I view a product manager’s job as somewhat of a balancing act, in that the product manager is responsible for ensuring that their team performs while managing morale and avoiding being dismissive or demanding, as this can hinder the chemistry and performance of their team.
The product manager is responsible for connecting and coordinating design, development, and the business side of the product, but not by simply directly giving commands or delegating tasks. The author of the book mentions that the product manager is responsible for the team’s performance, but has little power relative to their responsibility. I see flexibility as an essential trait for a product manager, as the product manager’s role varies from company to company and even from week to week. The tasks a product manager is assigned often lack clear direction to begin with, and the solutions to those tasks are even more variable. The product manager must be adaptable enough to find those solutions and execute them.
I would ask the author of the book about general guidelines in terms of desirable traits and types of experience for becoming a product manager. I would also ask how, before having any experience, one should go about figuring out which archetype of bad product manager (like the Jargon Jockey or the Product Martyr) they’re most likely to fall in line with in order to avoid that situation.
