How to Be Successful as a Non-Technical Product Manager
There seems to be a strong bias in many large companies toward assessing a product manager’s ability to perform based as much (if not more) on their technical ability, background, and knowledge as their real-world, market, and user experience. To me, this is an entirely backward way of approaching the problem, as the entire purpose of having a strong product manager is not to provide an additional technical resource to determine the “how”, but to provide a strong and knowledgeable resource that can accurately describe the “what” and the “why” of the problems that your product should be solving.
This means that someone who brings a lot of knowledge and ability to the table, but who lacks certain “check the box” background skills in the technical realm may be at a disadvantage. Here are some tips and tricks that someone coming from a non-technical background can use to excel as a Product Manager in nearly any company.
Filed Under: Product Management Tagged With: PM, Problem Solving, Roles
Better Brainstorming – A Framework for Success
But that’s not to say that it can’t be done, and that there aren’t proven and reliable ways to create an engaging and productive brainstorming session. Through my work as a Product Manager and Product Owner, I’ve worked with teams who fully embraced the principles of Agile development — and, surprisingly enough, there’s a lot of commonality to be found in empowering a team to be self-directed and working with stakeholders to brainstorm new ideas. To wit, I provide you with the following framework for effective and productive brainstorming sessions.
Filed Under: Best Practices Tagged With: Brainstorming, Facilitation, Problem Solving