Why Product Management?

Why Product Management? The question sounds like it only requires a straightforward answer. Some may be able to give a response outright but you may want to give your answer some thought. 

The answer you provide will represent your purpose in becoming a Product Manager (PM). If you know what your professional purpose is, it could provide clarity for your career choices and infuse your work with passion.

If you’re an aspiring Product Manager or a professional who would want to shift to Product Management, this article will guide you in determining your answer to: “Why Product Management?”

Understanding a Product Manager’s Responsibilities

Product Management is the process of planning, developing, launching, and managing a product or service – this is according to Wikipedia. As a Product Manager, you will be in charge of this entire process.

The definition of Product Management might be consistent but the specific tasks and responsibilities of a PM will vary depending on the product and the company. Even if two companies are in the same field and have the same market, the responsibilities of a PM will be different.

There are, however, core similarities in all PMs’ responsibilities:

• Balances the goals and needs of different sides of the organization.
• “CEO” of the product who oversees and is in charge of every step of the product lifecycle.
• Addresses both major and minor issues in product development.
• Manages and coordinates communications between different parts of the organization.
• Understands and represents the users’ needs.
• Leads and motivates teams to work more efficiently

→ Read: The Responsibilities of a Product Manager

If you translate these responsibilities to daily tasks, a typical day for a PM could look like this:

• Meet With Stakeholders
• Connect With Engineering
• Meet With Product Design
• Meet With Users
• Competitor Review
• Health Metrics Review
• Review Product or Future Release Plans
• Quality Assurance (QA) Testing
• Meet With Your Product Manager Peers
• Job Interview Tasks
• Communicating With Others 

Of course, we need to remember that Product Management is dynamic so no two days are the same when you are a PM. There’s always something to do. 

Although this is just a loose outline of what a typical day could be like, it’ll give you a realistic idea of the kind of tasks a PM tackles. To learn more about a PM’s typical day, read “The Typical Day of a Product Manager.”

Product Managers are unique because their responsibilities are very comprehensive. There’s no other role in the industry like that of a Product Manager.

Why Do Companies Need Product Managers?

Now that you know what the roles and responsibilities are, it’s necessary to take a look at why it’s a job that’s vital to a company’s success. Understanding this allows you to get a better grasp of your purpose within a company and as a PM.

Takes a Market-Drive Approach

It is one of the responsibilities of a PM to research and understand the market. The data learned and collected from this endeavor should be used to help companies develop or improve products that meet the need and goals of the consumer.

If done right, the market-driven approach could result in a sustainable and profitable business since its focal point is solving market problems without excluding innovation.

Helps a Business Reach its Goals Quicker

A Product Manager is in charge of the prioritization of tasks. He or she decides what’s worth doing and what’s not. Because of this function, a company can reach its goals more efficiently. In line with the first reason why companies need PMs, there’s more time to be spent on developing products that have been validated by market data. 

Is Extra Help for the Team

In most cases, a company might hire a PM because of the following:

• Shipping has slowed down because of poor communication between teams and mismatched priorities.
• The solutions being developed don’t work. No one had the time to analyze and study the needs of the market.
• The team doesn’t have a good grasp of why a particular product is being developed.
• Knowing what to build next is a struggle.

A Product Manager would need to step in to address all of the problems listed.  

Not all companies with products or services have a Product Manager within their organization. While that could work for some time, a growing organization will eventually reach a point where scaling may be difficult. The circumstances of the difficulty have to be studied, of course, but hiring a Product Manager may just be the token needed to push the company to the next level.

How to Become a Great Product Manager

Now that you know what a PM does, what his or her day may look like, and why a PM is so important to a company, let’s talk about how to become a great Product Manager to further fuel your purpose for entering Product Management.

There is no one-size-fits-all step-by-step guide to becoming a great PM but there are primary factors that will bring you one step closer:

Work on Your Core Competencies

A Product Manager’s core competencies revolve around his or her responsibilities. An example of a PM’s core competencies can include:

• Running product development sprints
• Feature prioritization and roadmap planning
• Defining and tracking success metrics

These core competencies can be developed on the job or even before you take on the role. You can get it through experience, mentoring, and following the practices of good role models. Additionally, a great PM will continually sharpen his or her skills over the years. 

Work on Your Emotional Intelligence (EQ)

Your EQ will be very useful in Product Management. When you use your EQ to your advantage, you will likely have strong relationships within the organization. You will also likely have the ability to empathize with your customers which is one of the major keys to developing a useful product. Lastly, using your EQ on the job enables you to navigate through internal and external challenges.

So how do you sharpen or improve your EQ? There are a few ways:

1. Always do a self-evaluation.
2. Observe how you react to people and stressful situations.
3. Be aware of your work environment. Observe it.
4. Take responsibility for your actions.
5. Look into how your actions affect others.

There are so many books that you can refer to so you can learn how to improve your emotional intelligence. You may also want to check out “6 Soft Skills Every Product Manager Needs” to know other soft skills you would need to become a great PM.

Choose a Company Where You Can Grow

Choosing the right company is vital to your success as a Product Manager. You may have the core competencies and the soft skills to boot but applying both to the company that’s right for you will be the key to your success.

→ Read: How to Become a Product Manager

Is this the Right Career for You?

Working in Product Management can be both fulfilling and exciting. You help solve others’ problems, and no two days are the same. It’s a very engaging type of work that will keep you on your toes.

It can be challenging and unglamorous but there’s always the thought of developing a product that can potentially help millions of people. When the product hits it off, then you will find joy in the thought that you have just positively affected the lives of all the users of the product or feature you created.

Whether or not it is the right career choice for you is up to your consideration. If you have the three primary factors mentioned earlier (core competencies, high EQ, and the right company) in mind, then you might just be the right fit. 

If you’re determined to get into Product Management, all the more important to know the answer to “Why Product Management?”

Bonus: “Why Product Management?” in Product Manager Interviews

Lastly, did you know that this question can be asked during Product Manager Interviews? Typically, PMs don’t put a lot of effort into practicing or verbalizing their “why” so when the question sneaks up during an interview it catches them off-guard. It could be a question that could affect the outcome. 

Unlike finding the purpose for your PM career, the why question asked during an interview aims to get to know how your experience translates to the role you’re applying for and if you’re the right fit for the company.

What you DON’T want to do is give a very generic answer like:

• “I want to become a Product Manager because I am passionate about working with different teams.”
• “I have experience interacting with customers. This allows me to relate to them effectively.”
• “I believe that I can contribute to the company because I do have previous experience managing a product.”

While these answers may seem adequate, the problem with them is that they don’t allow a candidate to stand out. There may be plenty of companies that are hiring PMs but, at the same time, there are also a lot of experienced and newbie candidates that are applying for the same position.

What you need is an answer that can communicate your possible contribution to the company, experience, and potential with an answer like:

“I would like to become a Product Manager because I am passionate about identifying customer pain points and solving them using innovative ways. In my previous work, it was a joy for me to relate to the customers, helping them find the right software solutions for their business.

I would like to take this experience and translate it to developing a product which is truly helpful to users.”

The difference between the answers is that the second one has a personal touch. They make you stand out and unforgettable. Put your own story to your answer and make it unique to you. Mix it in with the right keywords and with your specific transferable skills.

Preparing for Your Product Manager Interview

If you’re preparing for your upcoming Product Manager interview, you may want to check out specific sections on the PM Exercises website. We’ve put together a Product Manager Interview Course along with 2000+ Product Manager Interview Questions with sample answers from our PM community. 

After you sign up and become part of the community, you can contribute questions and answers to the database, and have other members give you feedback.

With our prep course and database of questions, we also have a Practice feature where you can find other product managers who are also prepping for their interviews to practice with.

Final Thoughts

Answering the question, “Why Product Management?” is most likely going to be easier for you at this point. By now you know that breaking into Product Management and becoming a PM is fulfilling but having a solid idea of what your purpose is for breaking into Product Management will guide you to make better career decisions.

It’s also a question that can be asked when going through a PM job interview so as early as now, it’s something that you need to figure out. 

FAQ

Why do you want to be in Product Management?

Each has his or her reason to become a PM. If you’re someone who likes helping people and is into creative thinking and problem solving, Product Management may be the right career for you. On the job, you get to solve problems for people through technology or in a creative way. It might be a career that will make you feel professionally fulfilled.

What is the best thing about Product Management?

A lot of people say that Product Management is a career for passionate people. Those who are passionate about technology, innovation, solving others’ problems, and capturing a market can fit into the Product Manager role. The best parts vary for different people but they commonly share one goal which is to provide solutions to the problems of others.

Why does Product Management matter?

Basically, Product Management is important because it’s a practice that helps companies create products that work and solve problems. Having a great product means more revenue for the business and better customer satisfaction. It also allows the company to reach its business goals.