Omar Eduardo Fernández

To get better at framing and articulation as a product manager, focus on being clear about the business and user problems you're solving. This approach is similar to writing a good Product Requirements Document (PRD), where you detail the problem, the target users, and the desired outcomes. It's about breaking down complex ideas into understandable parts and connecting them to real needs. For more detailed steps and examples, refer to the article on writing a PRD at How to Write a PRD. Start by ...Read More

In a nutshell: the product management function is tasked with clarifying and communicating what product investments that will help a company reach its goals, and working across teams to deliver these results. There are a lot of activities that a product manager does, but it will ultimately go back to that premise, at different levels of detail: Product Vision: articulate what the product can achieve in the long term for users, and how that will in turn achieve the company's goals. Product Roadma ...Read More

Providing feedback or managing the work of someone that doesn't report to you can be challenging, but ultimately doing that well is very similar to managing a direct report. You should: Build rapport: the person should trust that you are competent, that you understand what is important and why, and you'd only ask them to do things that are worth doing. You should care about them and not just come to them simply to "get things done for you." Ask them about their other projects and goals and share ...Read More

Make or break things when I'm interviewing a PM candidate: Clear and concise answers to my questions. If I need to ask the same question again because the candidate didn't address my question, that's a big problem. PMs need to communicate constantly with many teams, so they should always hone their ability to listen to questions, write them down, and answer those questions without being confusing or too verbose. I often ask a candidate to pick a hobby, project or anything else and explain it to ...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

One way I got promoted at a smaller startup of <200 people, and helped my colleagues do the same, was by smart teamwork and negotiation at a startup. My friend and I were working as Product Managers and felt we deserved to be Senior PMs based on what we were doing and how much we were getting paid. We compared our salaries with the market and found we should be earning $13k-15k more. So, we worked together to make a strong case for our promotion and pay raise. We prepared answers to questions ...Read More

In managing product backlogs and aligning with both executive expectations and customer needs, I've found a focused approach to be most effective. This involves two main strategies: Ongoing Lightweight Impact Assessment: As new requests and initiatives come in, I evaluate their potential impact on the business. This involves considering how an initiative will enhance the product, benefit customers, and contribute to our business goals. It's similar to using a simplified version of the RICE metho ...Read More

Depends on the stakeholders' seniority and role in the initiative, but here's a few guidelines that I use, which I outline below. However, one important GitLab cultural practice that is very helpful is that for every major initiative we have internally public channels where anyone interested in the initiative can join (the only exception are projects that must remain confidential). That way, as we make progress on the initiative anyone interested (all stakeholders and curious individuals) can jo ...Read More

GitLab is a fully remote company, we don't have any offices and have team members spread out throughout the world. The projects that my team work on are highly cross-functional. Here is what I've found to help with cross-functional alignment. Regular 1-1 check-ins with key stakeholders from other functions. I have monthly 1-1 (one to one) check-ins with key leaders from other functions that I often collaborate with. In our case as a Fulfillment team, that includes leaders between IT, Billing, Re ...Read More

The first thing that you want to do is to establish the credibility of the PM organization and earn the trust of your peers, otherwise, you risk becoming irrelevant and ignored. PMs need to lead by influence. To do this well, I'd set up a 30-60-90 day plan in which you meet a lot of leaders across the company, understand their pain points, talk to customers and understand their needs and pain points too, and then put together a proposal for how the PM organization will help solve these pain poin ...Read More