Why It's Hard to Recruit Good Product Managers

Hiring a great Product Manager (PM) is one of the biggest challenges for companies today. While demand for PMs has grown exponentially in recent years, the supply of truly exceptional candidates remains limited. Here’s why finding and hiring the right Product Manager is so difficult—and what companies can do to improve their chances.

1. The Role Is Ambiguous and Varied

Unlike clearly defined roles like engineering or design, Product Management is often ambiguous. The responsibilities of a PM can vary widely depending on the company, industry, and even the specific product. Some PMs are highly technical, while others focus more on market research, strategy, or customer experience. This lack of a universal definition makes it hard to identify the right fit.

2. The Skill Set Is Exceptionally Broad

A great PM needs to be a strategist, a communicator, an analyst, a negotiator, and often a bit of a psychologist. They must understand business, technology, and user experience, all while aligning stakeholders and driving results. Finding someone who excels across these areas is rare.

3. Experience Matters—But Isn’t Always Enough

Many hiring managers look for candidates with prior PM experience, but this alone doesn’t guarantee success. Experience in one type of company (e.g., a small startup) doesn’t always translate well to another (e.g., a large enterprise). More importantly, soft skills—such as adaptability, critical thinking, being the glue, keeping energy high, decisive, caringand leadership—often matter more than years in the role.

4. Strong PMs Are in High Demand

Great PMs are constantly being courted by top companies, from tech giants to high-growth startups. The best candidates have multiple offers and can afford to be selective. They’re looking for companies with a strong product vision, growth opportunities, and a supportive culture. If an organization can’t offer these, they risk losing top talent to competitors.

5. It’s Hard to Assess Candidates Effectively

Because the PM role is so multifaceted, traditional hiring processes often fall short. Standard interview questions may not reveal how a candidate handles real-world challenges. Case studies and product sense exercises help but don’t always capture how well someone collaborates with teams or navigates complex decision-making. Many companies struggle to structure an effective evaluation process.

The Importance of Soft Skills—and Why They’re Hard to Judge

One of the biggest challenges in hiring PMs is evaluating soft skills, which are often more critical than technical expertise. A great PM needs to be:

• Likeable and Humble: They must build trust and foster strong relationships with stakeholders.
• Able to Energize a Team: PMs must inspire and rally their teams around a vision, keeping motivation high.
• Caring and Supportive: They should show genuine concern for developers and designers, ensuring each team member gets what they need to succeed.
• Adaptable in Managing Relationships: PMs need to tailor their communication style to suit different team members, treating each individual in a way that enables them to do their best work.
• Empathetic Toward the Team, Users, and the Business: Juggling the needs of internal teams, end-users, and business goals requires deep empathy and strong prioritization skills.
• Revenue and Engagement-Oriented: They must understand that their decisions should ultimately drive user engagement and business growth.
• Skilled at Managing Up: PMs need to manage their own manager and help their manager navigate their own leadership challenges.
• A Strong Internal and External Advocate: They act as both an internal champion for their team and a PR machine for their product and company.

However, these qualities are difficult to assess through a resume or even in structured interviews. Many traditional hiring methods fail to capture whether a candidate truly possesses these interpersonal and leadership qualities, making it even harder to find the right fit.

6. The Market is Shifting Constantly

The expectations for PMs evolve with changes in technology, consumer behavior, and business models. Ten years ago, PMs didn’t need to be as data-driven as they are today. In the next five years, AI and automation may redefine the role again. Companies need to hire PMs who are not only skilled today but also adaptable enough to thrive in the future.

How Companies Can Improve PM Hiring

While hiring great PMs is difficult, companies can improve their chances by:

• Defining the Role Clearly: Be specific about expectations and how success will be measured.
• Prioritizing Problem-Solving and Communication: Look beyond resumes and test candidates’ ability to navigate ambiguity.
• Assessing Soft Skills Thoughtfully: Use behavioral interviews, meet the team, and asking for feedback on a current Product to evaluate a candidate’s ability to lead, communicate, and adapt.
• Creating an Attractive Environment: Offer strong mentorship, career growth, great work/life balance, brilliant tools and a compelling product vision.
• Using a Thoughtful Hiring Process: Incorporate real-world exercises, cross-functional interviews, ask them to come with ideas and feedback, and get them to ask you as many questions as you ask them.

Hiring top Product Managers is challenging, but companies that take a strategic approach will have a better chance of attracting and retaining the best talent.