Product Management in Practice by Matt LeMay emphasizes a lot one how product management in practice is different from what it is in theory. Basically, yes, product management is about managing a product, but not as much as managing people. Product managers are the glue of people with different interests in one product. The CEO, users, designers, and developers may all have vastly different visions for what a product should be like. The product manager has to find a path to make sure everyone is happy, at least not hating it. Product managers need to proactively seek the goal of the product, finding the right people to ask and doing the right tests. There is a lot of ambiguity around this job.
The most challenging part of being a product manager, is that there is no clear answer for what is a good product manager. Lemay classified several bad product manager profiles in his book, such as the Jargon Jockey, who communicates poorly, and Overachiever, who do a lot of work without a clear goal. However, it is difficult to have a good product manager’s profile. Every different product team and company will need a different product manager to thrive. The needs are so diverse. That leaves me thinking, what is rewarding about being a product manager? They need to switch gears and accommodate to new people every time when the team changes or they go to a different company. This is such a difficult job. Why do people want it?
