Common Errors Made by New Product Managers

The importance of the role of a product manager in ensuring that an organization survives and thrives, perhaps cannot be overstated. Yet, starting on this career trajectory can come across as daunting and challenging for most. For the very same reason, in this Product Podcast, Ahmed Shreef, a product and technology leader lists out the most common errors made by new product managers and designates ways in which these can be avoided.

The very first error that Ahmed cautions about is that new product managers, who were prior engineers or technical heads, often get too invested in the intricate details of particular, technical aspects of the product. He reminds that the role of a product manager is not to delve into every specific detail but rather one that warrants attention towards a broad range of subjects, each of which should be catered to and covered. To foster better understanding and collaboration, communication is essential. Ahmed, therefore, advises new product managers to make each of the team members write down and articulate all that they expect and aspire from their fellow counterparts. Not only will this facilitate coordination but also help combat obstacles and hurdles that might come in the way. Alongside, it is also important to listen to and involve team members in the mechanism of larger decision-making. This will help in fostering and build connections based on trust and thereby ensure better efficacy and quality of work in the long run, Ahmed affirms. Among other common errors made by new product managers and one that must be avoided is to disregard the customer experience, he states. It is only users who can credibly evaluate the efficiency of a product and therefore, their feedback should be taken into account, above everything else. Keeping this in mind, regular interaction with customers and meetings involving other departments, too, should be facilitated to critically analyze the issue underlying a particular product and the solution that can be adopted to avoid it altogether, eventually.

While paying attention to a diverse range of factors, the key takeaway of a new product manager, however, should be to develop holistic products that do not compromise on their efficacy or efficiency. Keeping these common errors made by new product managers in mind is bound to help them avoid such predicaments and aid them in embracing the new role with far more ease than most.