What to Look For When Choosing a Product Manager?

Constantin Macri 17/05/2023 | 02:52

The main goal in the development of any product is its entry into the market, meeting the needs of the consumer, and achieving the required financial benefits. The product manager is responsible for achieving these goals. The product manager has a strategic position in the mobile app team, as he takes part in product development, increasing the company’s sales and revenue. In this article, you will learn what to look for when choosing a product manager for a team.

 

Who Is a Product Manager?

A product manager is an employee who is responsible for creating a new product or modifying an existing one within IT. In different companies, approaches differ: someone refers it to the R&D division and someone to marketing. The difference doesn’t really matter, as the key tasks are similar. During development, launching and supporting the solution, the manager interacts with different departments.

What Are the Main Tasks of a Product Manager?

Depending on the area of business and the market in which the product is created, the tasks of a product manager may change, so we will list the main ones, breaking them down into stages.

Stage 1 (IT product development):

  1. Determine the business goals of the product.
  2. Form a cross-functional project team, define, and designate roles, tasks, and responsibilities.
  3. Conduct market analysis, study competitors, and market trends, and, if necessary, conduct a “problem interview”, and form hypotheses and value propositions for product positioning.
  4. Together with the mobile app project team, determine the understanding and vision for product development.
  5. Create product prototypes ( MVP).

Stage 2 (testing and improvement of the IT product):

  1. Conduct product testing (as well as decision-making interviews) on real sales and consumers.
  2. Improve the product and product concept.
  3. Plan and update the content, and product strategy for the development and promotion of the product.
  4. Prepare the product for launch.
  5. Launch product.

Stage 3 (promotion and support of the product):

  1. Increase the volume of the audience of the product.
  2. Regularly conduct product analytics.

What Soft Skills Should a Product Manager Have?

Each profession requires special skills that allow people to succeed, especially when working in a team. Let’s look at a few skills that play an important role in the work of a product manager.

  1. Persistence. Thanks to this feature, the product manager, despite the obstacles on the way, is able to complete the work begun and achieve the goals and objectives. The product manager works in the project team, so this quality extends to monitoring the performance of other team members.
  2. Responsibility. The product manager takes on the courage and responsibility for the result because he is convinced that everything that happens depends primarily on himself, and not on external circumstances. Moreover, he demands the same from the project team. This may be the cause of conflicts and misunderstandings because not all people have the same responsibility and perseverance in achieving the goal.
  3. Curiosity (creativity). This is a feature that is important for any marketer, and especially for a product manager because he is at the forefront of creating and maintaining new products in the company. This quality characterizes the product manager as a creative person looking for new approaches, ready to offer non-standard ideas and solutions that contribute to the development of the company and the solution to its problems.
  4. Empathy. The product manager tries to avoid conflicts and resolve everything peacefully, and also generally perceives other people more positively, and feels them more in close interaction.
  5. Artistry. Thanks to this skill, the product manager feels and understands how to behave in order to please others and achieve his goal in communicating with them. He can play different roles, so he reduces the number of conflicts with the project team and other departments, bypasses sharp corners, and can use work manipulation to achieve project goals and his work goals.
  6. Dominance. The product manager needs this skill to lobby for product interests, team interests, and changes in the company, as well as team management.

What Professional Skills Should a Product Manager Have?

Soft skills are not enough to properly bring the product to market. Among the professional skills needed by a product manager:

  1. Strategic thinking. This is the ability to see the product in advance, the ability to imagine, describe it, and form requirements for it based on consumer research and the future values that the product will bring to them. The product manager assesses the risks in advance and minimizes them. This is the ability to notice trends and act in accordance with them, determine the sequence of actions, and prioritize.
  2. Agile project management. Knowledge of the Agile philosophy makes it possible to quickly respond to changes in the market and in marketing.
  3. Time management. This is the ability to effectively plan and distribute tasks for yourself and the mobile application team.
  4. Launch of new products. This is the ability to lead the product through the stages of its development, master the methods of testing, and consumer research, as well as the ability to correct the actions of cross-functional teams working with the product.
  5. Financial knowledge. Possession of financial methods of calculation for new projects, and methods of creating conditions for clients (calculation of profit, compensation, discounts). Basic knowledge of financial reporting, the ability to monitor costs, and ensure the financial stability of projects.

What is The Difference Between a Product Manager And a Project Manager?

Product managers and project managers often work on the same team. The first one sets the task, the second is responsible for a detailed plan for solving it and obtaining the result. So, the product manager develops a general strategy for the development and promotion of the product. It breaks down the process into steps. The project manager is responsible for the execution of the project assigned to him.

Final Thoughts

When developing a mobile application or any other product, the participation of a product manager is mandatory. This person is responsible for achieving the team’s goals for developing the solution. If you are looking for an efficient team that will fulfill your vision exactly, we recommend Perpetio. The company develops solutions for iOS and Android devices, and will also help you create a hybrid product that matches these two operating systems.

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