How does a product manager's role change in an innovation-driven company?

A product manager always needs to be focused on understanding the customer and adapting to deliver on their needs. This customer-focused approach builds strong relationships, improves customer satisfaction, and drives growth for the product regardless of innovation or optimization approach. In an Innovation driven company a product manager drives innovation and uncovers new opportunities with data from sources such as: 1. Market Research 2. Idea Generation and Brainstorming 3. Beta Testing In an optimization driven company a product manager is tasked with refining existing products or processes to drive efficiency and maximize performance with data from sources such as: 1. User Behavior Analysis 2. A/B Testing 3. Customer Feedback

In an innovation-driven company, the product manager's emphasis shifts towards developing innovative strategies and adopting an exploratory model. When employing an exploratory model, effective risk management becomes crucial. This shift in focus compels product managers to prioritize stringent risk management practices and align their efforts with various key aspects of this model.

In the lifecycle of an innovative product you go through both but the innovation always comes first, optimization comes later. It’s okay and can be a do or die decision to sacrifice margins in favor of speed in the beginning. You want to be at the leading edge so speed is crucial.

I honestly think every Startup/Company which is building their own Product in-house is an innovation driven company. The role of a Product Manager never really changes at a principle level, they still need to gather user insight, separate the needs from the wants, convert that into actionables for the engineering team and ensure that the outcomes initially planned are achieved. The scope for innovation comes at every stage mentioned above. Innovation does not mean a big bang release or some crazy user insight which turns a market around like Uber. For most people, it just means small optimisations which other people in the market might not being doing which can lead to an uptick in any of the important company metrics.

The customer may not always be right but they're not wrong. Nothing fails like success. There is one thing I'm pretty sure every employee will agree that is in high growth companies driven by innovation, product managers tend to get arrogant due to the misguided belief that the customer is always wrong. Here's where we miss the point and become irrelevant over time. Customers aren't who they used to be these days. They're way smarter. In Innovation driven companies, the way a product manager's role must evolve is by becoming more empathetic to customers over time and be obsessively driven more by feedback than be motivated by process driven bureaucracy backed by executives.

In innovation-driven companies, Product Managers (PMs) face heightened uncertainty. They validate assumptions through experiments, testing prototypes, and iterate based on customer feedback. Collaboration with cross-functional teams is crucial to align on vision and priorities. PMs must balance speed, quality, and scope while managing risks in the dynamic product development process.

A PM's primary role in an innovation-driven company is to perform market research, both primary and secondary, to identify the opportunities based on the user pain points and try to ideate solutions employing innovative technologies.

In innovation-focused companies, the product manager takes on a more Creative role - Empathizing with user, business, and partner needs. Instead of just managing existing products, they actively come up with new product ideas. This means dealing with more uncertainty as they explore uncharted territory. Also, product managers work closely with design teams to quickly turn half-baked ideas into prototypes. They talk to future customers to understand their forward-looking needs - not just current pain points. As a PM Intern at Xbox, I could see this happening with the Xbox Ambassadors program where PMs interacted with Ambassadors to learn how new features could improve competitive gaming and spectator experiences.

In an innovation driven organisation, there are several projects being tested and experimented in parallel. A product manager might not be able to help them from a technical standpoint, but he might be able to understand the market, estimate the potential each of those experiments can deliver in filling a gap in the current market and also identify contingency in case the business has to pivot to a different strategy. The innovations with the most feasibility and user desirability should be prioritised so that we can quickly learn and implement those learnings into the projects which require a significantly higher investment of resources including time.

In such companies, the role of a PM extends to being a facilitator of creative brainstorming and a mediator between visionary ideas and feasible execution. They are often the ones who bridge the gap between ambitious technological advancements and market viability, requiring them to have a strong understanding of both technical capabilities and customer desires. Their role involves not just managing, but actively driving innovation within the team, often requiring them to step into uncharted territories.

??As a Product Manager in innovation-driven companies, success hinges on a distinct mix of skills and mindset. It's a dance between creative problem-solving and analytical precision. Stay agile, embrace continuous learning, and adapt swiftly to tech trends and evolutions. Cultivate deep empathy for users, vision for the future, and a knack for execution. Utilise design thinking and user centric design for ideation. You're not just managing products; you're leading change and pioneering uncharted territory.

Ideally you can be part of the famous product trio (product, engineering, UX). You'll need deep discovery skills and have a keen eye for how to de-risk and learn about true user needs and how to combine them with viable business models. This is the core of what product roles are, and comes with more risk and uncertainty for new products as there is for established ones. As a result you need more resilience, more ability to quickly learn from failure, more empathy and listening skills and great collaboration and storytelling skills.

To continuously stay curious and open-minded. Innovation requires exploring new ideas, technologies, and approaches, so being willing to learn and adapt is crucial. I disagree with the notion that product managers in innovation-driven companies should solely rely on their own ideas. Successful innovation often comes from collaboration and input from diverse perspectives, so involving cross-functional teams and soliciting feedback from stakeholders is important. An example I've seen is a product manager who regularly organized innovation workshops and brainstorming sessions with team members from different departments. This allowed for the generation of fresh ideas and creative solutions that resulted in successful product innovations.

Beyond customer empathy and lean thinking, PMs in these settings must exhibit high adaptability and resilience, as innovation paths can often lead to unexpected challenges and rapid pivots. They should foster a culture of 'failing fast and learning quickly,' encouraging their teams to embrace failures as stepping stones to innovation. Strong risk assessment and mitigation skills are also crucial, as is the ability to manage stakeholder expectations around the inherently unpredictable nature of innovation projects.

To drive innovation as a Product Manager, you need to have the following skillsets- - Acceptance of failure without taking it too much to heart - Constant and active feedback loops - Should be inspiring - Should be open to experimentation. These qualities are needed as innovation is not driven over-night. It comes from 1 aisle conversation which sparks curiosity in someone who then takes it further. Out of every 10 innovative ideas, only 2 probably actually make it as a moonshot which make up for the other 8 failed experiments. However this is only possible, if the person driving the project and their team has the qualities mentioned above!

One of the benefits of the role of PM in innovation-driven companies is that you get the opportunity to research and work on new products, technology and opportunities which are untapped in the market. One of the challenges of the role is that you also have to make sure that you are aligned with the business goals while you are adopting new innovative products.

In an innovation-driven company, a product manager's role shifts from executing a defined roadmap to facilitating discovery and experimentation. The PM must formulate assumptions and hypotheses about customer needs, translate those into prototypes, solicit customer feedback through real-world experiments, and rapidly iterate product concepts based on insights gained. There is increased ambiguity and uncertainty, so the PM plays a key role convening cross-functional teams, aligning them to the strategic vision and goals, and guiding the product development process through the unknowns. The focus becomes less on project execution and more on collaborative learning and adaptation in service of creating new solutions.

It's crucial to stay adaptable and open to change. Innovation requires thinking outside the box and taking risks, so being flexible allows for embracing new ideas, experimenting, and adapting plans based on feedback and data. For example, while working on a new product feature, our team initially had a vision and roadmap. However, after user testing and feedback, we made bold changes and took a different approach. This led to an innovative solution, positive customer feedback, and increased adoption. Adaptability benefits product managers in an innovation-driven company by staying ahead and driving successful outcomes. Balancing experimentation with focus is important to avoid inefficiencies and confusion.

The PM's role in such environments also involves navigating the delicate balance between innovation and scalability. While the pursuit of groundbreaking ideas is encouraged, PMs must also consider the practical aspects of bringing these innovations to market at scale. This includes dealing with complexities in production, distribution, and market acceptance. The challenge lies in maintaining the innovative spirit while ensuring that the product remains feasible and viable for large-scale adoption.

You're at the forefront of creating groundbreaking products, constantly learning and evolving alongside industry pioneers. This environment fosters immense professional growth and leadership development. However, it also demands navigating uncertainties and high-pressure situations. Balancing stakeholder expectations and managing product development trade-offs like speed versus quality are key challenges.

One thing I've found helpful is creating a culture of experimentation and embracing failure as a learning opportunity. This encourages PMs to take risks and try new approaches in order to drive innovation. Actually, I disagree with the notion that innovation-driven companies should always prioritize speed over quality. While it's important to move quickly, ensuring that the product or service meets user needs and provides a great experience should still be a top priority. An example I've seen is a PM who actively seeks input and ideas from all team members, regardless of their role. This inclusive approach not only fosters a sense of ownership and empowerment but also leads to diverse perspectives and innovative solutions.

In an innovation-driven company, a PM should define a clear problem statement and value proposition, validated by customers and stakeholders. Use a lean canvas to map assumptions, prioritizing them based on importance. Experiment to test these assumptions, utilizing the build-measure-learn loop for results. Iterate or pivot as needed, updating strategies and employing tools like pivot tables. Focus on teamwork, adopting agile methodologies for effective collaboration. Continuously seek customer feedback, applying theories like jobs-to-be-done, to refine your product and align with market needs. This approach ensures adaptability and customer-centric development in a dynamic environment.

In an innovation-driven company, a product manager's role tends to be more focused on driving new product development and bringing innovative ideas to market. This may involve working closely with cross-functional teams, including R&D, design, engineering, and marketing, to bring ideas to life. The product manager may also be more involved in market research and trend analysis to stay ahead of the curve and identify new opportunities. Their role may also involve more strategic planning and decision-making as they seek to position the company at the forefront of their industry.

A really good advantage of working as a Product Manager in Innovation-led orgs is the chance to constantly be in the know-how of cutting edge technology. Innovation at a large scale can be driven in 2 types- - Through having great depth in a field where you can figure out user insights that nobody knows. - Through being exposed to cutting edge technologies in the world which can be leveraged to come up with new markets/industries. The 1st approach is usually unreliable, because it is possible that maybe the products in the market have already gone in as much depth as possible given the constraints, hence the 2nd approach is usually more reliable!

Product manager does not have defined details or responsibilities. He is suppose to do everything basing on time & needs. Among which also his life goal should become to ruthlessly prioritize.

In an innovation-driven company, a product manager's role expands to include fostering creativity, rapid adaptation to market trends, and promoting a culture of experimentation. They focus on identifying emerging opportunities, collaborating closely with cross-functional teams, and adapting strategies swiftly to stay ahead in dynamic markets. The emphasis shifts from routine management to continuous innovation, requiring agility, risk-taking, and a deep understanding of evolving customer needs.

From my learning experience, a PM on the innovation space is more focused on customer discovery, concept testing and finding product market fits. This is kind of different from working as a PM where you have customers created already and wants to scale. It is also different from PM working in optimization and scaling of product's in mature business. The focus and audience changes along the the growth pipeline. In summary, PM in innovations are more customers facing, using either one of or both new technologies or business models to meet product market fit.