The term “Product” refers to goods or services being offered to consumers. Product Management is a profession that entails overseeing the development of a product for a company. As simple as it sounds, this is a very tasking profession that requires multiple skill sets.
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The Product Manager (PM) acts as the middleman between
customers and developers, thus, voicing out customers’ needs to those creating the product or service. The PM ensures that customers’ needs and market demands are met and engineering resources are provided.
To ensure effectiveness in job performance, the Product Manager must amass certain skill sets which include:
This is a skill that a PM cannot do without. This is because he or she has to keep communicating effectively with their team and keep them updated on the latest happenings in the organization. This communication is necessary for the area of product meetings, presentations, talking with clients, stakeholders, etc. about their goals and expectations, as well as writing to convey organizations’ objectives. A PM should be able to speak and write effectively.
To persuade someone to buy into an idea, you should be able to believe or support the idea, product, or service. The work of a product manager involves selling ideas to people who can make it a reality. You need to be able to convey the vision of your product in a way that brings it home to others. In being persuasive, a PM has to diplomatically handle stakeholders, clients, and developers’ interests and when there is a clash of interests, find a middle ground.
Judging by the fact that we’re in technologically advanced age, knowing certain technicalities would make your job easier. At the very least, you should know how to use the Microsoft Suite, handle data analysis, and possibly have a grasp of coding basics. These skills make you sought after.
Doing everything yourself will only encourage stress and would hinder growth and teamwork. You should be able to delegate some tasks and trust your team to handle it. This builds a bond between a PM and his/her team. People love to be carried along and are quite eager to show how much they’ve learnt when allowed. Even if you’re not used to it, you can learn how to delegate with practice. And while delegating, make sure you give detailed instructions on how it should be done, but do not micromanage.
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Being a product manager entails having people skills that would help you relate better with your team. You should be that leader who can influence your team towards achieving set goals even without positional power. To achieve this means being emotionally intelligent to analyze and manage situations or individuals.
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Analytical/Research Skills
Product Managers must be research savvy as this keeps them updated on customer needs, market opportunities, trends, and threats as well as competitor performance. This information gathered helps the PM to make better product decisions.
The PM must discover the unique selling point of the product to effectively market/ persuade people to purchase. What value does your product create? The product manager must be able to promote goods, deliver services, respond to changes in demand, develop market strategies and create pricing frameworks.
The job description of a product manager is numerous; therefore, he/she needs to get their priorities right by scheduling their day. This will help to cover all the necessary activities/tasks needed to cover. It will help you stay in control of your day, and manage stress.
Most importantly, a PM must have the desire/passion to solve user problems. This creates continuous value for customers and leads to the attainment of organizational goals.
Featured Image Source: Deccan Herald
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This article was first published on 6th November 2021
chidiogo-akaelu
Chidiogo Shalom Akaelu holds a degree in English and Literary Studies, from the University of Nigeria. She is a freelance writer, editor and founder of Loana Press, a budding online publishing outlet.
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