Product or Project Manager... and who cares.
Together with Covid came a new era—an era of many IT companies wanting to create a Product, a SaaS solution, a scale-up.
It’s hard to blame them. Money seemed to be growing on trees if you just put a paywall in front of it.
Somewhere along the way, an illusion crept in: that solving one customer’s problem meant you had solved it for many—when in reality, one customer had paid you to solve their problem.
What do we want? —A Product!
How do we do it? —We hire a PM*!
Another Project Manager? —No. A PRO-DUCT Manager.
Ok, we hope they can make a solid project plan.
(not a Prime Minister either)
Starting as a Product Lead in an IT company that has been focused almost exclusively on drafting budgets, delivering tailor-made solutions, and reporting man-days can have some drawbacks; no matter how much the CEO wants to “embark on a new journey.” In my first month, I was asked for a delivery date for a roadmap that didn’t exist yet… and I knew we had a problem.
First of all, no one, and I am saying NO ONE will know that you are not yet another Project Manager. Your roadmaps and Miro board will be frowned upon, just as you will be horrified by their BRDs and Excel sheets.
You will spend endless hours explaining to everyone the difference in approach between a custom Project and a scalable Product. You will wake up covered in sweat when management says “We found a holy grail - we have a paying customer for our scalable solution!” and you realize you have fallen down the rabbit hole of deadlines, deliveries, and 10 random buttons on the product screen. And it is not a coincidence that they remind you of an in-app escape room you must find a way out of.
If you stay long enough, deliver, die, and resurrect—the project world moves quickly so one year would suffice—you might be awarded by a sudden shift in the overall mood:
- We have decided we want to have a product—for real.
- We want to make it properly so there is going to be a Product Discovery phase.
- We will specify upfront what the MVP does,
- and iterate afterwards.
- We have learnt that Product should be more of an investment than directly matching it with cash flow.
- Would you like to lead it? You seem like a good choice.
There most probably won’t be a pat on the back, as the realization came a bit too late. But that is not the point. The point is that joining an IT project-based company that wants to scale-up as a lone Product Manager makes you feel like Frodo without Sam, Don Quijote without Sancho, Tom Sawyer without Huck. And on top of that you will probably end up in Mount Doom yourself.
But enough of the ranting, you got the picture.
I am not dogmatic in any of the Product Management or Agile frameworks, in my opinion a lot of it is common sense that first and foremost needs to work for the given company/team/product/industry. However, when it comes to Project vs. Product, there are a few problematic counterpoints that the management of the company as well as the Product Manager must be aware of. Some that come to mind:
Company expectations - the invisible work before a Product is tangible such as interviews, market research, product validation, UX… might not be understood.
Customer expectations - “I paid, I want to have it my way!”
Cash flow - the P&L for the Product won’t look great in the first year.
Technical architecture - scaling for many instead of delivering for one.
Roadmaps are not deadlines - this is crucial for clarity and future trust.
Problems to be solved ≠ “We think we need …” - blindly accepting the clients’ opinions is not going to work.
Your roles are not their roles - BAs work very differently from PMs, even though they both might write User stories at the end of the day.
UX is real now.
I know it sounds obvious, that when a company is set in processes that fit custom project work, it is impossible to turn it round just because a Product Manager arrives. But trust me, I had been blissfully unaware of the fact that these approaches are not just different - they are contradicting. And so are people’s mindsets.
Generally, it makes sense companies want to scale-up using a Product as a leverage. They have become prominent in a certain industry, developed custom solutions, but hit the wall of having to start from scratch every time a new project is on board. The company is growing, but the maintenance is not sustainable, money is tied to deadlines and it is getting harder and harder to keep the machine going.
Product (ideally SaaS) is what helps the company grow without straining all the resources.
But before that, everyone needs to do their homework. The CEO, the owner, higher management, mid-level management and even the Product Manager to research this topic thoroughly and prepare to overcome differences. It is paramount to start evangelizing (is it still a word??) people and teams in the company long before any transition starts. It will give everyone a chance to hit the ground running and will immensely help shift the mindset.
Oh, and spare a life of one Product Manager.
Books I recommend to look into when joining, or running a company that wants to bring Product-centric mindset in order to grow:
- Scaling Up (Verne Harnish) - super practical
- Product Management in Practice (Matt LeMay) - PM in simple terms
- Project to Product (Mik Kersten) - some real-life examples that help shift the mindset
- Inspired (Marty Cagan) - an evergreen classic.
You can hire a consultant who can assess the current processes in the company, explain in simple words the difference between the project-centric and product-centric values, and draft the plan of the transition.
And one last grain of wisdom:
Not every company needs to have a Product. Some work just fine on the project basis. Look out for the regulations in your industry and in different countries to see if it is worth a try to solve all the problems at once.
With love,
Zuzana
I drank 4 coffees while writing this post - support my habit by scanning the QR code/click on the link :)
- Bonus recipe - take with a pinch of salt: