This document outlines the key responsibilities and challenges of a product manager. It discusses that a product manager must guide a product from inception to market while balancing the needs of various stakeholders. Some of the skills required include leadership, domain knowledge, understanding technology, and managing people. While a business analyst could potentially be a good candidate due to skills in requirements gathering and documentation, a product manager must also have commercial acumen and the ability to work with marketing. The document cautions against common mistakes like trying to please everyone or basing development solely on one client's needs.

1. Product Manager:
Being Your Own Client
24th Aug. 2013
BA Conf., Bangalore

2. Quotes
• Most products are reborn. The initial version is
almost always scrapped.
• Creating a product is hard enough, marketing it
and implementing it is a ‘totally different
ballgame’.
• As a Product Manager, one needs to have
• Reflexes of a Juggler
• Nose of a Basset Hound
• Hide of Rhinoceros

3. Outline
• What Is A Software Product
• Characteristics Of A Software Product
• What Is Software Product Management
• Product Manager Skills
• Is BA a Good Candidate for Product Manager
• Key Considerations In Product Creation
• Product Management Challenges
• Product Management Learnings

4. What Is A Software Product?

5. What Is A Software Product?
A single application or suite of applications built by
software company to be used by multiple
customers
Examples: Finacle, Oracle DB 10g, SAP ERP, MS
Office etc.

6. Characteristics Of Software Products

7. Characteristics Of Software Products
• Used by Multiple Customers
• IP is owned by the Creator
• Specific To A Domain
• Sold based on License
• Enhanced through Versions
• Go Through A Lifecycle

8. What Is Software Product Management?

9. What Is Software Product Management?
• Governing a product from its inception to the market, or
customer delivery, and service, in order to generate
highest possible value for the customer
• Delivering the right products, at the right time, to the right
markets
• The main challenge of software product management is
balancing the different and frequently conflicting wishes,
needs and priorities of sponsors, developers, marketers
and customers

10. Product Manager Skills

11. Product Manager Skills
• Understanding Architecture, Design & Tech. Choices
• Leadership
• Domain Knowledge
• Passion for Customer Delight
• Multi Tasking
• Keeping Pace with Business Environment
• Dealing with Variety of Stakeholders
• Managing and Mentoring People
• Commercial Acumen

12. BA Good Candidate For Product Manager?
• Leadership
• Domain Knowledge
• Passion for Customer Delight
• Multi Tasking
• Understanding Architecture, Design and Tech. Choices
• Keeping Pace with Business Environment
• Dealing with Variety of Stakeholders
• Managing and Mentoring People
• Commercial Acumen
"

13. Key Considerations For Product Creation

14. Key Considerations For Product Creation
• Extent of Competition
• Sustainability of USP
• Extent of Investment & Financial Viability
• Capabilities in
• People
• Process
• Technologies
• Domain
• Marketing

15. Key Product Management Challenges

16. Key Product Management Challenges
• Fulfilling ROI Expectations
• Knowledge Management
• Getting and Retaining the right kind of People
• Balancing Interests of Multiple Stakeholders
• Ensuring Product is Continuously Enhanced

17. Key Learnings As A Product Manager

18. The Do’s

19. The Do’s
• Package Features as Solutions
• Modularize Optimally
• Accept Mistakes & Know when to ‘Cut Your
Losses’
• Always keep Customer’s TOC in mind

20. The Don'ts

21. The Don'ts
• Aim to ‘Make Everyone Happy’
• ‘Chew too much’ at a time, for development
• Base Initial Dev. on Single Client Requirements
• Use Pricing as Primary Competitive Advantage

22. Questions?
Sunil Mundra
sunilrm@thoughtworks.com
Blog:
http://suniltalksagile.wordpress.com/

23. Thank You!