Technology changes everything.
For a long time, most of us worked following the rhythm of harvests and seasons. Then, the invention of technology and modern work required the development of management processes.
It has to do with companies becoming more efficient. Many of those companies turned to project management to accomplish this.
Now there’s also product management, which belongs to an even more contemporary era. While building on the methodical and efficient approaches devised by project managers, it is something more attuned to the challenges of digital products. An important aspect of the previous century of commercial offerings was their long-term duration. Today, online applications can change on the same day. Equally, nothing beats product managers’ cross-team navigation skills and their ability to zoom in-and-out.
Generally, project management refers to an established set of working methodologies which allows professionals across all sectors to organize their work in an efficient, timely and money-conscious way. Project managers have a specific background, making them experts in solving particular challenges. Projects have explicitly defined targets, along with an exhaustive description of timeframes, tools, teams and any other elements that are required.
The success or failure of project managers is largely measured through project-dependent metrics. It is very important that project owners are aware of future pitfalls, have meticulous scheduling and keep a tight rein on expenses.
On the other hand, product management responds to the requirements of the digital revolution. Its set of working methodologies is constantly changing (Agile, Scrum, Jobs To Be Done) in relation to product features.
Product Managers have no specific backgrounds, and they often need to adapt to multiple challenges. Equally, there is no such thing as “set targets.” Product managers are responsible for the product or feature, from beginning to end. Thus targets, timelines, tools, teams and requirements might change over time. Success or failure are completely relative to product and company goals.
Additionally, product managers must be everything that project managers are; with an extra spice of flexibility and cross-team communication.
While a project manager oversees a fixed project from beginning to end, a product manager sets the strategy, prioritizes releases, talks to customers and clearly defines features. Their efforts are ongoing and involve managing the entire lifecycle of the product. A product manager’s goal is to deliver great products that consumers desire.
Want to learn more? Tonex offers 17 contemporary, thorough courses in Product and Project Management Training that focus on a wide range of Product/Project Management topics, including strategic roles and why these positions are critical. Some of our most popular, cutting edge courses in this category:
SharePoint for Project Management Training (3 days)
Product Management Bootcamp Training (4 days)
Systems Engineering Project Management Training (2 days)
Big Data for Project and Program Managers (3 days)
Decision Making Training for Project and Program Managers (3 days)
For more information, questions, comments, contact us.