The Unspoken Things about Product Management with Diego Granados

The Booth Product Management Club has successfully kicked off 2021, thanks to our fellow officer Khushboo Sharma. Khushboo invited Diego Granados who is currently a Product Manager at Microsoft to chat about his journey and experience in Product Management. Diego also has his own YouTube channel dedicated to “Demystifying Product Management”, and during our chat, he shared his valuable knowledge captured in the following seven takeaways.

The “Must Have” Product Management skills (and a “Nice to Have”)

Product Managers work hand-in-hand with engineers as well as other cross functional teams therefore, soft skills are a definite must in order to become a successful PM (Product Manager).

The following set of skills captures the remaining “must haves” that Diego mentions. So if you are seriously considering becoming a Product Manager, you will need to have…

• The ability to deal with ambiguity.
• Be able to lead and influence without authority.
• Tell the (product) story in the right way.
• Have the ability to use data-driven approaches.
• And like in any company, have the ability to deal with tough customers.

Diego also shares that while having a technology background certainly helps, it is a “nice to have” for Product Managers. Since let’s face it, at the end of the day coding makes technology happen however, this is where you get to rely on your engineers to bring the product(s) to life.

“Be ready to roll-up your sleeves”

Product Managers design products, and in order to design products that address actual user needs, they rely on data that is typically gathered through some form of user and/or market research. And while some companies have dedicated teams to gather this information for the Product Management team, there are also those who lack these resources altogether. If you happen to find yourself in the latter case be ready to roll up your sleeves, as Diego explains “If no one is doing it, you have to do it” if you want your product to be successful. Moreover, when compared to a corporate setting, this will certainly be the case for startups where you will wear multiple hats.

The Wild West of Product Management Titles

Product Management roles come in a variety of titles including (but not limited to) “Product Line Manager”, “Product Lead” and even bare the title of “Program Manager”. The last one applies to Microsoft, and Diego highlights to make sure that the job description mentions the following Product Manager duties: “working with customers”, “working with engineers”, and “product definition”. There is also a difference between “Product Manager” and “Product Marketing Manager” with the latter typically stepping in after a product is launched, focusing on marketing and product distribution.

The Interview Range: from 100% behavioral to 100% product case

Product Management interviews also come in a mixed bag. For certain companies, like Amazon, be ready to tackle purely behavioral questions. Whereas for others, you will have to prepare yourself for “Product Case” style interviews; which place you in the position of a PM tasked with identifying product improvement(s).

Since product management is influenced by company culture, you will be assessed as to how well you solution product improvements around the company itself. Diego explains “when we look at Google, it is all about ‘data’; at Apple, it is ‘design’; and at Amazon, it is all about ‘shipping huge incredible things fast’. Therefore, in addition to a target company’s products and/or services, it is also key to understand what makes your target company “tick”.

And finally, it goes without saying, if you have no Product Management or tech experience, be ready to answer “Why Product Management?” from the get-go.

Common interview mistakes (1 out 5)

Diego shares five common interview mistakes, and the one mistake that stood out to me the most was around Brainstorming time. Diego advises not to jump right into an answer but instead, to ask for brainstorming time allowing yourself time to think and form a concise answer. It is also important to find the right balance when it comes to the brainstorming time; simply put, do not leave the interviewer hanging. If after 30 seconds or so you still need time, it is ok to say “I am still brainstorming but let me walk you through this first’’ and start off with explaining your initial set of features. Diego discusses the five common interview mistakes in his latest YouTube video “Top 5 mistakes to avoid in a Product Management Interview”.

Possible Career Tracks

For those who decide to become a Product Manager, or may currently find themselves figuring out their next steps in the field, Diego outlines the following three possible career tracks.

Track 1: You decide to stay in Product Management by becoming an expert (Diego mentions senior in launching products; owning a products portfolio; etc.,). This is typically a management/executive track, and for those who care about titles, it is important to note that post “Senior Product Manager” the titles will vary across companies.

Track 2: You decide to move away from Product Management. This is certainly not a negative, as Diego himself attributes this as “one of the beauties of Product Management”. PM role exposes you to multiple subjects, from Finance to Marketing, and that could result in a new career calling (with Marketing being the most common).

Track 3: You join, or better yet, start your own startup. This is where you get to leverage your Product Management experience from ideation to launch (lessening the burden of those other hats that you may have to wear).

We again, thank both Diego for his time, and Khushboo for organizing this fireside chat.

If this has sparked your interest to learn more about Product Management, check out Diego Granados YouTube channel and his activity on LinkedIn.