Understanding the nuanced differences between Product Managers and Project Managers is essential in unraveling the fabric of business operations and execution strategies. Both roles stand as pivotal pillars within organizations, each with distinct responsibilities and focal points. Here’s an in-depth exploration into the realms of Product Management and Project Management: Key Distinctions: Responsibilities and Focus: Product Manager: The primary focus is on the entire lifecycle of a product, from ideation to development, launch, and post-launch iterations. Their role revolves around defining ..read more

What is a Product Manager? The role of a product manager is the linchpin in product development, overseeing the entire lifecycle from inception to market launch. Tasked with strategizing, planning, and executing product initiatives, they’re the visionary behind the product’s success. They delve deep into market research, analyzing customer needs and market trends, translating these insights into product features and enhancements. Product managers act as the bridge between stakeholders, engineers, marketers, and other teams. They define product roadmaps, set priorities, and ensure smooth coordi ..read more

A Guide on How to Become a Product Manager Introduction Are you passionate about leading product development, shaping strategies, and driving innovation? Becoming a Product Manager might be your ideal career path. This guide will walk you through the key steps to kick-start your journey toward becoming a successful Product Manager. Key Steps to Become a Product Manager: Understand the Role: Begin by gaining a clear understanding of what product managers do. They oversee the development and launch of products, understanding market needs, and ensuring the product aligns with the company’s goals ..read more

In the business climate of the twenty-first century, companies must hone their operations to become more strategic, agile competitors. The best approach to achieving this goal is through enhanced utilization of the function of product management. If you asked 20 people to define ‘product management’, you’d probably get 20 different answers. Imagine asking those people what product managers are supposed to do, and you’ll probably get many more answers. Further, if you asked those 20 people about the most important attributes of a well-run product organization, you’d get more responses than ..read more

You’ve been working at home, you miss your team. You’re “zoomed out.” Have you been paying attention to your professional development as a product manager? Regardless of your situation, whether you’re a new product manager or one with a few years of experience, you probably should put professional improvement on your agenda. Have you ever felt that if you don’t find ways to accomplish all that’s expected of you, you’ll be driven by the urgent demands of others?  If you don’t possess enough knowledge of the proper context, others will create that context for you as you put out fires a ..read more

Transformation is a word that isn’t commonly favored by the Product community because Transformation Programs rarely allow Product Teams to autonomously decide how they’ll achieve their mission. However, Transformation Programs incur significant costs. According to the CIO magazine, Global spending on digital transformation technologies and services was $1.3 trillion in 2020 of which 70% of that spend is wasted. That is approximately $900 billion. Why Product Managers should care? Great Product Management can, without a doubt do better with the $900 billion squandered on Transformation Program ..read more

The first and second editions of The Product Manager’s Desk Reference have been a faithful companion to tens of thousands of product managers around the world. I’ve refreshed the book and introduced a 3rd edition that is updated, and better than ever. (Buy Now) In that new edition, I introduced an update to the Product Management Life Cycle Model. The Product Management Life Cycle Model has evolved over two decades and is based on a vast array of research done by my firm, Sequent Learning Networks where our benchmarks associate best practices with verified business outcomes. The Product M ..read more

The amount of money invested in “Transformation Programs” is staggering. In the past 20 years, we have seen Digital and Agile Transformation Programs grow and swell to $1.3 trillion dollars in 2020 alone. According to the HBR, 70% of that spending is wasted. Many companies miss a key component in their Transformation Program. How will a Product-Led Transformation be different? You only have to whisper the word “transformation” and the next thing you’ll see is people scurrying away. It’s a word that isn’t commonly favored by the Product community because Transformation Programs rarely allow Pro ..read more

The title of this seems to overstate the obvious. From my vantage point, many businesspeople, including salespeople, product managers, marketers, and others, would benefit from some tried-and-true tools to garner customer insights and reveal true customer problems. I’m writing this because I recently spoke to a group of entrepreneurs starting new businesses.  Most people in this group presented great ideas for products and/or companies.  Most could easily articulate the problem from their own perspectives, and they spoke passionately about them.  Yet when I ask, who’s the real c ..read more

  Hi, welcome to the ace video series alumni continuing education day. I want to talk to you about uncovering your customers’ needs. This is one of the most critical pieces in making sure that we bring products to the market that are truly adding value. I want to talk through three different ways we can gather feedback and therefore to uncover the needs the most efficient way possible. The first I’d like to talk about is gathering unsolicited feedback. Just as the name suggests, unsolicited feedback is the feedback that we have received that we haven’t necessarily asked for. We may be g ..read more