An engineer's guide to working with product managers

Transcript

1. An engineer's guide to working with product managers Adam Wiggins

   April 2013

2. What do product people do?

3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nV7u1VBhWCE

4. Bob's approach to product management

5. Customer Product manager Engineer

6. Customer Product manager Engineer

7. Customer Product manager Engineer

8. Now, real product management

9. Customer problems Product manager

10. Customer problems Engineering Product manager Prototypes, ideas, technology needs

11. Customer problems Engineering Usage analysis Watching the competition Support needs

    Sales needs S Product manager Prototypes, ideas, technology needs

12. Customer problems Engineering Usage analysis Watching the competition Support needs

    Sales needs S Product manager Synthesis & judgement Prototypes, ideas, technology needs

13. Customer problems Engineering Usage analysis Watching the competition Support needs

    Sales needs S Product manager Synthesis & judgement Requirements Prototypes, ideas, technology needs

14. Why have product specialists?

15. To build something people will use and love.

16. How?

17. • customer-centric • understanding the problem • putting the solution

    into customer terms
18. None

19. Product Engineering

20. Product • problems • customers • build the right thing

    • solutions • technology • build it right Engineering

21. Aspects of product work

22. • customer validation • prioritization • internal communication • external

    communication • analysis & synthesis

23. How can a product manager help you?

24. • defining the problem • determining what's important • non-technical

    decision-making • unblocking you • usage analysis • notifying users of changes • coordination across teams • coordination with 3rd parties

25. What to expect from a good product manager

26. • evidence • customer perspective • context ("why" to match

    the "what") • fast decision-making • internal marketing & buy-in • tracking & documentation

27. What does a product manager expect from you, the engineer?

28. • building stuff • frequent status reports • tight feedback

    loops • reporting on technical blockers • new possibilities with the technology

29. What makes something a product?

30. • validated with customers • docs & announcements • pricing

    • interfaces (CLI, web, API, mobile) • workflows • naming • code ownership • scalability & capacity planning • deploy process

31. • validated with customers • docs & announcements • pricing

    • interfaces (CLI, web, API, mobile) • workflows • naming • code ownership • scalability & capacity planning • deploy process Product Design Engineering

32. Insist on a product owner for your project! fin.