In Product Management in Practice by Matt LeMay, a product manager’s role is a strategic and tactical role. PM work is often misunderstood as just building products, but in reality it involved facilitating communication, managing expectations, and resolving conflicts among stakeholders. The role requires deep connections with business goals, technical teams, and understanding of user needs, often with not much guidance when starting out. This makes the role one where constant learning and adapting is common.
A great PM isn’t restricted to one background but their ability to problem solve and learn quickly and communicate effectively makes the role.
My questions for the author would be :
- Since the role is constantly evolving and there are “unknown unknowns” unique to each product, how should new product managers approach learning about their specific product and market in an efficient way?
- In situations where organizational culture or structure isn’t supportive of clear communication or collaboration, how can a product manager navigate that, especially early in their career?
