AMA: Flexera Vice President Of Product Management, Sacha Dawes on Product Management Skills

Firstly, thank you for your question, and it’s one that I believe any aspiring or seasoned product manager should be asking. The fact is that regardless of your domain, both business and technical landscapes continue to change, and as a product management leader I try to stay at the forefront of changes. In terms of where to look, it really comes down to where you are in your career, and what you’re looking to get out of the training. Also, remember that not all training needs to be classroom-based. Experience from working the job itself accounts for most of the learning in the field (and typically aligns to the way your organization views and conducts product management). That said, a few thoughts depending on what you may be looking to achieve: 1. Learning the Basics. This can be helpful if you’re not new to product management or have been away for a while. A couple of good areas to look at: * University or College Courses: Universities including Kellogg, Capella, Cornell and more offer certificates in Product Management, or you might choose to take a more formal degree in an adjacent field like business, marketing, or computer science. * Online Courses and Bootcamps: Platforms like Coursera, LinkedIn, the Product Institute, Product School, and Udemy offer courses focused on Product Management. 2. Advancing your skills. We’re often asking ourselves if there is a better way to do product management. For these I’d recommend looking at: * Online Courses, especially where you can select courses covering the areas you want to brush up on, like with the Product Institute and LinkedIn. * Blogs and Podcasts. Personally, I like to try to keep up with the latest updates in the field, and to do so I read blogs or listening to podcasts from individuals I respect in the industry, like Melissa Perri (see her site with links to all her content and classes at https://melissaperri.com) and Lenny Rachitsky (see Lenny’s Podcast at https://www.youtube.com/@LennysPodcast). There are others out there but, in my opinion, those are two great leaders in the space. * Books. There are many good ones out there, but a few ones that I've read more recently include, "Working Backwards" by Colin Bryar and Bill Carr, "Escaping the Build Trap" by Melissa Perri, "Continuous Discovery Habits" by Teresa Torres, "Hacking Growth" by Sean Ellis and Morgan Brown, and both "Inspired" and "Empowered" by Marty Cagan. * Local Groups and Communities. ATX Product Happy Hour is an example of a group that gets together in Austin periodically, and you should look to your region for similar examples. Lastly, a caveat about online training and personas. There are a lot of folks out on social media, on the internet, and on professional sites like LinkedIn professing to be able to teach you product management. I would be cautious and recommend that you do your research. It doesn’t matter if they’ve worked at Microsoft, or Amazon, or have taken an online course with Harvard or similar (note a new habit where people drop a top-tier university into their profile as if they have a full degree from there, and when you look further you find they’ve only taken an online course). Net is, look at their experience or credentials, or even reviews from others, and see if they have the ‘right stuff’ for you to invest your time or even monies in.

Thank you for your question. To start, it’s important to note that product management and project management are distinct roles with different focuses and responsibilities, where: * Product Management is typically about creating and enhancing a product that addresses customer problems in a way that the customer is willing to pay for that solution. * Project Management is typically focused on delivering specific projects against constraints that can include scope, a fixed timeline and budget. There are certainly some core skills including managing projects, timelines and resources that would apply well to the product management function. However, it’s not necessarily a straight path to get into product management. If your organization has an internal product management team, I would start off with an informal conversation with a leader in that organization to understand the function, what kind of skillsets or experiences they look for, and at least express your interest in learning more. That also brings potential for consideration for future opportunities in the team, or could result in a role being created with you in mind. If you’re seeking opportunities with a new company, or if you’re on the market and actively looking, the path may be more challenging, especially if companies are looking for product managers with some experience. In this light I would recommend: 1. Build your knowledge of the product management space and skillset, such as taking an online course or certificate in product management from an online course, college or university, or similar. This will demonstrate you have a baseline of knowledge in product management. 2. Network with Product Managers, such as connecting directly through LinkedIn, via an online community, or find a local meet up. In this way you can learn more about the role, but you may also learn of upcoming opportunities that you could be referred to. 3. Find a mentor who is an experienced product manager, who can give you support and guidance to help build out your skillset, and who may be able to help find you an opportunity. 4. Look for entry-level roles such as associate product manager, or product manager positions that seek less experience. Use the job description as your guide to help understand your fit to the role or at least identify areas you need to develop. An alternative path to consider is through the Product Operations function, which of late is gathering a lot of focus and interest. Product Operations typically support product and engineering teams to ensure a smooth development and delivery of products, and is a role where your project management skills may align well. In Product Operations you would get valuable experience working with product management, product marketing, engineering and other functions, and have the opportunity to learn more about the 'who does what' in developing products, as well as help you identify and express your interest to be considered for future product management opportunities.

Thank you for your question. A lot of this comes down to the expectation of your organization for your role, but at a high level, product management roles can be seen to consist of three main areas of focus: strategic (e.g., determining how you will win in the market and the path to get there), operational (e.g., the processes and determination of how you will execute to meet current goals and achieve strategic plans), and tactical (e.g., doing discovery and writing requirements to build product). Generally junior roles (e.g., associate product manager) will consist primarily of more tactical, with a small focus on operational and strategic activities. As you progress to more senior roles, (e.g., to principal product manager, director, and beyond) you will see the focus on tactical reducing, and expectations of more operational and strategic increase. One of the biggest challenges I see in technically focused product managers who get into or seek more mid-level product management roles is the switch to becoming more strategic, where typically they also need to gain more commercial focus and understand the overall market and go-to-market requirements to see their product succeed. At this level, stakeholder engagement and management start to become even more important. For example, when selling a product that is sold to external customers, it’s imperative to work with sales and partner teams, marketing, finance, and potentially other functions so that you can get buy in and engagement to see your product or feature successfully sold. Getting into senior level product management roles switches focus even more, as then you’re looked to lead the product management organization, which may include taking on other functions (e.g., product marketing and user experience teams), setting the vision for your organization, driving and developing your team to ensure they can achieve that vision, and more. What I’ve presented above are generalities, but it’s important to note that different organizations can have wildly different expectations of product management. You can see that in the many different job descriptions and expectations for a role you may be applying for, or that you may find yourself in. It’s important therefore to understand the expectations of the role you are in or are seeking to get into, and work with your manager (or undertake in your own time) to identify and follow through on opportunities for development to strengthen areas that need more focus. In that sense, seeking a mentor inside or outside of your organization, or even joining a community, can really help get a broader perspective and get input from more who have gone through a journey like your own.

If anyone has gotten close to a complete list of must-have items for product leaders it is Amazon with their Leadership Principles (see https://www.aboutamazon.com/about-us/leadership-principles). These represent a list of 16 principles that cover a wide area of areas including communication, strategic thinking, data analysis, research, organizational management, and more. Any product leader (or product management professional) will find it challenging to be successful at all those principles, but they are a great list to aspire to achieve excellence across. In terms of what are nice-to-haves, in many cases this will depend upon your organization and what you are expected to be responsible or accountable for. For the most senior leaders, such as a Chief Product Officer or VP Products, these may come in as must haves but for less-senior product leadership roles or in larger organizations these may be carried by other functions within product teams such as product marketing, product operations, finance, legal or user experience teams: 1. Financial Acumen, in particular understanding the financial metrics and budgets to optimize product costs and profitability. 2. Sales and Marketing Strategies to maximize the messaging, positioning, pricing and promotion of the product. 3. UX/UI Design Understanding: Knowledge of user experience and user interface design principles to create user-friendly products. 4. Legal and Compliance Knowledge, including the ability to understand the potential impact of industry and governmental regulations and standards requirements on the product and the business. 5. Vendor and Partner Management, including negotiating favorable terms with vendors and partners to achieve favorable outcomes.

Firstly, I’m sorry to hear about your recent layoff and hope that you are finding or will soon find some great opportunities. That said, a huge kudos to you for looking to keep your skills up to date, which will show any prospective employer your dedication to product management, while also benefiting you in the long run. When it comes to AI/ML, there are a wide and growing number of resources available to you. It’s still a very new space, and so my guidance here would apply both to you and others who are seeking their next opportunity, as well as those currently employed. There’s just so much opportunity here, and those who do not embrace AI/ML today are going to fall behind at some point! A few suggestions: * Continuous Education. There are plenty of online courses and certifications that you can pursue, many of them free or part of a subscription or a paid service (e.g., LinkedIn) where you can enroll in AI/ML courses. You can also obtain certifications from recognized academic and industry institutions such as Stanford, Cornell, Harvard, ISACA, and many others. * Practical Experience where you could take on short-term AI/ML projects, such as through freelance or consulting efforts, or contributions to open-source AI/ML projects on platforms like GitHub. Or even undertake your own personal AI/ML projects to continue to explore tooling, developments, and improve your own skills. * Networking and Community Engagement such as joining an organization like the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI), attending AI/ML conferences and trade shows, or engage with local groups of like-minded professionals. * Staying Generally Informed by subscribing to blogs and newsletters with a focus on AI/ML or joining groups on platforms like LinkedIn and X to stay abreast of new developments. These are just a handful of suggestions, and I’m sure the community would add many more, but I wish you all the best in finding your next position!

As one who has switched back and forth between product management and product marketing, I thank you for your question! The first question I would ask you is why you wish to change to product management. Eight years in the same function is a significant investment in time, and so what is it that is driving you to go to product management? Once you have your why, resistance to your taking on a product management role is likely coming from that time you’ve spent in role to date. While I have no knowledge or experience of working at Cisco, in general the more senior you become, the more difficult it can be to switch between functions. It’s that expectation that the more senior the role then the less coaching the individual will need for that role. That said, it’s not impossible to switch, and I’ve seen many former colleagues make the transition both ways successfully. What you must do is instill confidence in the hiring manager (and their team) that you are able to do the job successfully. What may be on your side is that, while there are often distinct differences between the product management and product marketing functions, there is often overlap in certain disciplines. For example, engaging with customers, market research, development of business cases, and more. In many cases you’ve likely been exposed to, or even participated in, activities with your product management counterparts and so it’s good to think through those experiences. I would approach this in a pragmatic way, not unsimilar to any job application: 1. Understand the roles and responsibilities for your target position. I like to use the Pragmatic Framework here (see Product Management Framework | Pragmatic Institute) which is a good overview of things covering product management and product marketing. If your company has a framework they use, then I would refer to that. 2. Identify areas where you have strong competence, and list out how, when and where you could give an example of meeting the expectations of that area. For example, maybe you’re strong at market research or helped interview customers to bring problems to light. Using Amazon’s STAR mechanism is a good one to prepare your answers and ensure you can highlight these experiences. 3. Identify areas you need to develop, and go off and learn more about expectations here, whether through colleagues or a mentor. 4. Continue to learn and stay informed! If there is training available, or even a certification you can take, then taking that path shows your aptitude to learn. Listen to blogs or podcast series like Lenny’s Podcast (see https://www.youtube.com/@LennysPodcast) or Melissa Perri’s Product Thinking (see https://www.produxlabs.com/product-thinking). Or you could join a forum or local product management community, where you may even make some great connections! But the key here is learning. Finally, you may have to be honest with yourself and it may take longer than anticipated to get to where you want to be. But if you’re not successful the first time, try to get feedback as to why you weren’t successful, as this can help hone your approach. Key is that if product management is your dream, don’t give up on it!

This can be a challenging situation, which may have come about for several reasons such as where the organization may not value or understand the role of product management or may have had a previous experience that shifted the focus of the function to be more execution oriented. Here are some approaches that you might try: 1. Clarify your role, responsibilities and goals. Ideally you should meet with your manager at least once per week, and you can use this time to discuss your job description and responsibilities. Here is where you can highlight that you feel misalignment with what you’re being asked to do, and what you feel you should be doing, and you can discuss how you can focus more on product management activities. 2. Advocate for a clear product vision. Unless everyone is aligned on where the organization is trying to go, it can be difficult to get alignment across the team. This is another great topic to raise with your manager, or even the head of product management, to get their perspective and input in this area. If nothing exists, this could be a great opportunity for you to step up and create a draft vision for your leadership to review. 3. Build relationships with other stakeholder teams such as sales and marketing, to review your goals, and get a view of their goals, and discuss areas of alignment and misalignment. If you are working on a draft vision, getting others outside your immediate group is also valuable feedback. You’re all part of the same team, wanting to make the organization successful, and creating connections (and allies) with other teams will help you all work to get to common goals. 4. Prioritize and focus. This can be extremely challenging if your world is full of interruptions and conflicting priorities, but you need to focus on the activities that will help you achieve the goals you have agreed with your manager. Politely decline meetings and activities that fall outside of your area, and either delegate if possible or suggest others who may be able to take on the ask. 5. Use data to show positive outcomes. When written correctly, goals should be measurable and come with a ‘definition of done’ and the same should be applied (where possible) to show that you’ve accomplished an ask or task. Look to see how you can use data and examples as evidence that the work has been completed, and the impact of that work. 6. Continue your professional development. Staying abreast of the latest trends and best practices, along with understanding how others. approach problems such as what you’re seeing, will help you grow as a product manager or leader. It may also help you make a stronger case for your organization to focus more on product management. Change typically does not happen overnight, but it can take efforts of individuals like yourself to start to steer the ship in the right direction. I wish you success in making the desired course corrections!

It's crucial to ensure you’ve identified and engaged with stakeholders (including your own engineering team) correctly, to mitigate the risk of damaging relationships. Here are some common mistakes I’ve seen that can create friction with your stakeholders: 1. Failure to have a clear vision or strategy. Understanding the destination and how you’re going to get there is key to prioritizing your roadmap and helping explain why behind those priorities. 2. Poor Communication. A lack of communication is as bad as an inability to successfully communicate as it leaves your stakeholders unaware or confused. Ensure that you’re communicating in a clear and concise manner with different stakeholders, to ensure that they are both informed and understand the ‘what’ and ‘why’ behind your roadmap. 3. Lack of Stakeholder Input. Be sure to understand who the stakeholders you need to engage with are, and ideally before finalizing your roadmap (particularly for the near-term outcomes) get their feedback. If they want more, ask simple questions like what they would reprioritize and why, and what they are willing to not get if you were to accommodate their ask. 4. Overpromising and under-delivering: It’s important to work with your engineering team and other stakeholders involved in the delivery chain (e.g., professional services teams) to ensure that what you’re presenting can be delivered in the timeframe you’ve suggested and get into the hands of your customer. Without this you risk eroding your trustworthiness and the confidence that your stakeholders may have in you. 5. Lack of clarity on the outcomes being delivered. While features may be the focus of many conversations (particularly with technical stakeholders), it’s important to portray the outcomes and benefits that what you’re delivering will help achieve. Many roadmap slides contain short text items, and so think though what additional content (e.g., a single slide or one pager) that can help portray the details behind what’s being delivered to help convey the ‘why’, the benefit, and how this will help your stakeholders communicate that value to end customers. 6. Failure to identify or communicate risks. A roadmap is not a commitment, and yet many will view it that way. Especially for items further out on your roadmap, the confidence in those being delivered on time decreases, often because problem or solution discovery has not been completed. Acknowledge the risks and outline mitigation strategies to demonstrate thorough planning. This is not an exhaustive list, and I’m sure you could add many other items from your own experience, but they do represent common pitfalls that many run into. Good luck in getting alignment with, and buy off from, your stakeholders on your roadmap!