essential quality. Management can sometimes be challenging, given that product, with many moving pieces. Bringing a successful outcome to market would necessitate many inventive solutions to unexpected problems; a product manager must have inherent problem-solving talent, which typically manifests as creative thinking.
#2. Ability To Communicate Clearly And Effectively
Communication is one of the essential qualities hiring managers look for in a product manager. It doesn’t matter how well a product manager candidate checks the rest of the boxes of solid product management experience, strong technical knowledge if they can’t communicate clearly and effectively with professionals across the company’s various disciplines and teams, such product manager would always be found wanting on the job.
#3. Charisma And Ability To Inspire Others
Charisma, often known as inherent leadership ability, may not be as readily apparent as the other characteristics listed above. However, managing a broad cross-functional team is difficult for product managers because they have no absolute control over anyone on the team. Some team members, such as the VP of Engineering, may even be in a position of authority well above that of the product manager.
Without organizational authority over the individuals carrying out specific product-related jobs, how can a product manager successfully drive an arduous effort like bringing a product to market? Only possible with an innate leadership capacity.
A successful product manager can foster camaraderie and generate passion among the numerous teams and departments involved in developing their products. Being forced to say no to requests from these teams while still pushing for more productivity with fewer resources will be no easy assignment for any product manager. Still, an effective product manager with great charisma to inspire the cross-functional team to be as invested in the product’s success as they are would make product management be like a walk in the park.
Minimum Level Of Education & Experience
At least a Bachelor’s degree in any discipline, a certification course in Product Management or many years of experience in a junior product management role. MBA is an added advantage.
References
- Aha. (2021, 09 29). What is the role of a product manager? Retrieved from Aha: https://www.aha.io/roadmapping/guide/product-management/what-is-the-role-of-a-product-manager
- Austin, J. (2021, 09 29). What It Takes to Become a Great Product Manager. Retrieved from Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/2017/12/what-it-takes-to-become-a-great-product-manager
- Glassdoor. (2021, 09 28). Product Manager Salaries. Retrieved from Glassdoor: https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/product-manager-salary-SRCH_KO0,15.htm
- Mansour, S. (2021, September 29). Product Manager: The role and best practices for beginners. Retrieved from Atlassian Agile Coach: https://www.atlassian.com/agile/product-management/product-manager
- Tworetzky, B. (2021, 09 28). What Does a Product Manager Do? Retrieved from Medium: https://medium.com/@tworetzky/what-does-a-product-manager-do-205b40d82da3
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