While a product manager establishes a product’s vision, goals, and business trajectory, a project manager oversees the projects that make those objectives a reality.
It’s perfectly fine. If you have no idea what a product manager does or the difference between a Product Manager and a Project Manager, read on.
Since we’re all being honest here, I’ll admit that being a product manager as a career was new to me two years ago. Who wouldn’t have questions?
Although the title sounds glorious, lovely, and gratifying, it is a difficult job. A product manager serves as a liaison between product developers and end consumers. let’s define the terms product and project.
Product managers and project managers are two types of managers. Some people confuse product manager with project manager; they are two distinct roles that, however, collaborate. We’ll go over how they differ, but first,
A project is distinct in that it is not a routine activity, but rather a specific series of actions meant to achieve a specified purpose,”. In contrast, a product is a platform, a service, or an application designed to suit customers’ needs.
Here’s a quick recap:
Product Manager
- Create roadmaps
- Define the goal.
- Defines essential product success measures.
- Understands customer requirements and communicate them to the project manager.
- Develops and implements product strategy in collaboration with other departments.
- Improve the product by conducting market research and other studies.
- Monitors the performance of new product features.
- Keeps an eye on the competition.
- Addressing the market need
- Crowdsourcing
- Implementing marketing activities
Project Manager
- Task completion and monitors
- Assign project resources.
- Establish project timelines.
- Ensure that the project is completed on time.
- Share progress.
Important Takeaways
Part of the job of a product manager entails getting to know the clients, as well as the competition and the entire market.
There is the tendency to feel like a lone wolf
An online interview was conducted with the product manager of JD Lab Miss Aisha,
How do you feel about being a product manager?
Being a Product Manager is quite exciting; being able to establish strategies and build a product from the ground up is extremely fulfilling since you are truly solving a problem while also making a difference; nevertheless, it is not an easy path to take; it may be difficult.
When producing a product, a lot of work goes into analyzing the industry, finding client needs, appropriately presenting the product, and determining a suitable plan to capture the market. It will surely keep you on your toes, but it will also allow you to explore and acquire new talents. The feeling of accomplishment that comes with successfully designing a product is indescribable.
Challenges of Product Managers
Some of the common challenges you are bound to face as a Product Manager which I have faced are:
- Team Alignment is critical for achieving optimum productivity and results. Having the correct team and aligning people to their tasks is essential. Otherwise, you risk having team members divert their attention away from what they should be doing and miss out on the wider picture, resulting in delays in expected outputs and progress
- Balancing obligations – it’s easy to become overwhelmed by the pressure to prioritize certain chores over others, which can lead to negligence. It’s critical to maintain a healthy balance and delegate more when necessary.
- Keeping up with market demand – keeping up with the frequent changes in the market can be difficult at times; you must always attempt to stay informed, which isn’t always simple.
- Market research can be difficult because you’re attempting to determine whether the market requires the product you’re giving, which can be stressful because there are so many variables to consider.
- Customer satisfaction – There are many concerns for Product Managers about obtaining customer satisfaction because it is the backbone used to assess how your consumers feel about your product, and it also aids in making judgments on what to add, improve, or completely delete.
Your Advice for Aspiring Product Managers?
Her advice for aspiring Product Managers is, that aspiring managers should have a passion for the job because when it gets tough and it certainly will and they need to remember why they got into it and what their motivation was.
They should ensure that they are mentally prepared to deal with the challenges, there is the tendency to feel like a lone wolf, but they should always remember that they are not alone and that making decisions sometimes requires autonomy.
They should be open to learning new skills as quickly as possible and learn to find a balance between delegating tasks and taking on some things alone.
