John De Goes’ blog

Product discovery is a crucial aspect of the product manager’s role but it is not the sole responsibility. Product discovery is just one piece of the puzzle when managing a product. In this article, we will explore the various aspects of a product manager’s responsibilities beyond discovery.

Lately, I have seen a trend in product managers focusing almost entirely on product discovery. Although this stage is crucial to the product development lifecycle, it’s not the only one. Successful product managers must organize their time to cover other areas equally significant to their products.

Ensuring the Product Meets the Audience’s Needs

One critical aspect of a product manager’s job is to ensure that the product meets the audience’s needs. This involves conducting extensive market research and user research to identify the target audience, understand their pain points, and determine the value the product can provide. By thoroughly understanding the target audience, product managers can develop a product roadmap that aligns with user needs and market opportunities.

Beyond discovery, product managers plan and prioritize product features and functionalities. They must determine which features are must-haves and which can be postponed or eliminated. This requires a deep understanding of the market, the competition, and the product’s unique selling points. Product managers must also continuously monitor user feedback and make necessary adjustments to ensure that the product continues to meet its audience’s needs.

Ensuring the Product’s Quality

Another essential aspect of a product manager’s job is product quality. This involves setting product goals and standards, measuring performance and usability, and identifying areas for improvement. Product managers work closely with engineering and design teams to identify potential issues, implement quality checks, and continuously enhance the product’s overall user experience.

Beyond the quality of the product itself, product managers must also consider the overall user experience. They need to be well-versed in user psychology and usability principles to ensure that the product is easy to use and intuitive. By prioritizing the user experience, product managers can create products that not only meet the technical requirements but also delight the users.

Assessing Market Opportunities

Product managers are responsible for identifying and assessing market opportunities. This involves monitoring industry trends and competition, identifying new market opportunities, and assessing the potential for product extensions. By staying informed about market trends and emerging technologies, product managers can navigate the competitive landscape and position the product for success.

Beyond market assessment, product managers must also consider the product’s positioning and market fit. They need to ensure that the product resonates with the target audience and that it offers a clear value proposition. This involves conducting market research, analyzing competitor products, and understanding the target audience’s needs and behaviors.

Crafting Requirements

Translating user requirements into product specifications is another significant aspect of the product manager’s role. This involves working closely with the engineering team to understand the user needs and translate them into technical requirements. Product managers must not only understand the technical requirements but also be able to communicate them clearly and concisely to the engineering team.

Furthermore, product managers must collaborate with the engineering team to refine requirements throughout the product development process. As the product evolves and new features are added, product managers must ensure that the requirements align with the overall product vision and roadmap. This requires strong communication skills and a deep understanding of technology and user needs.

Interfacing with Stakeholders and Representing Their Interests

The product manager serves as a bridge between the product development team and other stakeholders, such as customers, investors, and executives. They play a crucial role in communicating with these stakeholders and representing their interests. By gathering customer feedback, conducting research, and gathering market data, product managers provide valuable insights and recommendations.

Furthermore, product managers should champion transparency by sharing the product’s vision and roadmap with stakeholders. They need to effectively communicate the product’s goals, objectives, and upcoming features, ensuring that all stakeholders are aligned and working towards a common goal. This requires strong presentation skills, a deep understanding of the product, and the ability to anticipate and mitigate any potential conflicts or concerns.

Aligning All Teams Around the Company Strategy

Product managers are responsible for aligning all teams around the company’s strategy. This involves ensuring that everyone understands the product’s goals, objectives, and desired outcomes. Product managers collaborate with cross-functional teams, including marketing, sales, and customer support, to ensure seamless collaboration and execution.

Additionally, product managers are responsible for leading cross-functional teams to achieve desired outcomes. They need to motivate, inspire, and empower team members to work collaboratively towards a common goal. This involves fostering a positive team spirit, setting clear expectations, and providing necessary support and guidance.

Streamlining Processes to Achieve Delivery at Scale

Product managers play a crucial role in identifying areas for improvement and streamlining processes. This involves utilizing tools and frameworks to streamline the development process, reduce complexity, and increase efficiency. By constantly looking for ways to improve and automate workflows, product managers can enable the team to deliver high-quality products at a faster pace.

Additionally, product managers need to ensure that processes and tools align with the overall company strategy. They need to strike a balance between agility and scalability, prioritizing short-term wins while ensuring the long-term success of the product.

In conclusion, product discovery is an important aspect of the product manager’s job, but it is not the only responsibility. By understanding the various aspects that make up a product manager’s role, including ensuring the product meets the needs of the audience, ensuring the product’s quality, assessing market opportunities, crafting requirements, interfacing with stakeholders, and aligning all teams around the strategy, product managers can successfully manage a product throughout its lifecycle.

Building and maintaining a prioritized roadmap

In addition to all the responsibilities mentioned above, product managers need to prioritize and maintain a prioritized roadmap. This roadmap serves as a guide for the team and helps coordinate resources and efforts toward accomplishing key goals and objectives.

Product managers build a roadmap by identifying long-term and short-term initiatives, considering the product’s goals, market opportunities, and user needs. They then prioritize the initiatives based on their impact, effort, and resources required. By prioritizing correctly, product managers can ensure the team focuses on the highest-impact projects first.

Regularly reviewing the roadmap and adjusting priorities based on the changing market landscape and user feedback is also essential. This ensures that the product roadmap stays relevant and aligned with the company’s goals.

Product managers need to communicate the roadmap to all stakeholders, ensuring they understand their roles and responsibilities and are clear about their progress. Regular status updates, roadmap presentations, and strategic discussions keep the stakeholders engaged and aligned with the overall vision.

In conclusion, product discovery is one aspect of a product manager’s job, but it is crucial to recognize that their role extends far beyond discovery. By understanding the complexities of the product manager’s responsibilities, companies can harness the full potential of their product managers and drive successful product outcomes.

Conclusion

In summary, product discovery is a crucial aspect of the product manager’s role, but it is not their sole responsibility. Product managers are responsible for ensuring the successful development of products by excelling in various other aspects such as ensuring the product meets the audience’s needs, ensuring the product’s quality, assessing market opportunities, crafting requirements, interfacing with stakeholders, and aligning all teams around the strategy. By prioritizing these responsibilities, product managers can successfully drive innovation, create products that users love, and ensure the long-term success of their products.