The Art of War & Product Management

I was reading a classic 'The Art of War' by Sun Tzu and I could find multiple parallels to the world of product management in the various nuggets of wisdom in this book

Written 2,500 years ago by Chinese general Sun Tzu, The Art of War is a timeless classic on military strategy still in use in war colleges around the world. The principles mentioned in the book transcend warfare and have practical applications to all the conflicts and crises we face in our lives - in our workplaces, our families, even within ourselves. Feel free to order your copy from here - The Art Of War - Spirituality for Conflict

This article documents how the principles of The Art of War translate into the world of product management. In the chapter on 'Planning Attacks', Sun Tzu defines five factors that give you an angle for finding victory in your conflicts -

1. Knowing when to take action and when not to take action

Parallels to product management world -

The decision whether or not to build a feature or a product falls in the realm of responsibilities of a product manager. The product manager together with the EPD squad (engineering, product, design) constantly evaluate value to the user, technical feasibility, business/ commercial value in their day to day lives to decide whether or not to build, and (if decision is to build) when and how to build. The ability to say no to features or product ideas is one of the essential skills good product managers develop and hone in over time

2. Knowing how to manage people

Parallels to product management world -

Good product managers function as great motivators for their squad of engineers, designers, constantly gunning for the most optimal outcome for end users and the business. Product managers should gear themselves to be loved and respected by their internal teams, and act as a motivational force to support the cause and goals of the product/ feature. In order to achieve this, great communication is one of the skills to inculcate for product managers. The ability to speak and write effectively in a language all (engineers, designers, end users, cross-functional stakeholders, leadership and the executive teams) understand, being precise and concise all the while is a superpower all product managers should vie to have in their kitty.

3. Creating unity within the army

Parallels to product management world -

The product managers together with the product leaders put together

a. the product vision(not to confuse with the company vision) - the why / the dream,

b. define the north star

c. the guiding principles (that help you say no to not good ideas, so that you focus only on the truly great ones ;) )

d. lay down the mission and the strategy - how to realise the dream

These translate into the roadmap which is one of the core responsibilities of a the product team. The vision, mission, strategy and the roadmap basically act as a way to bind together the organisation and the different teams in rallying towards one goal and playing it together. Product managers play a central role in making this happen.

4. Preparation

Parallels to product management world -

Day in and day out, product managers needs to be prepared with roadmaps, user stories, customer data and insights, industry/trends/ competition, understanding of different parts of the business and what not. The learning never stops for product managers and they always are required to be prepared with providing the right context in decision making

5. Competence and the confidence to stand up to superiors

Parallels to product management world -

By virtue of their role, product managers have the maximum knowledge and context around solving a problem (by building a product / feature). They need to exercise influence across cross functional teams, stakeholders, end users to keep the long term goals intact. The ability to say 'No' is another skill product managers pick up over time.

Cheers to the world of product management and all the Product Generals. Have a great start to the year 2023 everyone :)

Tagging some of the key people who have shaped my product thinking. Thank you all for the guidance in shaping my product journey !

Abhijeet Anand , Ankur Agarwal , Ashwin Ramaswamy , Phaneesh Gururaj , Vinayak Vijayakumar , Matthias Stoever , Meredith Han , Christopher Fryer