What kind of products do product leaders build?
As I mentor young and experienced product managers and young product leaders, one constant theme that emerges is some variant of the question — how much ‘building’ is expected of me.
While I can answer this like a true PM, with a bunch of questions, seeking data and the obvious “it depends”, more and more of my peer group agrees that product leadership is a tricky space when it comes to actually building products.
Of course, the answer varies a lot based on the size of company, nature of business, nature of product market fit, etc. But just like any leadership-role, you offer a vision, gather the right team to execute it, while you only play an enabler role.
What does enablement look like, you ask?
Well, as a PM leader, I think of PM enablement in terms of products / artefacts (things that can help their consumers get value).
As you grow up the product management food chain, the kind of things you create change. You have to start creating more:
- Org-design
- Vision
- Processes
- Operating Plans
- Feedbacks & Reviews
- Strategy
- Customer Notes
- Funding Proposals
- Executive Reviews & Updates
- Team Performance Docs, Appreciation Notes, etc.
- Training Plans
- Checklists
- The occasional 0 to 1 product spec / PR
This is obviously not intended to be an exhaustive list, but trust it communicates the point (and of course, each of these deserves a chapter or two of their own).
The overarching message I have for all budding / young product leads — “Curb your enthusiasm to build products yourselves. Most folks do it because they feel irrelevant when not building. You have a role to build, just a very different kind of products. Don’t allow impostor syndrome to seep in. Get busy enabling your teams.”
