AMA: Atlassian Director of Product Management (Cloud Platform), Paresh Vakhariya on Product Management Career Path

March 28 @ 9:00AM PST

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Atlassian Director of Product Management (Cloud Platform), Paresh Vakhariya on Product Management Career Path

Top Questions

What's something that you didn't know it took to become a Director back when you were a senior product manager?

Something that you didn't know you would need to do that you only realized later.

Paresh Vakhariya

Atlassian Director of Product Management (Confluence) • March 28

Leadership levels require a broad set of skills and experience, as well as a strong commitment to leadership, team mentoring and cross-functional collaboration. A lot of time is spent in deciding the strategy/vision, seeking alignment with leadership and cross-functional stakeholders. Once stra......Read More

1161 Views

1 request

What are the different types of product managers, and how do you figure out which type you're the best fit for?

Paresh Vakhariya

Atlassian Director of Product Management (Confluence) • March 28

Some key types I have encountered are: 1. UX/UI product managers: These product managers are responsible for the user experience and user interface of a product. 2. Platform product managers: These product managers focus on building and managing platforms that enable other products or......Read More

1066 Views

1 request

How do the skills you need differ across the different levels of product management?

Paresh Vakhariya

Atlassian Director of Product Management (Confluence) • March 28

For a PM or Sr. PM, the skills needed are: * Strategic thinking and ability to develop product roadmaps that align with company goals * Deep understanding of customer/user issues and product development processes * Strong communication and leadership skills to lead cross-functional teams ......Read More

1016 Views

1 request

As a hiring manager, what do the best product management candidates have in common?

Paresh Vakhariya

Atlassian Director of Product Management (Confluence) • March 28

The best PM's have: - Strong leadership and communication skills. To be able to talk to customers, stakeholders, and leadership with the right context. They are good at leading teams with ambiguous problems and helping them arrive at a decision quickly - Strategy and Vision: the ability to defi......Read More

1010 Views

1 request

What do you think is top 3 skills a PM should have acquired to move to director level?

Paresh Vakhariya

Atlassian Director of Product Management (Confluence) • March 28

The 3 top areas I think are: Leadership and team management Managing a team of product managers, as well as collaborating with cross-functional teams across the organization is key. Provide feedback on all aspects of strategy and execution is key to becoming a leader. Hiring and onboarding PM......Read More

978 Views

1 request

How to make a career change to PM?

Any tips, strategy, success stories?

Paresh Vakhariya

Atlassian Director of Product Management (Confluence) • March 28

It can be challenging to break into PM space but here are a few tips: 1. Switch roles to PM within your current organization: this is the best path as you already have a good understanding of your company, product, customers, metrics and stakeholders. Find a team that will offer you this career ......Read More

1038 Views

1 request

How do you get into a saas based company if you have no experience working in one and what are some of the core competencies you need when you are starting out?

Paresh Vakhariya

Atlassian Director of Product Management (Confluence) • March 28

Some key tips are: - Research the industry: what are the specific areas within SAAS you are most interested in? Follow newsletters, influencers and publications/conferences. Network with relevant leaders. - Start a side hustle that showcases your skills. I build a mobile app from scratch to gai......Read More

927 Views

1 request

What real world experience and skillset do your product org look for in potential candidates?

Paresh Vakhariya

Atlassian Director of Product Management (Confluence) • March 28

- Soft skills such as communication, teamwork, adaptability, and a willingness to learn are also important for any product organization. - Work with Engineering on a day to day basis to help build a product by clarifying requirements (which are gathered from various data sources) - Additionally......Read More

1252 Views

1 request