Perhaps you've been thinking lately about changing careers, and maybe you have your eye on being a product manager (PM). From the outside, it looks glamorous. They are right in the middle of every meeting, and seem to have a lot of influence. They are independent and making all the decisions. When you look it up online, the pay looks good.
So, you decide to give it a try. But how? When you look at job openings, they all expect 3 or 5 or even more years of experience. Even internally, your current company has precious few posted opportunities in product. What's an aspiring PM to do?
Quick disclaimer time here: Product management looks different at every company. This is why it's such an exciting career as well as why it's so frustrating - the business community is still figuring out what it even is. I am going to be a little vague in places in this post, because I don't know exactly what type of company you want to work for or how they operate.
How should they operate? Well, I have pretty strong opinions about that! I'm going to write one or more posts on it in the future, so for now just read Inspired by Marty Cagan.
Start by learning what PMs actually do
There is a lot of misunderstanding of what PMs do. I've had more than one person try to make the argument to me that they should move into product because they've been talking to clients for a while now and gathering a list of things the clients want, so they are practically PMs already.
No. This is not product management. This is "order taking" or a "feature factory," as Marty Cagan likes to call it. Or, at least it's not what product management should be (see disclaimer above).
The first step is really knowing what the job entails:
Read books
Follow product blogs
Watch videos
Talk to PMs and ask them what they do on a day-to-day basis
Consider one of the certification programs; they probably won't help you get a job by themselves but they will at least bring you up to speed on what the job looks like
Read job postings and see what they are listing as responsibilities
Get a really realistic view of the product management discipline and see if you are still interested. Make sure you understand not just the exciting parts, but also the parts where you roll up your sleeves and really get the work done. Check out my Inspiration section for resources to get you started.
Do a self-evaluation
In my experience, there are a few personality traits which the happiest and most successful PMs all seem to have in common. While I won't say that you should give up on your dreams of being a PM if you don't have all of these traits, I will go on record to say that if these aren't your strengths, you should do some serious self-reflection to make sure that you REALLY want to pursue this career.
Key traits for PMs, in no particular order:
Empathy - you easily pick up the vibes in a room and understand people's pain
Curiosity - you are always asking "why"
Creativity - you will need clever solutions for insidious problems
A love of learning - you never stop trying to improve yourself
Independence - you do your best work when you are autonomous; micromanagers kill something deep inside you
A team player - while independence is important, so is being collaborative
Flexibility / adaptability - things are constantly changing for PMs so make sure that you can adjust quickly
Assertiveness - be comfortable speaking up no matter who is in the room so you can present and defend your ideas
Resilience - you will hit a lot of roadblocks, so be prepared to keep pushing
A desire to make a meaningful impact - you want to change the world for the better
Make your move
Some very large companies have actual training programs for associate product managers. While I have never participated in one, I've heard mostly good things about them from people who have been through them. Consider trying to apply for one, but understand that you are likely going to need to be in-office (as opposed to remote or even hybrid) and you may very well take a pay cut. Also, hundreds of people apply to every open position, so this is probably a long shot.
You can also take the route of simply applying for PM positions for which you aren't qualified, and hope for the best. Be sure to emphasize what experience you already have in other fields. For example, if you have been in engineering, be sure to research how other engineers have made the leap and what advantages they can bring to the table. Make sure you know the PM jargon, and tailor your resume for those skills and keywords (obviously, be honest; I'm not recommending anyone lie on their resume!) This is also a long shot.
Most PMs, though, make the jump to product within their existing company:
Make sure you know your company's products backwards and forwards
If an opportunity comes up that will give you an "in" with the product team or that would give you some additional experience, volunteer to take it
Find a mentor in product leadership who can guide you to achieving your career goals
Strongly consider writing a proposal for an existing pain point in one of the current products as a sample of your work
Then, try applying for an internal product position; if you don't get it, schedule time for a follow-up with one of the decision makers so you can learn from the experience and be better prepared to try again next time
Alternately, create a product team
If you are in the very lucky position of being at a company that doesn't currently have product managers but needs them, who better to lead than charge than you? Put together a very short proposal about the benefits of product management and take it to your supervisor (and to folks above them, if your company culture allows for it). Show them what they are missing out on, and how you can help bridge them to this new way of operating. The reality is that most of the PMs I've known (including myself) "drifted" into product because there was a gap in the company or a need to be filled, so they stepped in.
My prediction is that over the next decade product will start becoming a more established career path, and we will see a shift toward product-focused business degrees from colleges and more entry-level positions for people to break into the field. Until that happens, though, you are going to have to continue to make opportunities for yourself and be your own best advocate. Consider yourself as "the product" and figure out how to make yourself so appealing that someone has to give you a shot.
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