{"id":2504,"date":"2023-02-06T11:30:00","date_gmt":"2023-02-06T16:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theforage.wpengine.com\/?p=2504"},"modified":"2024-08-05T16:48:42","modified_gmt":"2024-08-05T20:48:42","slug":"product-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theforage.wpengine.com\/careers\/product-management","title":{"rendered":"What Is Product Management?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

From the coffee maker that helps you get going in the morning to the app that lets you book your next vacation, these products started as an idea. And it took someone in product management to coordinate a team to take that idea and bring the product to life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you’ve never thought about how a product goes from idea to market, now might be the best time to start. According to Glassdoor, product management is one of the 10 best jobs in the U.S.<\/a> and can help you develop interpersonal skills<\/a> that will impress many employers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what is product management?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is a Product?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Before we talk about product management, you need to know what a product is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the broadest sense, “product” is the item you’re selling. In the case of product management, the “product” is what you’re developing and overseeing. A product can be a physical good, like a phone or a shirt, or virtual, like cloud software or an online video game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most products have niches or a market segment interested in buying and using your product. Gamers will want video games and computer equipment, while students may want backpacks or cloud services for their homework. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Products also have a lifecycle. They are relevant or useful for some amount of time. At the end of that time, the product is either phased out or reinvented to extend its life and make it more useful to users.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Product Management Overview<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Product management is the oversight of a product\u2019s lifecycle. From beginning to end, the product manager<\/a> ensures the product is created on time, on budget, and functions appropriately. Nearly everything a product manager does is done with the end user in mind, making product managers the customer\u2019s voice for the product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jacob Brown, associate product manager at Atlassian, describes what he thought<\/em> product management was.<\/p>\n\n\n

I was under the impression that PMs were stuck in meetings all day and delegated most of their work to other teammates. While I certainly spend a great deal of time in meetings\u2026I’m glad to say I quickly realized my initial preconceived notions were definitely incorrect.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

Brown explains that a large part of product management is working with a “variety of roles and teams.” You aren’t responsible for building the product, but you do collaborate<\/a> with the people who design its look, feel, and operation. And while a product manager spends a fair amount of their day meeting with the team, the majority of product management is solving problems with creative solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what does the product management process<\/a> look like?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Picking the Right Idea<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The early stages of product management often include brainstorming. These ideas can come from almost anyone: client services, technical teams, even customer feedback. And what\u2019s great about a brainstorming session is that almost any and every idea is welcome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

>>MORE:<\/strong> Product Manager vs. Project Manager: What’s the Difference?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the end of a brainstorming session, you may have a lot of ideas, all of which seem fantastic. But not all of them may be achievable or possible \u2014 now, or maybe even ever. Conversely, all of the ideas may be achievable and possible, but not right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And therein lies the first task for a product manager: picking the one idea to pursue right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defining the Details<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Once the product manager has selected which idea to develop, it\u2019s up to them to define the details. At a broad level, those are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n