What Does It Mean to Become A Great Product Manager?

The phrase "Influence without authority" is often seen as a nagging constraint in the product management world.

In some ways, it's really a blessing.

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When the PM is viewed as a person of authority, the rest of the team tends to become "task rabbits" - people you'd assign tasks to.

Designers and engineers tend to mentally "check out" creatively and see the fresh spec in their inbox as an obstacle they need to get over with, instead of a tool for discussion.

The PM needs to arrive as an equal. Make everyone feel they have a seat on the table. That's when you have true engagement.

You might have seen how engineers start resisting mass changes as they're only thinking about the innumerable dents the codebase will suffer with the change.

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However, when the PM isn't forcing a spec down their throat but rather teaming up with them to make a difference in a human being's life, engineers are more willing to adopt a "let's make it happen" mindset.

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Poor PMs think of their team as mere executors at their disposal.

Great PMs bring together the right people and realize that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.