Breaking into Product Management

What resources are available to learn the craft and get up to speed quickly?

During some recent 30-minute product management mentoring sessions a pattern emerged: people from engineering and technical backgrounds were asking what resources are available to learn about product management. Others were unable to articulate what a product manager does or, importantly, why they want to get into product management.

I wrote about what product managers might do to ramp up on technology, in particular artificial intelligence. Recently, however, I've been asked to go in the opposite direction (i.e. help technical folks ramp up on product management). I found myself repeating a lot of the advice, so I decided to write it down.

Where to start?

Until I find a better introductory overview of the craft, I will direct all aspiring (and even seasoned) product managers to begin with Inspired by Marty Cagan. It explains the differences between product management, product marketing and project management. It also talks about how product managers can come from almost anywhere in the organization: sales, marketing, engineering. Importantly, it also give the best explanation of what product managers do that I have heard to date:

The product manager has two key responsibilities: assessing product opportunities and defining the product to be built.

It is remarkable how many are confused by product management. I’m occasionally surprised by senior product managers having difficulty finding a pithy definition of the role.

For reference, the product manager is not the CEO of the product. This topic has been the subject of hot debate (comments are welcome below), but the mischaracterization is, in my opinion, pernicious. At the other end of the spectrum, no, the product manager does not have the lowest bus factor.

Mr. Cagan lays it out succinctly. If you want to get into product management, I would stick with his characterization.

Hit the books

It’s easy to Google “product management books” and get a ton of recommendations, but I really like this list from Ken Norton. You should read as many of them as you can, but there are a few that I have found particularly valuable:

1. Inspired - See above.
2. Cracking the PM Interview - A must-read, this book is naturally about how to succeed during the interviewing process. That being said, to the extent that interviews reflect what jobs entail (although, not always the case), there are lots of great insights in here. There’s also a sequel, Cracking the PM Career, but I haven’t read that yet.
3. The Lean Startup - Even if you’re not part of a startup, this one is a must-read as many of the concepts, such as the MVP (minimal viable product), have been broadly adopted across product management.
4. Crossing the Chasm - I saw Geoffrey Moore speak about Zone to Win at a Lean Product Meetup (see below). This book is a classic.
5. Positioning - This is a lesser-known gem that I’m glad made it onto Ken’s list. Mine is filled with notes and stickies. Here’s one of my favorites: “The best approach to take in our overcommunicated society is the oversimplified message.” It’s tragic how rarely this maxim is followed, especially given how communication is a critical aspect of product management, but that’s for another note. Here’s another: “The solution to a positioning problem is usually found in the prospect’s mind, not the product.” This book is filled with these.
6. Quiet - This one isn’t on my list for PMs, but it is on Ken’s. Since I really enjoyed it, and am an introvert (for real!), I'm going to add it here. Extroverts should read this, too.

Decode and Conquer and Swipe to Unlock were both recommended to me recently. I haven’t read them but they’re in the shopping cart.

I also love reading articles and Twitter (see below), but I’ve always found books to be one of the best ways to learn. They require a tremendous amount of thought and research to write (if they’re done well), so the quantity and quality of information will generally be greater. Read the ones above or find your own, but delve into the books.

Go back to school

There has been a proliferation of product management-related online coursework and certifications. That wasn’t the case when I took BUS 62W - Fundamentals of Product Management with Stanford Continuing Studies, but it remains my gold standard, go-to recommendation for anyone wanting to pick up the basics. Taught by Kunal Punjabi, the course has filled in minutes; if you want in, figure out when registration opens and set your alarm clock.

If you’re unable to take BUS 62W, find a course or certification that offers the full breadth of product management skills, from customer discovery to MVP metrics. There are currently 22 product management courses on LinkedIn, a zillion on Coursera and many others elsewhere. Check them out. If you’ve taken any that you would recommend, please share in the comments.

As for getting an MBA, while I have one, my personal opinion is that it is not necessary for product management. It’s a nice bonus, but there are many other ways to acquire the requisite business skills. An MBA curriculum is also much broader than what is required for product management. If you have the time and inclination to get one, great. If not, this article suggests alternatives.

Follow the leaders

There are many visionaries and influential thought leaders in product management. A simple search will lead to many lists. Here are some of my favorites:

1. Steve Blank - He doesn’t find himself on many product management lists, perhaps because he’s more of an entrepreneurial thought leader, but I’m a huge fan. Entrepreneurs are effectively product managers and, as such, much of his advice hits home. He’s famous for, among other things, his “get out of the building” philosophy, which works no matter where you are.
2. Dan Olsen - He wrote the Lean Product Playbook and runs workshops, but you can sign up for his newsletters and attend his Meetups. He’s an engaging speaker and is constantly hosting product management luminaries.
3. Itamar Gilad - His monthly newsletter is quality over quantity.

Some folks have newsletters and others write on various platforms. If you have a Twitter account, go down this list and this list and just follow everyone. Then remove people if you don’t find their Tweets helpful. A few that I particularly like are Shreyas Doshi, Julie Zhuo, Ken Norton and Dare Obasanjo.

Get involved

There haven’t been many in-person events in a long while, but check out Meetup for meetings in your area. I have really enjoyed Lean Product & Lean UX Silicon Valley, organized by Dan Olsen (above). Conferences will happen again, so see if you can attend something related to product management. In the meantime, there is an endless stream of webinars and panel discussions on practically any topic you can imagine.

Of course, the best way to learn anything is by doing. Throwing together a little side project is a bit more difficult for product management than, say, software development (show me your Github!), but it’s not impossible. You don’t have to launch a startup in your 10% time, but think of a product and go through the steps. Find a target market and do some customer discovery and problem validation. If you’re ambitious, put together a prototype, or mockup, and do some solution validation. People will, and should, be impressed by your gumption.

Find an entry-level position

Sometimes you need to start near the bottom. APM List, as the name implies, is a list of programs designed for Associate Product Managers. These are special roles designed to train recent college graduates. They're very competitive, and you have to monitor the site to know when applications open, but they are a great opportunity if you can get it. If not, there are many other ways, so be resourceful and determined.

Conclusion

No matter where you’re coming from, if you want to get into product management it helps to have a solid understanding of the role and a clear articulation of why you’re qualified. If you can demonstrate a passion for the craft along with some hustle, so much the better.

If you want to discuss, or are looking for some product management advice, hit me up.