pcamputah may 2012 - crossing the pm chasm with john epeneter
TRANSCRIPT
The leader presents a short (20-30 minute max) informative topic, open-ended
i i d h fl question or premise and opens the floor for expansion, comment, questions and
l di igeneral discussion. But first
› Who is our timer? Call out every 10 min.› Who is going to gather surveys?
Geoffrey A. Moore & Regis McKenna
The Early Market
The Mainstream Market
Innovative High-Tech Product ?
The CHASM
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Do the job of everyone except those already defined.
General Manager, Owner, CEO of the Product
Hub (Expert or Voice) of Market and User Knowledge
Detailed responsibilities differ BUT Most believe they
drive strategy for products. Therefore, strategic product
managers: › Understand market needs › Directing product activities to meet
needsSource: Michael Ray Hopkin, Lead on Purpose PM Blogger, UPMA Presidenthttp://leadonpurposeblog.com/2008/04/14/leadership-and-product-strategy/
Geoffrey A. Moore & Regis McKenna
The Early Market
The Mainstream Market
Innovative High-Tech Product ?
The CHASM
narie
s
mat
ists
erva
tives
ptic
s
Visi
on
Prag
m
Con
se
Skep
N t ll l it i lt f th A Not small vs. large, it is culture of the company. Any company can be PM incompetent
There is a tension. It can be anywhere. Chasm can come from externalities. Chasms appear as pp
companies change. Size is just one variable. As the company figures out who they are, and move from
reactionary to proactive, chasms appear and disappear. Chasm is the difference between a Good PM and a Bad one Chasm is the difference between a Good PM and a Bad one. In a smaller company you know you are successful faster. Chasms appear when responsibility lines blur and disappear
when that becomes clear. Th ti l i i h i th t k PM The vertical axis is how serious the company takes PM.
Regardless of company, the understanding of the PM role is a key factor. And the evolution of that understanding is key to the PMs evolution.
What are phases in a companies evolution?› Knowing those phases can help a PM know
how cope, uhhh, compensate.Wh t th di h i What are the corresponding phases in product management
P h b tt ti i h t th PM › Perhaps a better question is what are the PM responsibility priorities as you cross the chasm?chasm?
The Seven Stages of Business Life› Seed: A thought or idea
St t Th id i d ti› Start-up: The idea in production› Growth: Expansion ideas competing for
resourcesresources› Established: Improvement, process maturity› Expansion: New markets & distribution
channels› Decline› Exit› Exit
A k l d t th t d th d t h Acknowledgment that you and others need to change. Get new skill sets.
Each person needs to understand their limitations, and either need to change or step aside.either need to change or step aside.
Plenty of PMs are migrating from other places (eng, support, marketing) but don’t focus on the PM craft.
You must know your methodologies both for the current h d l f th f t h company phase and also for the future phases so you can
help your company scale (and scale your influence also) PMs need to be domain experts of both technology and
human behaviorhuman behavior. Two challenges for startups and established PMs, finding
your market and then finding the product in the market.
Not everyone has the perfect company, the perfect boss, the perfect eTeam
“Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High”› www.vitalsmarts.com
Work on Me First› Choose What and If
M t M St i Di id F t f St› Master My Stories – Divide Fact from Story Master own anger, fear or pain, thoughts
Confront With Safety Confront With Safety› Mutually describe gap of what actually
happened and what expected to happenpp p pp› Listen carefully › Change view of consequences› Stay Focused and Flexible
F Focus› Leadership and self deception› Know what things are critical, know what shouldn’t be done. Let the
middle squeak and you will know which side of the fence it sits.C l b t F il R M Celebrate Failure, Ryan Money› Failures are opportunities for improvement› DON’T shoot the person who finds the failure› INTROSPECTIVE is a key attribute of PMs and evolutionary companies.
PMs Prioritize all the time. The cost of failure is the measure. Innovate around the items that have acceptable cost.› Thomas Edison had the fortitude and the cash flow to continue to fail
until he could succeed. C lti t i ti th PM th t i ti Cultivate innovation, then PM, manage that innovation
Innovators Dilemma As a PM you are asking for the bulls eye on your back. Live for it,
train for it, ,
PM is not well understood. PM is one of the most
interesting/important jobs “I believe that PM is one of the toughest, g
yet most rewarding jobs in the world…. Therefore I will do whatever it takes”
“Search others for their virtues, thyself for thy vices.” Benjamin Franklin › PM, Know thyself Know your strengths and weaknesses
i› Mutual Understanding Role(s) definition
Prioritization Prioritization› Mutual Willingness to Change› Regular and Often Review› Regular and Often Review