I thought it would be interesting to take a look at how different industries view the role of a Product Manager. I think there are a lot of different angles on what PMs do in a day-to-day role. Wikipedia defines Product Management as:
a function within a company dealing with the day-to-day management and welfare of a product or family of products at all stages of the product lifecycle.
It makes sense for me to start in my own industry – computer distribution. If I had to sum up my role, it would be that I am a business owner. Within North America I handle six different vendors (in the AIDC space mostly), and I try to run them as if each were a small business of which I am president and CEO. The following list represents my normal involvement (and I’m sure I’ve missed some too):
- evaluate new products and manufacturers and determine if they fit our market(s)
- negotiate terms of the contract
- work together with the potential partner and implement a successful marketing plan to launch the product
- ensure the product(s) and/ or manufacturer gets press externally as well as with internal teams and customers (part of marketing)
- train sales on how to differentiate the vendor’s products, how to sell, etc.
- continually work with the buying team to ensure inventory is adequate for normal business and growth curves (forecasting very important)
- responsible for profitability of each vendor (manufacturer)
In a manufacturing environment, I would have to assume that all of these above points fit, as well as adding the folowing, as here the Product Manager is tasked with bringing a new product to market, or developing a "Gen 2", etc:
- defining a new product (product development)
- turning features into specs
- considering the life cycle of the product
There is always some crossover I find in product management…the above duties are a great general guideline, but there are time when I’m a sales champion helping a rep come up with a solution. Some days (especially like now close to a month-end) I am the buyer’s assistant – helping get shipment info and ETAs from our vendors. Some days I feel like I am doing what I was meant to do – look down the road; predict what the next big product is going to be in our technology space.
I’d love to hear what other PMs do from other companies and industries…what are your obstacles and pressure points?
Tags: product management, role, business owner, product development
