Issue #19: Critical Skills Every Product Manager Should Have

And I bet most of us already have them!

Hola Friends 👋

I get asked all the time what skills Product Managers should have to be successful in their roles. In the last week alone, I got asked this question 3 times.

In a podcast I was guesting in. In a class I was teaching. By an intern we were onboarding.

Every time, find myself giving answers that have nothing to do with data, prioritization, or discovery - the more "technical" skills a Product Manager is supposed to have. A lot has been said about those already anyway.

Instead, I veer towards the more human aspect of Product Management. As Product Managers, we're surrounded by people all the time. A reflection of the work we're doing perhaps. We ARE building products for people. How apt is it that we're building them WITH people.

And when we have a good foundation for how we might bring clarity, create alignment, influence decisions, understand motivations and challenges, and keep calm under pressure - any situation can be managed maybe easier, faster, and definitely better.

And these more people-oriented skills, otherwise known as POWER SKILLS, become even more critical the more senior we become in our roles, the more we move towards leadership positions.

So let me share with you my list.

01. COMMUNICATION

Why is it important?

It's been said that communication is the bread and butter of a Product Manager. It's the number one tool we utilize in our everyday work lives, after all.

We articulate our product vision, manage stakeholder expectations, build excitement, provide clarity, create alignment - with our words. With our stories.

And we do so with many different people who have different motivations, challenges, and maybe even languages.

So it's only normal that we're expected to be masters of it.

How do we become better at it?

1. Be a good listener. Listen to understand people’s concerns, challenges, and criticism. The better we understand, the more we’re able to identify what we need to be communicating to them.

2. Get feedback. About the email we wrote, the presentation we did, the meeting we drove. When we know how people are responding to what we’re saying, we can make it repeatable (if it’s good) or we can make necessary adjustments (if it’s not good).

3. Show feelings. If we’re excited, let other people see and feel that excitement. If we’re worried, let other people see that too. When we show how strongly we feel about the message we’re sharing, we can bring other people with us. They might feel excited too. :)

02. COLLABORATION

Why is it important?

First off, Product Managers can't build products alone. Product Leaders, as part of our role, bring people together to achieve our mission and build products that bring value the best way possible.

And bringing people together is important to ensure that we:

• Have diverse perspectives

• Encourage people to have a skin in the game

• Leverage the skills and expertise of team members to build our product the best way possible

How do we become better at it?

1. Have genuine curiousity for who people are. Ask people about their interests, their strengths, their beliefs, and more.

2. Ask for people’s input and feedback early. Involve them in the thinking as early as possible. From the goal setting, to understanding the challenge, all the way to finding the right solution.

3. Give credit where credit is due. ALWAYS recognize people’s contribution.

03. ADAPTABILITY

Why is it important?

The world is constantly changing. A butterfly flaps their wings in one side of the world, and this can impact industry trends, customer needs, market circumstance, and strategic priorities in the other.

A few months ago we were all talking about Web 3.0 and now it’s ChatGPT and the impact of AI.

It's easy to get frustrated by these constant changes. Especially when they impact our priorities and ways of working. And they almost always do.

Being adaptable helps us us to stay calm in the midst of all the changes. It helps us separate the urgent from the important. And helps be fast and flexible to change our approach if the circumstances call for it - while still keeping an eye on what will have the biggest impact.

How do we become better at it?

1. Always expect the unexpected. Have a healthy relationship with change. It is the only thing constant after all.

2. Keep an eye on the news. Notice what’s happening in the world. Anticipate that it will impact our work one way or another.

3. Have a solid strategy and a prioritization framework. Having one helps us make sound decisions on how we might address new circumstances.

04. ALWAYS BE LEARNING

Why is it important?

The world is constantly changing. Trends come and go. The market is heavily influenced by circumstances. And what is important today may be completely different tomorrow.

The future is unpredictable. But we can always learn.

Learn how to adapt. Learn how to be 2 steps ahead. Learn to understand. Learn to help other people learn as well.

It’s not just about Learning AI for the sake of Learning AI. It’s about being constantly optimizing to be a better Product Manager and a better Product Leader.

How do we become better at it?

1. We have individual learning preferences. Some people learn by reading. Some people are visual learners. Some are tactile. Once we know how we learn best, learning becomes an easy exercise.

2. Be with people who also have an appetite for learning. Be curious about what other people are learning, how, and where. Be part of their discussions.

3. Be humble. Be ok that we might not have the time and resources to learn everything there is to learn. And ask for help.

05. AWARENESS PAIRED WITH OPTIMISM

Why is it important?

There will be hard days. And it will impact our motivation. It will impact our team’s motivation. And as Product Managers, and especially as Product Leaders, we are highly visible people within the organization. And normally, our influence is a lot bigger than we think it is.

When we complain. When we catastrophize. When we speak ill of other people.

These are highly visible actions that we take.

Not to say that we should hide our feelings or pretend that we’re ok when we’re not.

But being aware that our actions have impact on other people is important. And we might as well use it for good - such as having a future that is bright and shiny to look forward to.

How do we get better at it?

1. Ask for feedback. Know how we’re coming across to other people.

2. Reflect. It’s important to understand how we really feel about certain things instead of being very reactive (and worse when we’re reactive out loud).

3. Be vulnerable with context. Sometimes we can’t help it. Our feelings will get the better of us. That’s ok. But maybe one thing that can help is to contextualize our feelings so other people don’t misinterpret.

06. LEADERSHIP

Why is it important?

To be fair, everything we talked about above lead to leadership. Plus a bunch of additional skills that fall under this bucket:

• Presence to motivate, inspire, and align the people we are working with.

• Confidence to make tough decisions in non-ideal situations.

• Humility to act on other people’s feedback and want to keep being better.

• Inclusivity to want to create an environment for everybody that is safe, open, and agile.

How do we become better at it?

1. Copy and Paste with Pride. Pay attention to the leaders we admire and notice the things that they do well. Try them out and see if it feels good.

2. Be open to feedback. Give feedback with the intention of wanting things to be better. Receive feedback with grace.

3. Lead by example. Behave in the way we want the people around us to behave with each other. We want them to be collaborative, then we should be the first people collaborating with our peers. We want them to be transparent, then we should be the first people practicing transparency.

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Sometimes it can seem that there's a shit-ton of things we need to become good at, as Product Managers (Have you used ChatGpt yet? Are you deep diving on Product Led Growth?)

And it can feel overwhelming.

But I believe that if we invest in learning how

• To bring people with diverse talent and perspectives together

• Manage tough situations with grace and make decisions with clarity

• Build a safe and trust-ful environment

We can have an even bigger impact than when we just focus on the more technical and practical side of things.

What about you, friends, what other people-related skills do you think Product Managers and Product Leaders should invest on? Got questions, feedback, violent reactions? Leave them in the comments below👇

💙
Kax

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Hey there! Did this post resonate with you and you’d like to know more about how you might:

1. Become more confident and build your own toolkit to become a high-impact Product Leader

2. Increase your impact in your product organization in a way that is aligned with your strengths and your values

3. Prepare for your path to Product Leadership and create a strategy to get there

Or do you have a specific problem that you want to tackle and are looking for guidance on how you might solve them?

As a Product Leader with 10+ years of experience building products from different industries, and mentoring and coaching Product Managers with different experience levels, I have a unique approach to my coaching that is grounded in practical knowledge and personal experience.

If you're curious to explore how I could support you in your tech career, feel free to book a free discovery call with me.

You can also write me at hello@kaxuson.com or read more about my coaching here