Today in this article, we want to talk about product management. This question is asked even by experienced people in the business world. This role has very different meanings in different organizations.

The most concise answer that can be given to this question is: Product management is the strategic practice of developing, launching the market, and supporting and continuously improving a company’s products.

Introduction: Product management in general

Daily tasks include a wide range of strategic and tactical missions.

Most product managers do not take on all of these responsibilities.

In most companies, these tasks belong to other teams or departments.

But most product managers spend their time on:

Conduct research

Research to gain expertise on the market, user personas, and competitors.

Strategy development

Forming a high-level strategic plan for your product, including setting goals, an overview of the product itself, and an approximate timeline.

Announcement of programs

Developing an active strategic plan using the product roadmap and presenting it to the main stakeholders of the organization.

Maintain communication between teams throughout the development process and beyond.

Development coordination

Assuming that they have received the approval from the managers to advance their strategic product plan, coordinate with the relevant teams, market the product, and develop and start implementing the plan.

Action based on data analysis

Finally, after the product is built, tested, and brought to market, they need to understand what works, what doesn’t, and what needs to be added by analyzing data and asking for direct feedback from users.

How is effective product management done?

With a proper understanding of product management, we can explore what it takes to land this job.

Product managers find their way by following the path of those who have held this role before them.

You can’t get a product management degree. There is no single career path to this position, and getting this job requires the right skills to do the job more than a specific degree.

Communications

Communication skills are one of the most critical skills required for a successful product manager.

Therefore, many aspects of product management depend on high skill in this area.

Request votes and collect feedback. Product managers must be good listeners. They also need to know how to build these relationships and empathize with the customer.

When product planning begins, product managers must collaborate extensively with the product development organization.

To design an exceptional user experience, product managers must also collaborate with UX designers. Creating a genuine and healthy partnership is the key to delivering excellent products.

Finally, when the product is ready, there is another phase of communication and coordination. The product manager should train and edit marketing plans for development.

Technical skills

How technical skills does a product manager need? Are product managers who don’t have technical skills left out?

A product manager should have some technical understanding. People who are against the advancement of technology and being up-to-date cannot be good product managers.

Product managers must be proficient in communicating with engineers. In addition to managing existing debt, they need to know whether they are creating technical debt with their decisions.

However, product managers do not necessarily know how to code or execute an SQL query against a database. Although these skills may be helpful, they are not part of a product manager’s day-to-day duties.

Business Intelligence

When product managers call themselves “CEOs,” they usually refer to this set of skills.

Product managers may or may not be responsible for a product’s revenue. Still, they must ensure that the product is financially and strategically successful.

This starts with defining the vision and setting goals for the product. Although these may be done by the founder of the executive team, once approved, the product manager should take them on.

To do this, product managers must think strategically, even when dealing with the details. No choice is fruitless.

They must consider all possible consequences to avoid negative customer experience or sales impacts.

Two B2B and B2C markets

A common belief in product management is that there is a big difference between B2B and B2C products. There are certainly differences between the two markets, but they also have much in common.

In B2C, users are generally buyers, and you serve a single person.

In B2B, the person controlling the budget is often unrelated to the person using the product regularly.

In B2B sales, you must be able to convince people and gain the trust and interest of many people to make a deal. Also, the acquisition cost will be higher, and the growth rate will be slower for the B2B product.

Optimizing product management operations

Product managers often have demanding tasks. While having the right timing to do some work, they should always be ready for necessary conversations and meetings.

The method of dividing and doing is another method of doing more work in less time.

Knowing everyone’s core strengths, dividing tasks, and delegating allows managers to focus on what they do best and not forget other important things.

Internal and external meetings

Attending meetings is inevitable for product managers. They have high value, but if mismanaged, they lose weight and waste their time and others.

In these sessions, the focus is on efficiency. As a product manager, you must have a goal, stick to the plan, and accomplish it as quickly as possible.

Follow-up is also necessary. Product managers should take notes, share essential information, and clarify any ambiguities before the meeting ends.

Holding client meetings

Although attending internal meetings may seem daunting, meeting customers is one of the best parts of a product manager’s job.

This is an opportunity to get feedback, ideas, and inspiration that can help product managers.

Meeting directly with customers is always preferable to entrusting this work to sales and support department colleagues.

These meetings may not always be possible, but product managers should take advantage of these opportunities whenever possible.

Conclusion

What is product management? Everything in this role depends on the strategy.

Product managers develop and communicate product strategy. Then they ensure that this strategy is reflected and supported by all decisions related to development, marketing, etc.

We hope you enjoy this article and would like you to share your thoughts with us in the comments.