How to break into API Product Management

Maven Lightning Lesson on January 29th, 2025
https://maven.com/p/521e40/how-to-break-into-api-product-management
• What Is API Product Management and Why It’s Worth Pursuing
• Understand how API PM differs from traditional PM roles—and why it pays off.
• Where to Find an API Product Management Job
• Discover which industries and companies need API PMs, and learn how to network with them.
• How to Prepare for the API Product Manager Interview
• Learn what hiring managers expect so you can stand out and secure the offer.
• How to Upskill for the API PM Role
• Identify gaps in your technical or market knowledge, then build a plan to fill them.

Transcript

1. Practical skills and tangible tools to accelerate your career immediately How to break into API Product Management Emmanuel Paraskakis 15+ years in APIs | Product Consultant for SaaS and API Companies | 3x VP PM Welcome
2. Next 45 minutes: What Is API Product Management and Why It’s Worth Pursuing Where to Find an API Product Management Job How to Prepare for the API Product Manager Interview How to Upskill for the API Product Manager Role Q&A How to break into API Product Management 2
3. How to break into API Product Management API? 3 Maven Platform Application Maven Developer Programming Stripe Payments Interface POLL: Name an API?
4. How to break into API Product Management APIs are Driving Internet Traffic 4 2008: Appstore 2000: eBay REST API 2010: Stripe 2015: AWS API Gateway 2012: Atlassian Marketplace 2023: ChatGPT API 2025: Agents! IBIS World
5. How to break into API Product Management Q1: What % of Internet Traffic is from APIs? 5 A. ≤10% B. 11%..30% C. 31%..60% D. 61%..90% E. >90%
6. How to break into API Product Management APIs Outpace Other Internet Traffic 6 57% Cloudflare 2024 API Security & Management Report
7. How to break into API Product Management Q2: What % of PMs are API/Platform PMs? 7 A. ≤10% B. 11%..30% C. 31%..60% D. 61%..90% E. >90%
8. How to break into API Product Management But Platform & API PMs are Rare, 5% of Total 5% Aakash Gupta & Nancy Li
9. How to break into API Product Management Q3: How much more money do they make? 9 A. ≤10% B. 11%..30% C. 31%..60% D. 61%..90% E. >90%
10. How to break into API Product Management 10 Baseline 19% 38,000 API PMs Enjoy Better Comp as Niche Specialists:
11. The API Product Manager Opportunity API & Platform PMs are only 5% of total PMs APIs are 57% of Internet Traffic and rising They get paid 19% more 11 How to break into API Product Management
12. What Is API Product Management and Why It’s Worth Pursuing 12
13. How to break into API Product Management APIs are Becoming more Strategic: Trends 13 App Usage Integrations are Sticky 1 2 APIs Drive Transactional Revenue 3 Developers as Kingmakers 4 AI drives API Proliferation
14. How to break into API Product Management Strong API PMs Deliver the Right Products: Monitor and Optimize Usage Execute API Strategy & Vision Bridge Business & Tech Teams Manage API Lifecycle API Design, Standards Author & Validate Stories Usability & Developer Experience Ensure Availability, Security, Scaling
15. How to break into API Product Management API PM is Challenging 15 A. Speak the Language of Developers B. Communicate Technical Requirements C. The “Double Product Manager” Effect D. More Sales Involvement E. API PMs juggle more domains than most: (SaaS, Developer Tooling & Code, UX & PLG, Documentation) POLL: Which of these seems the toughest?
16. How to break into API Product Management But API PM is also Rewarding 16 ➔ Purpose Products that are impactful to modern digital ecosystems ➔ High Retention Once integrated, APIs just work and are hard to displace ➔ Mastery You will become more technical ➔ Autonomy Once you understand the ins and outs of APIs
17. How to break into API Product Management Quick story - how I got into API PM ➔ Entrepreneur & Comp. Sci. Major with a Background in Insurance, ➔ Came to the USA in 2008, in the middle of the Great Recession ➔ Lucky enough to get an API PM role due to my Insurance Background ➔ Built larger and larger API Programs over the next 5 years ➔ Accidentally went to an API Conference in 2013 - In Detroit, in the middle of Summer 17 ➔ Started a Meetup group in SF - API Craft with >1,100 members ➔ Got involved in the OpenAPI Initiative ➔ Led to building API Tools as VP at Apiary, Oracle, SmartBear (Swagger) > million APIs ➔ Speak at all major API conferences ➔ Consultant and Trainer at my company, Level 250
18. How to break into API Product Management API PM Career Canvas 18 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 API Expertise Domain Mastery FAANG Don’t Get Stuck Here ⛔ Start Here? Me, Today 1 Me in 2009 15 years go by…
19. Key Takeaways API PM is rewarding: Purpose, Mastery, Autonomy (+Comp!) Aim to improve both your Domain & Technical Expertise But take a “staircase” approach - one at a time 19 How to break into API Product Management
20. Where to Find an API Product Management Job 20 POLL: Which Verticals are Big on APIs?
21. How to break into API Product Management Key: Anticipate API PM Job Openings In 2025, by the time a Job Opening is posted online, it’s too late! 21
22. How to break into API Product Management 1. Pick a Domain, Don’t go after Everything ❏ Large B2B (Retail, Telco, Manufacturing, Industrial/Auto) ❏ B2C (Ecommerce, Rideshare, Last Mile & Gig Economy) ❏ Fintech (Banks, Insurance, Payment Cos, Proptech) ❏ Entertainment (Gaming, Social, Streaming, Sports) ❏ Services (Chains, Healthcare, Education, Travel) ❏ FAANG & Hyperscalers ❏ Big SaaS & Big Tech ❏ AI & Startups 22
23. How to break into API Product Management 2. Don’t Just Search for API PM Openings ❏ Go on Linkedin | Jobs ❏ Set up a search for “API” ❏ Browse results for engineering, architect, and solutions engineering positions. ❏ Companies ramping up in these areas are likely to create API PM roles soon. ❏ Also: Lenny’s Newsletter 23
24. How to break into API Product Management 3. Know Who’s about to Invest in APIs ❏ Go on Google Alerts ❏ Set up an alert for “API” & “Series B”, or whichever stage interests you ❏ Also set up alerts for “API” & “Partnership” ❏ Companies mentioning APIs in their press releases will likely need API PMs sooner or later. 24
25. How to break into API Product Management 4. Find Thought Leaders in Companies ❏ Look at agendas and past speakers from API-focused conferences, e.g. apidays ❏ Companies that send their best people to speak are investing heavily in APIs and will need API PMs over time ❏ These are the thought leaders you should network with. ❏ Watch on Linkedin for people posting on topics such as “API Governance”, “API Design”, or “Developer Experience”. ❏ Comment thoughtfully (please, no AI-generated fluff) 25
26. How to break into API Product Management 5. Follow API-focused Companies ❏ Look for company announcements, marketing landing pages and Linkedin posts that mention “API-First”, “API-as-a-Product” etc. ❏ Make a list of companies whose main product is an API. Stripe and Twilio are the obvious examples. (Check out apilandscape - search for “API Products”) ❏ These companies prioritize APIs and are more likely to have the budget and focus to hire API PMs. 26
27. Key: Anticipate API PM Job Openings Focus on networking within the industry and your domain. Build meaningful, real relationships before the ask. Make sure you are showcasing your skills. Personal Branding. Network! (Remember: In 2025, by the time a Job Opening is posted online, it’s too late!) How to break into API Product Management 27
28. How to Prepare for the API Product Manager Interview 28 POLL: Have you been through an API PM Interview?
29. How to break into API Product Management The API PM round 1. Senior PM Lead (Hiring Manager, focus of this talk) 2. A peer PM - (PM & Interpersonal Skills) 3. An Engineering Lead - (Requirements, Tech skills) 4. An Architect - (Fit, Standards) 5. Optionally: ◦ DevRel ◦ Sales/Marketing ◦ Tech Writer 29
30. How to break into API Product Management The Hiring Manager Interview (CPO, VP PM) A. “Tell Me About Yourself” B. Generic PM stuff: Prioritization, Stakeholder management, Customer Discovery, Working with Sales & Marketing C. The Real Interview 1. Demonstrate Your Experience with APIs 2. Dive into Developer Experience 3. Running and Evolving an API Product 4. Explore API Specs (Senior Role Only) 5. My API Product & DX D. Your Questions 30
31. How to break into API Product Management 1. Demonstrate Your Experience with APIs 1. How do You Validate Ideas & Collect Customer Feedback for APIs (Do you even?) 2. Have you been involved in API Design and Developer Experience? (I’ll look out for things like: “I left it to Engineering” or “we did not design it”) 3. Can you Give an Example of Good/Bad API Design? 4. What Process did you follow at Company X? (I don’t care if the process was good or bad, but can you talk about API Lifecycle, Process and Tooling at a High Level?) 5. Bonus: How do you Demo and Work with Sales/SE? (Did you talk to customers and developers?) 31
32. How to break into API Product Management 2. Dive into Developer Experience 1. An Example of an API you’ve Delivered - or One You Like (you have an example ready to go, right?) 2. I’ll Browse and Will Ask Questions on Signup, Authentication, Formats, Methods, Status Codes, Media Types, Data Structures etc. 3. I’ll Ask About Design Decisions, The “Why” Behind Them, And if they Were Driven by Customers 4. I’ll Make it a Conversation, A Learning Exercise, May Give Feedback. Bonus Points if You Teach Me Something! 5. I’m Not Looking for Flawless, But Rather That You can Discuss Through the Tradeoffs 32
33. How to break into API Product Management 3. Running and Evolving an API Product 1. How do you approach pricing and metering 2. What does good onboarding look like 3. How do you react to availability and security issues 4. How you use data and analytics - talk about metrics you watch 5. How do you evolve the product (sounds innocent but it’s all about versioning and breaking changes) 6. I’m looking for things that went wrong and what they learned 33
34. How to break into API Product Management 4. Explore API Specs (Senior Role Only) This is fairly advanced stuff but can help judge the depth of their experience. 1. Have you used API Specs such as OpenAPI, JSON Schema, GraphQL Schema or Proto in the past? 2. What are the good/bad aspects of these? 3. What tooling, editors, linters etc. are you experienced in? Also looking for some insight into UX/DX here 4. If the engineers at their previous job didn’t let them touch any artifacts, it’s a smell - I’ll dig into why. 34
35. How to break into API Product Management 5. My API Product & DX (Time Permitting) 1. Screen Share my own APIs and Dev Portal 2. I’ll ask them to point out good/bad parts and if they can reason about why certain design decisions were made. Can they prioritize? 3. Are they prepared? Have they done the homework? 4. Can they locate problems, make good suggestions right away? 5. Will they speak up if they see problems? 6. I’ll make time for their questions, to which I pay a lot of attention. 35
36. How to break into API Product Management What I’m Looking For 1. Smart & Gets Things done 2. Can You Take Feedback? 3. Can you Walk The Talk? 4. Can you talk to Devs? 5. Are you Passionate? 6. Your Questions 7. Differentiation 8. War Stories 36
37. Key Takeaways - Do Your Homework! Your Story Know PM, APIs Know the Market, News Know the Company, Challenges Know the Products, Language Know the Interviewer (remember networking?) How to break into API Product Management 37
38. How to Upskill for the API PM Role 38 Poll: Your Gaps?
39. How to break into API Product Management Your Action Plan: ❏ Follow the tips in this talk - slides in email ❏ Network, in person: Events, Tech Meetups - Luma, Lenny’s Community ❏ Get Involved with APIs at your organization - e.g. naming things ❏ Learn to Code, solve a problem in your team, or publish a demo ❏ Do research on an Architecture or Standards topic - read that RFC ❏ Contribute to Open Source, e.g. OpenAPI, AsyncAPI, AEP (Hint: look for “Good First Issue” tags on GitHub) ❏ Plan your path in the API PM Career Canvas - in email ❏ Take a Course on Maven, learn API skills! 39
40. How to break into API Product Management API PM Career Canvas 40 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 API Expertise Domain Mastery Start Here? 1
41. First 10 Signups Save 25%: 10X25 After that, Save 15%: APF1L15 https://maven.com/emmanuel/api-pm-fundamentals API Fundamentals for Product Managers Feb 18 - Feb 27 • 4 Live Sessions • 2 Optional Q&A Sessions • Bonus - Free 1:1 hour with instructor Email b2b@maven.com for a bulk purchase. View course syllabus: 41
42. API PM Career Canvas 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 API Expertise Domain Mastery 1 © 2025, Emmanuel Paraskakis
43. API PM Career Canvas - Example 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 API Expertise Domain Mastery Start Release API Product Take API Course Speak at Conference Industry Certification Join Industry Group © 2025, Emmanuel Paraskakis
44. API PM Career Canvas - Aim for Top/Right API Expertise Domain Mastery FAANG Don’t Get Stuck Here ⛔ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 © 2025, Emmanuel Paraskakis