What is Product Management in Reality?

👋 Hey, SK here!  Welcome to XTEN10X. I write about stories on product management , career growth and startups based on my observations and experiences.

"Product manager is the CEO of the product"

"Product Management is about dictating the features to the engineering teams"

You might've heard this several times. And, these lines made Product Manager look like a fancy job title in the market.

Product management in the real world can differ significantly from what is written in books or taught in theoretical sessions. While books and academic resources provide valuable frameworks and models, the practical aspects of product management often involve a lot of complexities, nuances, and variations that may not be fully captured in books.

In this post, I aim to make you understand what Product Management is from a real-world lens.

I'm not going to lie, Product management does play a critical role in the development and lifecycle management of a product in the real world, whether it's a physical item, software, service, or a combination of these.

But, this is not a one-man's job. It involves a lot of cross-team collaboration and navigation through a lot of hurdles.

Below are some key aspects to note that capture the difference between real-world product management and its theoretical depiction.