Product owner vs. product manager: Who runs the show?
The classic product owner vs product manager debate. Who is in charge? Can there be one without the other? What’s really the difference between these two product management roles?
I am sure the people in these roles would have different answers to these questions when asked, especially if it’s their role being evaluated!
There’s no black or white answer to who must be part of running the product show because these two roles operate differently in different companies. There are many factors that play into what a product manager or product owner does such as:
·????????How well-established a product is
·????????how large the business is
·????????the structure of the company itself
·????????the use of Scrum and Agile practices
·????????company vision or philosophy
The purpose of a business is to create products that offer meaning and service to the customer, as well as to investors of the company. This is achieved by making sure product features are optimized and delivered in a quality fashion in a timely manner. This is difficult to do if there is a problem between positions. Figuring out the difference between a product owner and a product manager can help in dividing that rift.
The importance of delivery and optimization means that both the product manager and product owner should have the same goal. And while their end goal should be the same, they carry differing roles within the?process of product management?to get there. The agile product owner and project management role must work in sync to have a good outcome.
Product Manager
The product manager is?responsible?for guiding a product to success. They lead a?cross-functional?team that works on a product and improves its features. It is an organizational role that outlines a strategic roadmap for a product or product line.
The?PM role?can vary slightly from company to company and can, but not necessarily include, marketing, forecasting, and gauging profit and loss. They work with the project owner, project manager, and other team members to get to a successful product launch.
Product managers analyze the market and competition while creating a vision for a product that is unique and offers value to consumers that meets their demands. The role covers strategic and tactical works and must offer cross-functional leadership with departments such as engineering, marketing, customer service, and sales.
Product managers define the why, when, and what of the specific product that the business is going to build. They work with the project manager along with other team members to get to a successful product launch.
Product managers perform market research. They analyze what customers need and want and use prioritization techniques to determine which features or products would meet those demands. They get a team in place and?create a roadmap?that eventually leads to a successful product launch.?
These are the following steps a product manager will be needed for:
·????????Conducting research on how users utilize and enjoy a product. Insight into what works and what does not. What is needed and what is not.
·????????Create a strategy based on long-term vision.
·????????Create a roadmap to keep the products team on the same page throughout the process.
·????????Conclude what features should be built next on existing products.
·????????Begin the process of creating and delivering features that customers not only need but want.
·????????Advocate and coordinate the product team, partners, and stakeholders to make sure all are aligned around the strategy the product needs to be going on for success.
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The product manager supervises the whole product lifecycle. This involves being in the early steps and ideas that come from customer research to the actual product launch and delivery. They drive the product strategy that is drawn from customer needs and the market. They speak for the end-user and strategically how to get a product from a high-level idea to a concrete product for use.
The Product Owner
The term product owner can be somewhat misleading. It is not someone that owns the finished product or is the owner of a company that produces a product. It is a term that has come from Scrum, which is a scaled agile framework that builds and supports complex products.?
A?Scrum framework, made by a scrum team, defines a product owner as “responsible for maximizing the value of the product resulting from the work of the Development Team.” But what does this mean? It means that the product owner generates customer stories that the development team can use. They are the voice of the customer.
The product owner is responsible for the product backlog. This means they are responsible for a list of new features, any change to existing features, bug fixes, etc. to make sure a team can attain a certain product outcome. It encompasses everything an agile team will work on.
This is no small task as the backlog grooming (refinement) alone is substantial.?
Along with grooming, the role of the product owners includes these responsibilities:
·????????Listens to customers and turns their problems and complaints into user stories that create actionable items. They prioritize these stories and then arrange them in a product backlog.
·????????Builds and sets production process priorities to make sure the development team knows specifically what thing to focus on in order of importance.
·????????The product owner is present at all team meetings with other internal stakeholders such as the scrum master to make sure that the whole development process is following the product roadmap created by the product manager.
·????????They are the communication link between the customer and the development team. The product owner is the embodiment of the customer’s voice.
·????????Gives constructive feedback on the ratified product roadmap. This is a communication link between the product owner and the product manager.
A product manager is with the product from conception to launch. However, the product owner role has a narrower focus when it comes to working with the development team.?
The product manager or product marketing manager studies the customer’s wants and needs, whereas the product owner makes sure that product development is following the product roadmap. The product manager decides what is going to be built or adapted and the product owner makes sure the development team does just that.
Do We Need Both Roles?
Various factors play into whether a business requires both a product owner and product manager.?
One, the other, or both??
The real question about what a company needs must come from what the desired product outcome is rather than the titles that are going to be used. Business value is the top priority and then assessing the product management team roles and processes to help achieve those goals comes next.
Structures and processes are often built into a corporate system that becomes unable to adapt due to inflexibility. There needs to be an assessment of who is doing what jobs now, challenges that need to be overcome, the overall decision-making process, and the end goal.
When all these things have been assessed, addressed, and prioritized, then there is a clearer picture of the company’s operations. You’ll see where there are problems, hold-ups, and poor product management. You might realize that you can adapt to the product management structure in a new way.
Product ownership or management can be a blended job that incorporates both along with product marketing etc.