Friends,
In this edition we try to answer one of the most basic questions about Product Management, which is where do I start if I am new in the field or want to learn about it. I’ve been getting a lot of folks asking that question as of late, whether its on the product management subreddit or colleagues and friends looking for a change in career.
Q: I’m applying for an associate product management program, where should I start in Product Management?
Great question and while this answer will evolve over time, I would attack it in the following manner:
- Understand what product management is
- Get an idea of what good product management looks like
- Follow people and resources that will help
Point 1: Let’s start with the definition of product management. And thanks to Mario Lenz and his most excellent learning resource, we have the following statements to help us define it.
What we all think at first:
As Product Managers, it is our core responsibility to build winning products that deliver great value to customers.
But Marty Cagan really nails it with:
As Product Managers, our job is to build products that our customers love, yet work for our business.
The intersection between customer love and works for your business is the key. And in case its not clear, here is a graphic to help illustrate what life without a good product manager means
