How can you ensure that your new product manager hire understands the product development process?

Product management hinges on the 'why' understanding this fundamental reason behind actions and decisions is a compass that guides us. It helps us prioritize effectively, align with larger goals, and fosters collaboration within our teams. Embrace the 'why' to steer your product management journey toward success.

As much as the delivery methodology books push this, there is no perfect or 'right way' to run product teams and ship excellent products (and if you're hiring someone, there's a decent chance that it wasn't being done effectively before, so why adopt the old?). Outside of seeing what makes it through QA and into prod, the best way to understand if a PM is effective is to ask (or gauge, if unable to ask directly) the productivity of the team members. Does each team member have a clear direction on their priorities, and know how to get the required information? A frustrated team member is usually a great indicator of an issue in the process.

By establishing the "why" behind your product, you set the foundation for a new product manager to make informed, strategic decisions throughout the development process. It ensures that their actions are purpose-driven and aligned with your product's goals.

I would add it’s also vitally important to do competitive analysis and make sure your building unique differentiation into your product development. Making sure that differentiation is tied to what your customer values highly.

To ensure a new product manager grasps the product development process, implement a structured onboarding, pair them with a mentor, offer relevant training, and give hands-on project involvement. Schedule regular feedback sessions, provide access to resources and past project data, encourage customer and stakeholder interactions, and immerse them in the company's culture and values. This comprehensive approach will build a strong foundation for their role.

1. Provide thorough onboarding on the product and it's objective 2. Assign an experienced mentor, who has a detailed knowledge of the product 3. Offer hands-on experience 4. Provide access to resources and documentation, give him/her time to read and go through everything 5. Encourage continuous learning through seminars, LMS, etc. 6. Solicit feedback regularly. 7. Set clear expectations.

To ensure your new product manager comprehends the product development process, it's vital to illustrate the "how." Here's why this step is essential: Operational Clarity Process Guidance Documentation Mitigating Ambiguity By showing the "how" of your product development process, you equip your new product manager with the practical knowledge and guidance necessary to navigate each phase effectively. This empowers them to make informed decisions and coordinate activities with the broader product team.

Along with explaining the "how" of the product development process; it's about actively seeing and experiencing how users interact with the product. Understanding the user's perspective, their pain points, and their experience is invaluable. It's like stepping into the customer's shoes and witnessing the product through their eyes. This user-centric approach is a fundamental aspect of effective product management, and it goes beyond theoretical explanations to practical, hands-on experience. It enables the product manager to make informed decisions and improvements based on real user interactions.

By asking about case study for product he/she worked on it, and can tell the all processes impact the cycle from planning until go to market

I totally agree with this because one of the areas where a lot of leaders show their true colors is when they do not relinquish control and still try to think they are empowering but in reality, they are their teams worst enemy because they have a fear of relinquishing I guess what you would call power

Incorporating your new product manager into the "what" of the product development process is an effective way to impart understanding. Here's why this approach is advantageous: Learning by Doing Progressive Learning Tools for Support Skill Development Involving your new product manager in the "what" of the process empowers them with practical experience and enables them to take an active role in product development. This approach fosters both understanding and skill development.

Once they have a clear understanding of the "why" and "how," they essentially become a customer advocate. This perspective allows them to see the product through the eyes of the end-users, which is invaluable. As a result, addressing the "what" becomes more intuitive because they can relate it to the user's needs, pain points, and expectations. In essence, by experiencing the product from the customer's viewpoint, the product manager can make informed decisions about what features or improvements should be prioritized. This alignment with the user's needs is a fundamental aspect of effective product management.

In my experience, product managers are expecting leaders to help and train them. They are expecting their managers to provide feedback, to recognize what works and to help resolve what can be optimized. They want their managers to be honest but fair, transparent but benevolent. They need to be pointed to relevant sources, to learn from more seasoned people. A manager that does not understand that and doesn't provide any sort of feedback will lose its team's trust.

To ensure your new product manager comprehends the product development process, continuous feedback and coaching are essential. Here's why this approach is crucial: Continuous Learning Performance Improvement Confidence Building Feedback Mechanisms Resource and Skill Development By offering consistent feedback and coaching, you not only facilitate the understanding of the product development process but also encourage professional growth and competence. It's a supportive approach that ensures your product manager is well-prepared to navigate the complexities of product development.

Feedback, mentoring and coaching are essential in product roles. And at every level of your product career. If you are a product leader who looks to develop their team it really helps to learn about coaching skills to become better at helping product people in your team to find their own solutions. That is what truly empowering a team means. You don't want your team members dependent on your problem solving skills, you want to develop their own problem solving skills. Ideally in a way that lets them learn how to solve problems in a team. Because everything they'll be doing in their product work will be a team sport. And more often than not they'll need the expertise of somebody else to get to their joint goals with their teams.

Once a product manager fully understands the "why," "how," and "what" of the product development process, they indeed take ownership of the product. This sense of ownership extends to seeking feedback proactively from all relevant sources, whether it's from higher management, cross-functional teams, or, most importantly, the end customers. A proactive product manager actively looks for opportunities to improve the product and the user experience. They don't wait for issues to arise; they continuously think about enhancements and optimizations. This sense of continuous improvement aligns with the product manager's role as a steward of the product's success, making sure it evolves to meet user needs and business objectives.

It's important that not only the product manager understand the 'why' but the rest of the product team as well, not just overall, but for decisions that are made about the product along the way. Bring them along the journey.

Some critical aspects to consider for new PM hires: - Process: Walk the new PM hire through your product development process like an overview of your methodology, key milestones, decision-making frameworks, and the tools and software used. - Team Collaboration: Encourage the product manager to build relationships with cross-functional teams, including engineering, design, marketing, sales, and customer support. - Decision-Making: Integrate the new product manager hire into product-related decision-making processes, active participation in product strategy discussions and roadmap planning. -Feedback: Create a feedback loop where the PM hire can offer insights, and suggestions on the existing product development process for fresh perspective

By absorbing the core aspects of the product development process and taking ownership, a product manager becomes a driving force for positive change and innovation, seeking feedback and striving for constant improvement.

Cuando los equipos colaboran y se comunican de manera efectiva, pueden trabajar juntos de manera más eficiente y lograr resultados de manera más rápida. La colaboración entre equipos con diferentes perspectivas y habilidades puede generar nuevas ideas y soluciones innovadoras a los problemas. Finalmente, fomentar la comunicación efectiva entre los equipos permite compartir conocimientos y experiencias, lo que contribuye al aprendizaje y al crecimiento profesional de todos sus miembros.

Encourage Innovation: Encourage the new hire to come up with new ideas and approaches to enhance your products and processes. Continuous Evaluation: Adjust new PM hire training and development plan as needed to address any gaps or opportunities for improvement. Recognition and Rewards: Recognize and reward the product manager's contributions to product development and the overall success of the product.

Following process sometimes it's just replacement for thinking. Product teams I'm leading usually have a full right to manage the process of building product however they prefer and what would work the best for them. I agree, starting with why and aligning with the product vision is the most important piece as well aligning on the company and department goals. If you know the purpose and reasons toward the goal(s) you are working, you will probably not fail.