Question

A group of middle managers sat in a well-lit conference room overlooking the Chicago skyline. All six were impressed by the technology in the room, the furniture, and the refreshments. At 9 a.m., the meeting began, and team leader Jessica spoke first:

“We all know why we are here. Kevin, our CEO, has become convinced of the necessity of a product differentiation strategy. He thinks our conglomerate is too conventional. We go after markets in which we can compete successfully, and earn a decent profit in practically our divisions.” Team member Rob asked “So what’s wrong with being successful? What’s wrong with turning in good profits quarter after quarter, and seeing our stock price rise year by year?”

With a determined expression, Jessica said, “What’s wrong is that we are competing in traditional spaces where the competition is too intense. Kevin wants us to compete in market space that does not already exist. We should be creating a new demand, and then filling that demand. Kevin wants us to come up with some product or service differentiation, or unique, ideas that he will then consider.”

“I get it,” said Kim, “We should stay in the profitable markets our various divisions already serve. But at the same time, we should get into new markets that nobody is serving. How about making smartphones that will work during outer space travel? In a few years, we might have loads of private citizens taking trips into outer space.”

“Great sense of humor Kim,” responded Marvin, “but the demand might be too small.”

Jessica then clicked open a PowerPoint slide listing the sixty-two products and services the company already provides. She told the group, “Kevin says we should forget about these markets already being served. We have to invade new markets, maybe even create a market.

“Whoever thought 15 years ago that people would go shopping on a hand-held device while sitting in their den? Whoever thought people would pay for a package delivery service that competed with a government-backed postal service? Whoever thought people would want to read make and receive phone calls while driving in their cars, riding a bike, or sitting in a ski lift?”

Cecilia commented, “You are saying that as the product differentiation strategy team, we have to identify a multimillion dollar market space that no other company is serving right now. The world already has millions of products and services being offered. How is our humble team going to identify a market of value that does not already exist?”

Jessica said, “I don’t know how we are going to find our unique strategy. But I do know that Kevin wants our report in 30 days. We’re going to meet for four consecutive full-day sessions on Thursdays to get the job done. We probably will be communicating with each other between the meetings also.

“Let’s get to work right now.”

How realistic is it for Kevin to delegate the task of finding a product differentiation strategy to a group of middle managers? Explain your reasoning.

Answer 1

Product managers are used to wearing many hats; it’s a fundamental component of the job. When something needs to get done and there’s no clear owner, it frequently ends up in your lap. Over time, the random assortment of ownerless items can take over your work life, leaving you less time to focus on strategic product management tasks as you run down your checklist of daily, weekly or monthly to-dos.

“Oftentimes other groups will constantly ‘assign’ or defer work to the Product Manager on the team. The result is that the product manager’s task list fills up rapidly with many tasks that really shouldn’t be their responsibility,” says Kevin of The 280 Group. “We call this phenomenon ‘becoming a product janitor.’ Instead of working on the critical things that will make a big difference for your product and thinking strategically, the product manager ends up doing thankless low-level work that is not appreciated (and many times not necessary.)”

But just because you’ve been doing something doesn’t mean you should keep doing it forever. Instead, apply some product management fundamentals to your own life and figure out what’s adding value, what can be trimmed, and which product management responsibilities can be delegated to others.

The responsibility of a product manager depends on their context within an organization. Here are some examples of variables that might change a product manager's responsibilities:

• Management structure. In some cases a product manager has the mandate and influence to push their product forward as they see fit, in other cases they will be responsible for executing a vision for the product defined by management.
• Maturity of the product. In some cases a product manager will be responsible for launching a new product, in other cases they will be responsible for evolving an established one.

Given the variability of the product manager role, here's an attempt to enumerate the primary responsibilities of a product manager in a way that is true across different environments. Note that this list is more about what a product manager is required to do than what it takes for a product manager to thrive. For the latter I suggest reading answers to the question How can I learn to be an effective Product Manager?.

• Be their company's expert in the space in which the product exists. This might mean advising management that their product should be fundamentally reconsidered given the company's position in the market.
• Crystalize and articulate the vision for evolving the product and its progress toward that vision. Whether or not the product manager led the development of their product's vision, it is their job to clearly communicate the vision throughout their organization and keep stakeholders up-to-date on where the product stands in relation to that vision, its successes and failures.
• Be the translator and diplomat unifying all people in the company vested in the product. Different people within an organization, with their own unique goals, will have different desires for how the product will develop. Sometimes various people will have trouble communicating with each other (e.g., sales and engineering). The job of the product manager is to be the glue that connects and unifies all interested parties.
• Represent the customer. The product manager must be the company's expert on how people interact with their product (e.g., through user testing, surveys, analytics) and apply this knowledge in defining the product roadmap.
• Define and represent the product roadmap. The product manager owns the master list of possible changes to the product, and is responsible for representing the rationale behind prioritization.
• Own the framework of quantification. The product manager is in charge of figuring out how to measure the product's progress towards company goals and translate data into action. In some cases this entails convincing management that a metric is toxic and should be removed as a gauge of success.
• Define and launch sound iterations to the product. The product manager must synthesize all input and ideas into a concrete plan for what to actually do now. This means developing the design, defining requirements, and making tactical decisions pertaining to execution.
• Feed the overall learning of their organization. While it's tempting to say that its the product managers job to make their product succeed, some products are doomed to fail regardless of management. If a product manager is responsible for such a product, it is their responsibility to communicate their experience with the product in a manner that makes the company smarter as a whole.