What are Transferable Skills, and why are they essential for aspiring Product Managers? I transitioned to Product Management from the Consulting industry, and I remember how stressful this process was for me. You most likely feel uncertain whether this is the right move for you, and you are overwhelmed with tons of information about the new career. You may also feel unsure where to start and think you need guidance. However, the reality is that you don't need to start from the ground up. Let's think about it. Product Managers (PMs) build and launch products from scratch or improve and grow ex ..read more

(tldr: consider building a product portfolio) Work portfolios are must-haves for many professionals, especially in the creative space. It's hardly possible to imagine that you can hire a copywriter or graphical designer, or other creative professional without referring to their portfolio first. Portfolios are an excellent way to show insights into you, your job, and your working process. In the tech world, specifically in product teams, portfolios are becoming increasingly popular among engineers, and de-facto are must-haves for UX/UI designers. Surprisingly, having a portfolio for product man ..read more

Today I'd like to share with you one of the product management frameworks that can be useful for any agile team member: Product Managers, Product Owners, Business Analysts, Scrum Masters, Software Engineers, Quality Assurance Engineers, and other agile practitioners. This framework is Impact Mapping. In this post, we will cover the following topics: ✅ What is an Impact Mapping? ✅ When can you rely on the Impact Mapping framework? ✅ How to create an Impact Map? We will cover a step-by-step process of creating a map with examples. What is Impact Mapping? Impact Mapping is a framework to strategi ..read more

I used to be a tech and management consultant before transitioning to product management. As a consultant, I learned fast that every project is only as successful as your collaboration with your client. My most successful consulting projects were those where I've built rapport with my clients and stood close to them from the first project's kick-off meeting up to the final user acceptance test and project go-live. This skill of talking to and understanding users is the one that helped me first survive and then thrive as I moved along the product manager's career. In product management, similar ..read more

This story happened to me during one of my product interviews (which I failed). I thought I was prepared well - I knew my transferable skills (I've worked in tech consulting), and I illustrated them with my past projects and achievements. But suddenly my interviewer asked me - can you show us what you've built? This question puzzled me - all of my projects were under Non-Disclosure agreements, so I could not show much. And of course, back then, I didn't have anything that resembled a product portfolio… This lesson taught me a lot. I realized that to get into Product, I need to showcase what I ..read more

Instead of studying product management, kick-start your small side-hustle and create a product end-to-end. Don't worry about doing it well - not everything you make has to be perfect. Just do it. This is a piece of advice I give all aspiring Product Managers when they ask me what they can do to transition to product management from other roles. There are many reasons behind why I prioritise working on a project before any other transition strategy: ✅ It gives you maximum flexibility - it's up to you what idea to take, how much time to invest into it, and when to stop. ✅ It's an enriching exper ..read more

What are Transferable Skills, and why are they essential for aspiring Product Managers? I transitioned to Product Management from the Consulting industry, and I remember how stressful this process was for me. You most likely feel uncertain whether this is the right move for you, and you are overwhelmed with tons of information about the new career. You may also feel unsure where to start and think you need guidance. However, the reality is that you don't need to start from the ground up. Let's think about it. Product Managers (PMs) build and launch products from scratch or improve and grow ex ..read more

Today I want to share the three biggest myths I see hanging around the community of aspiring product managers. Myth # 1: I need to have technical skills to become a Product Manager, so I need to learn how to code. Reality: Coming from a technical background is not a prerequisite anymore. Yes, some companies historically prefer to hire Product Managers with technical backgrounds and degrees in Computer Science. However, others (and this number is growing steadily) look for candidates with "non-traditional" backgrounds - from journalism, art, fashion, law, and many more. I recall my conversat ..read more

Last year, I surveyed a community of almost sixty thousand Product Managers (PMs). I asked them a simple question: "what was the main challenge for you when looking for a Product Manager role for the first time?". Not surprisingly, most of the replies were about lacking relevant product experience as the main obstacle to starting a PM career.  Today I'd like to share the first strategy to build up this experience: grow PM skills within your current company. Depending on whether you already work in a product company or not, here is what you can do: Scenario # 1 - you already work in ..read more