How do you approach building successful partnerships across multiple functions?

I approach cross-functional partnerships with the belief that alignment starts with clarity and trust - specifically, clarity on what success looks like for each team at the table and trust that our contributions are in pursuit of collective business-level outcomes. The first step for me is always investing the time to understand how each partner measures and quantifies success. That means getting beneath the surface of their stated goals to really understand the metrics, incentives, and priorit ...Read More

The main thing I've learned - the hard way :) - is that 'listening' is key to establishing successful partnerships across multiple partnerships. When I talk about listening here, I mean really trying to understand where the other person is coming from: What is important to the other person? Why? What are they accountable for? What are their goals? What frustrates them?  How can you help achieve their goals or remove their blockers? How do they like to work with product managers?  Listening out f ...Read More

When we say functions - we’re talking about cross-functional partners that my PMs need to work with to effectively get their job done. This includes but is not limited to design, engineering, marketing, analytics, research, content, legal, finance, program management, etc.. Establish and maintain strong organic relationships with managers of those functions. Let them know about your roadmap in advance (make sure every PM has a roadmap for their domain), and why each feature/product/enhancement m ...Read More

Product Management is centered around people and the effectiveness of a PM in cultivating relationships with others directly impacts the quality of the product. Some of the steps tactics that can help build successful relationships are: Invest time in building connections: Dedicate time to 1:1 meetings with individuals from various functions and use these meetings to establish personal connections, understand their perspectives, and foster trust and camaraderie. Foster trust and actively listen ...Read More

As all PMs are aware (or should be), cross-functional partnerships are essential for you to be successful as a Product Manager. Building great partnerships usually requires deliberate effort...it rarely just happens. Relationships are built on trust and mutual understanding; cross-functional partnerships are no exception. I invest time to understand each function's objectives, constraints, and success metrics. For Engineering, this might mean delivery velocity and technical debt management. For ...Read More

Building partnerships across functions requires: Define a compelling shared goal. Define a clear and measurable goal that all functions involved would consider important and would prioritize. To the extent possible, align them to goals that already exist for all functions, such as your overall company goals. The more alignment and excitement you get around the shared goal, the better the team that you'll be able to build and the results that you'll deliver. Build the right team. Ensure that you ...Read More