Different avatars of a Product Manager

Pinkesh Shah
January 4, 2020

July 2019 – As part of the plan to cut 18,000 jobs across the world, Deutsche Bank laid off several employees from its Bangalore office. Nov 2019 – Infosys shared a plan of letting go of 10% of the workforce which mainly consisted of senior managers. Nov 2019 – Cognizant deferred payment hikes to mid to senior executives These news items paint a somewhat bleak picture for management executives in IT companies. Declining profits and pressures of cost-cutting lead companies to take some stringent steps. Companies are laying off employees. Managers are asked to take up increased responsibilities. Automation leads to having smaller teams to manage which means the number of managers required is less. In the age of economic slowdown, mergers, etc. the opportunities for mid-level executives are becoming fewer. So how do mid-career professionals like managers stay relevant?

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

These adverse times also offer opportunities. There is a demand in the IT industry for professionals skilled in newer technologies. Managers can take advantage by keeping pace with automation and changing skill requirements in various industries by reskilling and upskilling themselves –

ICPM FLEX program

Reskill As managers, expand skill sets and competencies to stay ahead in the employment market. Learn to use new technologies, new methodologies and tools, and applications that are popular. Equip yourself with relevant certifications that will make you more valuable to employers. Upskill Managers should treat changes in the industry as an opportunity. Be ready to move out of your comfort zones to take advantage of the newer opportunities. Learn new skills and additional skills related to the job to be suitable for bigger responsibilities, better roles, and salary hikes. Managers have to re-skill and upskill themselves to be seen as valuable assets for employers. There are institutions that help you take charge of your career by providing relevant courses – The Institute of Product Leadership in partnership with Bauer College of Business, University of Houston offers the certification International Certification In Product Management – FLEX. It is a 20-week course that will arm you with a broader perspective on product management and marketing and with critical tools to be an impactful product manager. The highlights of the program are – Comprehensive Curriculum – The course is designed and delivered by senior practitioners for practitioners and accredited by AIPMM, USA. It is designed to get a step by step understanding of the entire product development lifecycle. It is an interactive course so that students find it interesting and learn by doing, rather than just reading and listening. Industry Exposure – Our learners get to work on their product idea under the guidance of industry experts. Coaches and Mentors from the industry – The faculty for this course are industry experts who have rich experience and understand real-time trends in Product Management Placement Cell We have a wide and relevant network in the industry. Our placement cell provides many opportunities to propel our learners’ career in the product industry. Money-back guarantee – If the learner is not placed within a suitable time frame, we will refund money based on certain conditions. You can get more information about the course here. Get to know more about the course from IPL leaders and representatives of Bauer College of Business It is important to understand how effective a course is and its ROI. Let us look at some product managers and their perspective on the FLEX program – Aadarsh Ranjan feels that the ROI of the course was highly effective as in a short span of time, he was able to upskill himself to get ahead in his career. Sukhendu Deb Roy, Manager Technology Business Incubator from the Indian Institute of Science(IISc), feels the course helped him to transition from the role of a design engineer to a role in product management & Entrepreneurship.

Multiple roles of a Product Manager

The Product Manager has a dynamic role. He has to don many avatars at different times during his course of work.

It is not enough for a product manager to know the product, manage the team’s timesheets or meet up with clients and give status reports. He has to understand the requirements, the product, and his team. He has to play many roles –

As a customer point of contact, be empathetic to customers’ pain points and issues. Understand the requirements and configure a solution that fulfils all business needs.

As a delivery manager, delivering the right solution keeping in mind various factors – technology, business processes, time, budget, effort, and quality.

As a product architect, design a solution that satisfies and delights the customer and at the same time is a realistic product. Work on the product continuously for improvements and changes in the market.

As a manager, communicate with the team and guide them into building a product as envisioned.

As a product owner, collaborate and have a mutually respectful relationship with all stakeholders so that they contribute to the success of the product.

How does our certification make you a better product manager

Our program enables you to wear the many hats of a product manager with ease and fulfil your responsibilities successfully.

The syllabus teaches relevant skills and concepts such as User Research, Prototyping, Business Model Canvas, UI/Ux Design, Design Thinking, User Story Mapping, Product Deployment, GTM Strategy, Digital Marketing, and Sales Enablement. Students learn about the entire product development lifecycle.
Learners get a chance to practically apply these concepts by implementation through hackathons and projects.
Students get one month to dream up and work on an idea. They will be guided by industry experts. Their idea will be evaluated by an external jury from the industry.
The course prepares students to be suitable for a plethora of job opportunities such as Product Analyst, Associate Product Manager, Product Marketing Manager, Product Designer, Product Owners, Technical Product Manager, Senior Product Managers, etc. Our career management cell offers profile building sessions and mock interviews so that the candidate is ready for the industry.

Product Management in India

The product management role is going through a significant transformation. Many companies want to hire product managers in India who will be able to decide what products to build and how these products will evolve in markets across the world. The industry wants product managers who have an understanding of technology, can focus on maximizing business metrics and at the same time are customer-centric. Entrepreneurs seek resources who have an amalgam of skills related to product management rather than hiring multiple people having different skills. Product management is an attractive career proposition. Anirban Das, Head of Product at Dunzo predicts that business leaders of tomorrow will require product and technology skills apart from business skills. Therefore product managers have more potential to move into leadership roles considering their scope of work. Technological developments in 5G, AR/VR, cloud-based gaming and AI have the potential to provide great experiences to customers which means more scope to build technology products. Product management has evolved significantly and will continue to be an attractive career path and one can bring acceleration and transition in their career path by nurturing product management skills and have started to nurture their product management skills.