To build successful products, you need more than just technical knowledge—you need to think like a product manager.
This means adopting a problem-solving mindset, focusing on user needs, balancing business goals, and making data-driven decisions.
In this article, we’ll explore what it truly means to think like a product manager, breaking down the mindset, skills, and habits that set top PMs apart.
During my early days as a PM, one term I kept hearing from senior leaders was “Product Thinking”, which was new to me.
Initially, I believed that product management was just about building features for the product.
I soon realized that being a PM isn’t just about building features; it’s about solving problems!
This post discusses the concept of product thinking, which has helped PMs like me-and many others to build features that truly matter.
As PMs, we often face the challenge of shifting our mindset from a project level to a product level. To better understand what it takes to think at a product level, let’s first talk about ‘project thinking.’
In the software world, output is often defined as shipping features within a set timeline and given resources.
You measure success by how accurately you can estimate the efforts, timeline, and then deliver effectively within that timeline.
As PMs, once we lock in the features, we focus on delivery. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, right?
However, we often fall into the trap of delivering outputs while overlooking opportunities for improvement. This happens because of a strong focus on output rather than outcome.
Now, as you’ve probably guessed, product thinking emphasizes outcomes. But how exactly? Let’s dive in.
Product Thinking
Let’s take a step back and refresh our memory.
How do you define a ‘product’?
A product is an item or service offered in the market that meets customers’ needs and helps them perform their tasks. Three main entities are involved here:
- Users ( they consume the product)
- Business (they offer the product)
- Technology (it acts as a bridge between users and the business)
Understanding what users need is the ‘Problem Space’
Understanding what we can offer to meet those needs is the ‘Solution Space’
As PMs, we should spend more time in the problem space to understand what jobs users want to fulfill with the product/service we offer.
This is where product thinking comes into play.
Remember, as PMs, we need to build features that users need to fulfill their jobs—not the other way around, where we build features we think they will need.
Product thinking requires a significant shift from the mindset of project thinking. In product thinking, the focus is on the outcome, not the output.
Instead of focusing on deadlines, we concentrate on the goals we want to achieve or the tasks that need to be done. Since our priority is the outcome, it’s harder to set specific timelines at the initial stages, because we may not know exactly how to reach the goal from the beginning.
The goal is to build a solution that addresses the user’s problem in the best possible way.
Why is thinking like a product manager important?
The main benefit of product thinking is that it ensures the solution (product / feature/ service that business offers) effectively addresses the problem, helping us avoid the pitfall of ‘building X while the user needs Y’ in real world!
Now the question arises: How do I spend more time in the problem space to understand user needs?
5W1H framework
I’m not a big advocate for frameworks, except for a few.
The 5W1H framework involves asking key questions to gain a full picture of a problem.
The 5Ws focus on diving deep into the problem, while the 1H is geared toward generating a solution.
Who?
- Who are the users?
- Who will use the product?
What?
- What problems are they facing?
- What other related problems exist?
When?
- When are they facing these problems?
- When do they want these problems to be solved?
Where?
- Where are these problems occurring?
Why?
- Why is it important to solve this problem?
- Why hasn’t this problem been solved yet?
How?
- How can this technology (our product/feature) solve this problem?
- How are competitors addressing this problem?
- How was this problem solved before?
By asking these questions and brainstorming, you can delve deeply into the problem space and uncover the real pain points of users.
JTBD- Jobs to be done
JTBD (Jobs To Be Done) theory guides PMs in developing products and services based on an understanding of user needs or specific jobs. This approach helps ensure that users will “hire” the product or service to fulfill those jobs.
You can use the following template to write a job statement:
I want to [job] because [reason to fulfil the job], so I can [outcome]
Example:
I want to use noise-canceling headphones because there can be heavy noise around while traveling, so I can listen to music peacefully.
Here’s the question: Does the user want noise-canceling headphones?
Not really.
What the user actually wants is to listen to music peacefully while traveling. That’s the job they want to fulfill.
Now that you understand not just what the user needs but also why they need noise-canceling headphones, you can ideate solutions to address that pain point. In other words, your solutions should be chosen by users to fulfill their job—listening to music peacefully.
This approach helps you align what you’re building with exactly what your users need.
Should I focus only on product thinking?
Let’s face the truth: As PMs, we have to keep the ball rolling. In the real world, stakeholders always expect some form of date or commitment from us.
So, there is indeed a degree of project management involved in product management.
The key is to make commitments and project plans only when we can do so with a high degree of confidence.
Rather than committing to a specific solution beforehand, we should commit only after:
- We have validated what we’re doing.
- We have thoroughly understood what it will take.
- We have explored possible solutions that fulfill user needs.
Often, this effort can take a sprint or two to complete. Yes, it might delay delivery by a few days.
However, it’s crucial to deliver what users need rather than what we think they need.
In the end, it’s about balancing product thinking with the right amount of project thinking at the right time.
With this article, I hope you now understand how to think like a product manager with a core focus on user needs.
That’s all for today, see you again!
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