What Product Management Is (and What It Is Not)
When people hear product management, they often picture someone in endless meetings, managing Jira boards, or saying “it depends” a lot. And while some of that might be true on any given day, it barely scratches the surface of what great product management actually is.
Product management is both an art and a discipline. One that sits at the intersection of customer needs, business goals, and technical possibilities. Done well, it’s the difference between building a product that exists and building one that thrives.
Over the years, I’ve seen far too many misconceptions about the role. So, let’s clear the air. Here’s a look at what product management is, and just as importantly, what it is not, backed by real-world examples from companies who get it right (and sometimes, get it wrong).
What Product Management Is
The Voice of the Customer and the Business
PMs balance solving real problems for real people with advancing the company’s goals. They gather insights from customers, market trends, and data to ensure the roadmap aligns with both user needs and business priorities.
Example:
At Duolingo, PMs responded to learner frustration with streak freezes by introducing a “streak repair” feature, increasing both retention and subscription conversions.
A great product manager listens to customer needs, identifies market opportunities, and ensures the product roadmap aligns with both the user experience and the company’s goals.
The Connector of Teams
PMs are the glue between engineering, design, marketing, and other teams. They drive alignment, not through authority, but through influence and a shared understanding of the product vision.
Example:
At Canva, PMs coordinate across design, engineering, and marketing to launch new AI tools, ensuring the experience feels consistent with the brand’s easy-to-use promise.
They translate insights into action, making sure the solution is feasible, desirable, and viable.
The Strategic Driver of Roadmaps
PMs set the vision, prioritize features, and define what success looks like. They make tough calls about what gets built now, later, or never.
Example:
At LinkedIn, PMs prioritized the “Skills Assessment” feature ahead of other enhancements to boost hiring outcomes and differentiate from other job platforms.
A Sense-Maker in Ambiguity
PMs bring clarity when the path forward isn’t obvious, connecting incomplete data points and framing the problem so teams can move with confidence.
Example:
At Zoom, PMs rapidly defined a new education-focused offering during the pandemic despite uncertain school technology budgets and needs.
The Curator of Trade-offs
PMs weigh competing priorities — speed vs. quality, short-term wins vs. long-term sustainability. They don’t just say “no” — they explain why and rally teams around the best path.
Example:
At Etsy, PMs chose to delay certain search enhancements until seller onboarding tools were improved, ensuring marketplace quality before boosting discovery.
The Owner of the “Why” and the “What”
PMs protect the product’s purpose and value proposition (the why) and define the requirements and scope (the what), while empowering the team to decide how.
Example:
At Spotify, PMs outline the “why” — such as improving discovery for emerging artists — and the “what” — like creating a personalized “Fresh Finds” playlist — while leaving it to designers and engineers to decide how to implement the algorithms and UI.
The Champion of Measurable Outcomes
PMs define metrics that connect product performance to business impact and hold themselves accountable to moving those numbers.
Example:
At Shopify, PMs track not just feature adoption but also downstream merchant revenue impact before declaring a launch successful.
The Storyteller and Evangelist
PMs inspire teams and influence stakeholders through storytelling, connecting the dots between the product and the problems it solves.
Example:
At Notion, PMs use customer success stories in internal presentations to rally teams around upcoming features like databases and AI-assisted note-taking.
What Product Management Is Not
Not Project Management
Product managers aren’t focused solely on timelines or task tracking, that’s where project managers shine. PMs ask, “Why are we building this? Who is it for? What outcome are we driving?”
Example:
A PM at Google Maps isn’t managing sprint deadlines. They’re thinking: “How can we reduce the time it takes for users to get from A to B?” and then rallying the team around that mission.
Not Order-Taking
Strong PMs don’t blindly accept stakeholder demands. They validate ideas through research, customer feedback, and data.
Example:
At Netflix, internal stakeholders once pushed for more manual curation of shows. Instead of accepting the request, PMs ran A/B tests and found that users preferred algorithmic recommendations, backing their decision with evidence and user insight.
Not About Saying Yes to Everything
Great product managers say “no” more than they say “yes.” Prioritization is key.
Example:
Slack PMs regularly get requests for hundreds of integrations. But instead of trying to do it all, they prioritize the ones that serve core use cases like Zoom, Google Drive, and Jira because those drive the most value for users and retention.
Not the “Idea Factory”
PMs don’t have to invent every feature. They source ideas from across the business and refine them into high-impact initiatives.
Example:
At Miro, many new template features originate from facilitator feedback rather than the PM team’s own brainstorms.
Not a Solo Act
PMs co-create with teams and stakeholders, knowing better decisions come from diverse perspectives.
Example:
At Peloton, PMs work closely with instructors, engineers, and community managers to design new workout programs that resonate with members.
Not Feature-Focused Without Context
Launching features without a clear understanding of the problem, user, and goal is wasted effort.
Example:
At Headspace, every new meditation series is tied to a specific user challenge, like improving sleep quality or reducing work stress.
Not Measured by Busyness
PM success isn’t about meetings or Jira tickets — it’s about delivering results.
Example:
At Calendly, PM evaluations are tied to metrics like reduced scheduling friction and increased paid conversions, not activity volume.
Not Afraid to Kill Their Own Ideas
PMs must pivot when data shows an idea isn’t working.
Example:
At Instagram, PMs discontinued the standalone IGTV app when engagement lagged, folding key features into the main app instead.
Why Product Management Matters
Product management is the difference between a product that simply exists and one that thrives.
PMs ensure user needs are met, teams are aligned, and every decision ties back to business value. In a world where technology moves fast, companies that invest in product management gain a competitive edge, they innovate faster, adapt quicker, and create products users truly love.
Example:
Apple didn’t just build the iPhone, they built a product ecosystem. PMs helped connect hardware, software, and services (like iCloud and Apple Music) into one seamless experience. That kind of strategic product thinking turned Apple into a $3 trillion company.
Closing Thoughts
Product management is a role of contradictions. It’s strategic and tactical, analytical and creative, visionary and detail-oriented. The PM is a connector, a decision-maker, a truth-seeker, and an advocate — sometimes all in the same meeting.
The best PMs know that their value isn’t in the number of features they ship, but in the outcomes they drive. They don’t just manage a backlog; they shape the future of the product and, by extension, the company.
So whether you’re new to the role or deep in the trenches, remember this: your job is not just to deliver what’s asked for, but to discover what’s needed — and to lead the team to deliver it in a way that delights customers and drives the business forward.
Ready to Learn More?
If you’re curious about becoming a standout product manager or want to sharpen your existing skills, you’re in the right place!
Explore the resources on Irreplaceable PM, check out my book The Irreplaceable Product Manager Everyone Wants on Their Team, or book a coaching session to start your journey toward becoming an irreplaceable PM.
