How do you determine success metrics for a promotion for product managers? Are there any key metrics someone must meet before they qualify?

Promotion readiness varies quite a bit between companies, but I think there are some common themes that most agree on: Performing at the next level. If you're meeting expecations for your role at your current level, the chances are you'd be underacheiving at the level above. That's why most organizations would like to see sustained performance at the level above where you are now. In cases where the diffferences between levels are clearly spelled out, this would mean you can take a look at the c ...Read More

This varies by organization. Regardless of the size of your product team, you should have the expectations for each level of product well defined and socialized throughout the organization (typically APM, PM, SPM, Group or Principle PM, Director etc). Even if you are only a team of one, it helps to have these levels defined, especially if you hope to hire new team members in the future or you want to make a case for yourself down the road for a promotion. That being said, I take a number of fact ...Read More

Obviously this looks different at varying levels of tenure and experience, but key themes are: Customer focus Business impact People / relationships Customer focus speaks to if this person is able to put themselves in the shoes of the customer, whether b2b or b2c, and experience the product the way our end users do. Can they empathize with the user we are building for and their unmet needs? But this needs to tie back to results and impact. Is this person able to understand what success looks lik ...Read More

The most important criterion for a promotion is:  Are you consistently performing at a level that would allow you to meet all expectations of your next level. This requires three things: A clear articluation of what it means to perform at the next level: Typically this includes a framework with levels, skill categories (strategy, vision, execution, etc) and a description of what is expected at each level for each dimension. A role with an opportunity to perform at the next level: Often this will ...Read More