How to become a Product Manager

Becoming a Product Manager is an in-demand career path. It requires deep expertise in Product Management and a strong network to carry you along. Here are some resources to help you on your journey.

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Why should you become a 
Product Manager?

Product Manager

Demand for experts in Product Management is growing rapidly. Companies are looking for people with deep expertise in the field of Product Management to help them build their products and services.

As a result, Product Managers are in high demand and command high salaries. According to leading sources, the median salary for a Product Manager is $110,000 and a senior Product Manager can earn up to $150,000. Even entry-level positions can command great salaries.

No wonder that interest in a career in Product Management is growing rapidly. Explore the resources below to learn more about how to become a Product Manager.

Best books to build Product Management understanding.

A well-written and thorough book can be an amazing path to build deeper understanding and also act as a handbook as you discover the internet's vast resources.

These are our and our experts top picks to get started building career-relevant skills.

Measure What Matters: OKRs

OKRs are well-established in data-driven organizations. This book by John Doerr talks about what OKRs to use and how to implement them right to focus on the right things.

Product Leadership

What's better to build your understanding of product management than to build your very own product? This book walks you through how venture studios like Google Venture launch products fast and successfully.

Shape Up

Shape Up is coming out of the product factory Basecamp. Having been in business for over a decade, both as agency and product company, they have developed a unique and well-tested approach to product management.

Badass: Making Users Awesome

People love being empowered and your product's users are no exception to that. Find research and methods about how to make your users powerful and successful when using your product.

The Art of Product Management

Released in 2008, the Art of Product Management has truly stood the test of time and is among the top-selling management books, even today! A must-have in the library of any fresh product manager.

The Lean Startup

Lean startup is an approach to building new businesses based on the belief that entrepreneurs must investigate, experiment, test and iterate as they develop products. The concept of Lean startup originated in the early 2000s and evolved into a methodology around 2010.

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Courses to deepen your Product Management skills.

These days, courses are no longer a sequence of videos. They are usually accompanied by projects and a learning community, keeping you accountable and on the path.

Our experts recommend these courses, from free selections to paid programs.

Product Management Specialization

Doing things by the book is always a good foundation to start from. The University of Virgina has a top-rated product management course on Coursera – a great starting point to learn the basics and ease your way into Product Management.

Product School

For quite a few years now, Product School is the go-to place for folks who want to change their careers into Product Management in the form of a more traditional school and course approach. If you are serious about the change, Product School could be a great chance!

One Week PM

Online, One Week PM is handled as one of the leading online courses for new product managers in the otherwise surprisingly sparse environment. With over 2,000 students worldwide, it also comes with a ton of social proof from people that took the course and used it to claim their dream career as PM.

eCornell Product Management Certificate

Online or not, having Cornell on your resumé is never a bad sign. Their online branch is now offering a product management certification. Their small group course is three months long, with an estimated effort of around five hours per week.

Get help with your learning journey

Learning through online courses can be challenging. Get 1:1 guidance from an experienced mentor who can help you stay accountable and answer your questions along the way.

Strategic Business Analytics Specialization

Data and product management is inching closer and closer together every single day. The Essec Business School has seen that trend and has turned it into a course for technical product managers. Please note: This specialization is rather technical and requires some stats and programming knowledge.

Certified Product Manager

Early in your product management career, you can end up wasting months trying to learn more skills to break into a product manager role. Despite all of your hard work, you’ll always feel lost because: You lack a formal background in product management or you’re coming from a different industry. Yo…

Top Product Management Certifications

Mastering the fundamentals of Product Management will help you earn valuable certifications. Our expert mentors can guide you through the certification process and help strengthen your knowledge.

Emeritus Chief Product Officer Programme

Hosted by iimk.emeritus.org

IIM Kozhikode has launched the Chief Product Officer Programme for trailblazing product leaders who can combine product capabilities, data, and insights to power up product strategies and roadmaps. Break through a noisy market, adopt and execute nimble and winning product strategies and enter th…

Product Management Certification Coaching

Hosted by mentorcruise.com

Consider reaching out to a coach specialized in Product Management certifications. They can help you prepare for your exam, and provide you with the necessary resources to succeed. MentorCruise is the best place to find a coach for your Product Management certification. Here are a few top picks:

Professional Certificate Programme in Product Management

Hosted by iimkozhikode.emeritus.org

The IIM Kozhikode Professional Certificate Programme in Product Management is the perfect way to learn the skills you need to be a successful product manager. Whether you're a recent graduate or a seasoned professional, this programme will give you the knowledge and experience you need to b…

ProductSchool Product Management Certification (PMC)

Hosted by productschool.com

Breaking into Product Management is hard—excelling at the job is even harder. To succeed as a Product Manager, you need to be strategic, influence without authority, manage processes tactfully, and generate insights; each alone is challenging, but mastering them all? That’s why we’re here.

SP Certification In Product Management

Hosted by simplilearn.com

Become a certified product manager from SP Jain School of Global Management. Gain expertise in AI-powered product management courses (ChatGPT & Google Bard), top product tools, with 100% interactive, live sessions led by industry experts and SP Jain’s top faculties.

Stanford Product Management Program

Hosted by online.stanford.edu

Great product managers own every stage of a product’s lifecycle, from ideation to product retirement, and everything in between. They balance customer needs, production capabilities, and business profitability to make decisions at each step along the way. They are the backbone of a product'…

Product Management Workshop

Hosted by mentorcruise.com

Consider joining a workshop specialized in Product Management. Workshops are a great way to learn new skills, and get hands-on experience. MentorCruise is the best place to find a workshop for your Product Management certification. Here are a few top picks:

Get the guidance you need to become a Product Manager

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After 10+ years at Microsoft, Tableau, Salesforce, and Zillow, I know what it's like to be a product manager at companies with different sizes, different development approaches, and even different ideas of what a product manager should be. I'm a nonbinary, transgender, neurodivergent person and let me tell you, despite …

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Hey there! I'm Kat and I'm currently a Product Lead at a large Australian retail company, spearheading a greenfield 0 to 1 product area. I've built and led product teams, developed and shipped multiple products to market and very good at creating product strategies. Before diving into the tech scene, …

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I am Wayne Chen, a Principal Product Manager at Instacart with ten years of experience in enterprise and consumer products. My journey into product management has been anything but straightforward, and that has shaped my passion for helping others with their career growth. Here’s what you can expect from me: …

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With a diverse background in building and shipping products across various roles and industries, I am currently focused on improving the payments capabilities at Wolt (DoorDash's European brand). I can help you get you get into product management and/or get your career to the next level! Let me help you …

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A product leader with 8+ years experience owning products that impacted millions of users: B2C & B2B products; AI/ML-driven solutions, marketplaces, and global payment applications. Through my experiences, I want to help you achieve your product goals! Product Highlights: - Google Play Music and YouTube (B2C) - Bank of America …

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Hi, I'm Nikita, Sr. Product Manager - Tech at Amazon. I mentor anyone in tech roles and early stage startups. More about me: I have extensive experience in engineering, people and product management. Most recently I'm leading product strategy for some of the most complex logistics challenges on Earth for …

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The Product Management must-reads you shouldn't miss.

Key articles and posts of industry experts can help you get a better picture of what you are getting into.

In our opinion, these are some must-reads you really shouldn't miss.

Jason Fried: One door at a time

Jason Fried's Basecamp is one of the most successful independent product business of the last 20 years and when there's something to read, one should better look closely.

It's easy to think that as a product manager you need to know what to do from day one, but Jason argues differently here: It is OK to take it all one step at a time, before trying to become the greatest.

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Harvard Biz Review: What It Takes to Become a Great Product Manager

There's no such thing as a typical product manager. Most great product managers come from their own background in design, engineering or marketing to claim the position.

So, if there was an end-to-end PM school, what would they need to teach? Customer interviews, feature roadmapping, resource allocation. All the things you should have at least a look at are in here.

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Alex Mitchell: Ways to Stand Out in the PM Job Market

It's hard to stand out in the PM job market. Product management is an attractive career and there aren't all that many positions out there. So, it's all about improving your odds.

Alex shows us seven ways how to improve our profile and level up our skills to claim that dream job of ours.

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Opportunities and projects in the Product Management space.

In the end, advancing your career is all about getting the right opportunities at the right time and a good portion of luck.

These are some interesting things going on in the Product Management space and you probably don't want to miss them.

IndieHackers: Build your own product

Building your very own product puts you on the radar of any product-focused organization hiring managers, designers and engineers. Going from nothing to something requires and builds top-notch prioritization skills, the ability to stay scrappy and shows that you can get things done.

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Join an early-stage organization

To get your foot in the door and make a difference, early-stage startups and businesses are exactly the way to go.

While the risk may be higher than at FAANG and other established businesses, you can also quickly build a lot more ownership and extend your portfolio in these companies.

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Tips from the Product Management blog

Learn more about Product Management with our expert advice.

What Does a Product Manager Do?

Discover the role of a Product Manager, their key responsibilities, and how they drive product success in any organization.

5 Essential Skills Every Successful Product Manager Should Have

In this article discusses the five essential skills that every successful product manager should have. It highlights the importance of strategic thinking, customer empathy, communication, leadership, and technical expertise in the role of a product manager.

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