As we usher in the new decade, I can’t help thinking that this decade is going to be the best one yet for the discipline of high-tech product management.
Why am I so optimistic, you ask? Here are my primary reasons:
Reasons Why This Might Be The Best Decade Yet for Product Management
- Product management as a discipline is getting more and more visibility at high-tech companies of all sizes. There seems to be a growing understanding of the role played by product management and the benefits delivered by the role.
- The high-tech industry seems to be coming out of the recession – slowly, but surely. As the industry starts growing again, there will be an increased need for people who can drive innovation to spur this growth – i.e. people such as product managers.
- In many sectors of the high-tech industry, technology is getting increasingly commoditized. This means there will be an ever increasing premium for understanding and meeting customer needs – not just whiz-bang technology.
- Customers are getting more and more power due to the growing role of the Internet and social media in buyer research. This means the days of aggressive salespeople hoisting products on customers are slowly (and thankfully!) coming to an end. Products that actually meet customer needs better will win more often.
These are the primary reasons why I believe this might be the best decade yet for product management. That said – I do realize there’s always a chance that the Mayans are correct and we’ll all be gone by 2012! 🙂
Editor’s Note:
Interested in an affordable, enterprise-quality software to help you manage requirements in a better way? Check out FREE 30-Day trial of Accompa or Sign Up for a Demo.