I’ve had a record six people ask for advice this week alone on how they can get into Product Management / how they can progress their career. It makes sense for it to be of so much interest. Product Management can be such a rewarding role. People love the variety, the chance to work with so many other people and the opportunity to build something that customers really care about.
The questions have ranged from the benefits of qualifications to interview techniques, so I’m here to breakdown all of the answers and provide a little more detail on all of the above.
If you’re looking to break into Product Management, progress from an Associate PM to a PM, or progress your career even further – hopefully this guide will tell you everything you need to know.
Do I need Qualifications to become a Product Manager?
A rage of Product Management qualifications exist – such as CSPO or a Product Manager Certification.
My general advice is that you do not need these. It is super rare for a company to ask for one of these when you are applying for a role. In my opinion, the only benefits are that these can teach you some basic knowledge about:
- What is SCRUM
- How a PO works in a SCRUM team
- Agile
If you have absolutely zero knowledge of, or experience in, anything Product related – these might help you. They can grow your knowledge and understand basic concepts before you start a role. However, you can find a bunch of this information online, in Medium articles and through following the right people on LinkedIn.
But – If you have the time and the money, and want to gain a bunch of knowledge in one go – then go for the course.
Do I need a Masters Degree to become a Product Manager?
Again, my answer is no. This is partially because Masters degrees are not as common in the UK. If you’re applying in the US – an MBA is far more likely to be expected for a Product Manager role. In the UK – a Masters Degree doesn’t offer that much benefit. As a hiring Manager, I am far more likely to prioritise candidates that have real life Product experience – even if this is as a side project, than those with an MBA and no experience.
How should I apply to become a product manager if i don’t have experience?
Here are my top tips on applying to be a PM, even if you don’t have “experience” as a ‘Product Manager’. I truly believe that titles are not always the most important thing -there are ways to showcase your skills even without this and break in to Product Management.
1. how to find a route in to product management that aligns with your skillset
There are so many paths into Product Management, the right one to take depends on where you’re at with your career and the experience that you already have.
Look for Associate Product Manager / Junior Product Manager roles
There are some amazing schemes out there that hire APMs (associate Product Managers) and focus on upskilling you for exactly this reason. The Department for Education is a great example of this kind of scheme.
These companies are usually looking for someone that can demonstrate a similar skillset ie. ability to understand data, work with stakeholders, work with a team – but they are not looking for any years of Product Management experience. They will teach you all of the ins and outs of Product when you are in the role so you can really understand agile, customer value and how to use data and insights. to make decisions.
Apply for an internal role as a Product Manager
There are also a lot of companies that encourage people to make a lateral move and apply to become a Product Manager from other areas of the business (TUI and Booking.com were both amazing examples of these).
Some tips that help you to take the steps to make the lateral move:
- Finding an internal mentor in the Product Management space
- Shadowing someone that works as a Product Manager
- Getting involved in cross-department topics that really involve Product to build your understanding of the role
- Trying to take on some of the Product Manager responsibilities alongside your day role
- Being able to demonstrate some Product traits in your day role
If you show the right passion, interest and skillset internally – it is highly likely that someone would be willing to take you on as a PM and continue to train you ip in this space.
Apply for a Product Manager role based on your subject matter expertise (SME)
Being a Product Manager is different at every company. It’s super important to be clear on what you want to focus on, and to find a role that fits this. Your first move might be to apply for roles that are more closely aligned with your skillset. For example, if you’re an SME on a certain topic, you might be able to land a Product Manager role in that field. Or if you are an analyst, you’ll find it easier to land a Data PM role. The same applies for someone technical or a BA landing a Technical Product Manager role.
You can get a role based on your expertise and by learning more about Product Management on the side. If you find a company that values your expertise, it is likely that they will be willing to help you to build your Product knowledge gaps as they know that you can add so much value to the team.
2. Tailor your work experience to fit the product manager role
So many people will find that they have relevant Product Management experience, they just might not have been given the title of ‘Product Manager’.
My top tips in this space are:
- Feel free to change your title on your CV / LinkedIn – titles vary in each company anyway, so showcase the experience that you do have
- Really highlight where you have done ‘Product’ work
Some core examples of what I classify as ‘Product’ work are:
- Optimising your teams ways of working
- Generating customer insight and making improvements based on this
- Thinking strategically about where you take your teams / departments work next
- Reflecting and learning from changes you’ve made and continuing to optimise from there
You do not have to have worked in a Product team or as a Product Manager to be able to do this. If you can demonstrate these skills and the impact that you had – you’ll give yourself an amazing chance of getting your foot in the door and then you can learn ‘agile’ principles from there.
3. Find side projects to showcase your product management skills
We all use Products every single day. You can use this ability to showcase your Product skills.
If I am using a website and have a terrible experience, I often document this and have even sent it to the company before with my recommendations for where they can improve. You could build up a portfolio from your suggestions on how someone could optimise their product.
You could also find a way to create your own Product on the side. If you know any engineers, you could co-create something that people could actually use. If you don’t / don’t have the skillset – then find other ways to create something.
- Pick a pain point / opportunity that you think exists in the world
- Research: speak to customers, look at competitors in this field, carry out generic research online
- Generate ideas / solutions to this problem
These don’t need to be prototypes or coded, you could just annotate or list out how you would solve the problem.
There are courses that can support you in doing just this.
Use this to show your ambition, and really do the ground work to bring your Product skills to life.
Applying for Product Manager roles
Whether you’re already a Product Manager and would like a new role, you’d like a promotion, or you’re applying for your first ever role – I have the same advice.
Think About what you really want to do as a product manager
There are a bunch of differences between PM roles. For example:
- Technical vs. non-technical
- SaaS Products or e-commerce
- More customer focussed or more delivery focussed
These distinctions aren’t always clear through job title alone, but usually you can pull them out when looking at role requirements. Sometimes you might need to dig a little deeper in an interview to really understand what is expected of you.
Think about the kind of company you want to work for, and the Product Culture that you want to be a part of
Really think about roles that you care about and companies you want to apply for. You might have never heard of them before, but make sure you’re passionate about what they do.
Make sure the role aligns with what you want to do. If you want to own a team, make sure you’ll be able to do that. If you care about outcomes, make sure the business drives outcomes first.
Applying for and finding roles you’re passionate about will make it so much easier to interview & you’ll display this, meaning the company also values you.
Tailor your CV to meet this type of Product Manager role
If you want to focus on delivery, highlight every time you’ve worked with a team and helped them to meet deadlines.
If you want to work. on SaaS products, highlight your knowledge and experience in this field.
It sounds simple, but it is really important and will make you stand out as being a specialist in that area.
Writing your CV as a Product Manager
I would kinda classify myself as an expert in this field. I have a 95% success rate from applying for a role to getting an interview (it could be 100%. but I’m sure I’ve forgotten a couple of rejections).
My key tips for writing your CV are:
- Always tailor your CV to the job specs
- Pull out the key words and highlight these, to make it easy for someone to see that you match the specs
- Highlight what you did to drive success really shout this out
- Use numbers – results sell themselves
Make yourself stand out as a Product Manager
Sometimes it’s not just enough to do all of the above. Although you might qualify for the role, if the competition is high – then finding other ways to make yourself stand out can be really beneficial. Some key ways to do this are:
- Write articles and share your expertise on any relevant topic (we all have expertise)
- Create your own website showcasing a portfolio of things that you have done
- Use LinkedIn to post about topics that are of interest to you
- Connect with others that can help you grow
- Do a talk at a local Product meet up
These things will help to get you noticed and will help you to refine your knowledge and skillset in the Product world.
How to interview exceptionally well as a product manager
Once you score an interview, you’re in an amazing position to show people what you’re capable of. These are my top tips to make sure you impress.
- If the interviewers ask you a question that seems quite broad – still give a specific answer. Don’t just tick the box when you answer their question, think about how you can WOW them. Give an overview of your experience and then dive deep to an example that you have on where you did something amazingly well.
- Prepare some of your top examples of things you do really well and see how you can work them in.
- Always use the STARR technique.
- Feel free to make it a 2-way chat, clarify anything that you’re not sure of in their questions.
- Ask questions based on the topics you care about at the end. If you want to be focussed on customers and insight, ask them how they use data and insight in practise.
Conclusion
There are so many ways that you can break in to Product and increase your knowledge of the Product Craft. If you’re really committed to making the move, try some of the above suggestions. Pick the ones that align with how you like to work, so you can enjoy the process along the way.
I really hope you find a role that you love!
If you’d like to book a 1:1 Strategy call to review your approach (+ have access to ask me any questions, and review your CV) – you can book a slot here.