What Does a Product Manager Do? And How to Become One

Written by Coursera Staff • Updated on

A product manager focuses on product strategy to create, distribute, sell, and obtain feedback on a specific product or service. Read more to see if a career in product management may be right for you.


Product managers are technology professionals who focus on the vision of a product or service. They set the strategy and roadmap for the product, working cross-functionally to define and execute its success.

This role often needs a strong understanding of business, technology, and user experience (UX) design. Learn more about what product managers do and how to become one. Afterward, if you're interested in developing your skills in this area, consider enrolling in the IBM Product Manager Professional Certificate, where you'll develop a working knowledge of Agile and adaptive methodologies used to expedite product solutions to market.

What is product management?

Product management involves coordinating and overseeing each stage of the product life cycle and ensuring a product's success. Product managers typically lead a product team, drawing on their knowledge of technology and business to be a cross-functional success.

What does a product manager do?

A product manager is a professional who defines a product's strategy, roadmap, features, and success. They help set goals and motivate the product team of engineers, designers, marketers, and researchers, with the primary concern of ensuring that a product launches and continues to do well in the market.

Product managers stay on top of business and consumer trends and behaviors that directly or indirectly affect the product or company. Day-to-day responsibilities may include:

  • Analyzing, understanding, and representing user needs

  • Monitoring the market landscape to conduct market research and develop a competitive analysis

  • Defining the vision and strategy for a product, such as a multi-year roadmap of its development, packaging, launch, and expansion

  • Coordinating and communicating about the product's vision with management, product teams, and other stakeholders

  • Gathering and conducting research and feedback (QA) on the product

  • Guiding teams through the different stages of the product life cycle

Product manager vs. project manager

Many people confuse product and project managers. Although they sound similar and have some overlapping responsibilities and business goals, they are essentially two different jobs.

A product manager focuses on the product vision for a product or service, while a project manager ensures that the vision is executed on time and within budget.

Read more: Product Manager vs. Project Manager: What’s the Difference?

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Product manager skills

Successful product managers are keenly aware of trends in the market and instinctively know what would make a product or service better or better suited for a particular user group. If you're interested in becoming a product manager, set yourself up for success by developing these key skills:

  • Communication skills help you collaborate with company stakeholders, cross-functional partners, and your team members. It also helps you absorb product feedback, and convey the appropriate information and vision to the right people at the right time.

  • Strategic thinking is imperative to be able to prioritize and implement ideas that can best affect the company or brand.

  • Leadership skills empower you to help individuals and teams perform at their highest levels.

  • Technical skills equip you to understand what goes into designing a product or service.

  • User empathy helps to identify and evaluate challenges users may have with the product.

  • Project management to ensure marketing, design, engineers, and other stakeholders are aligned on the product's vision and can carry out that vision in a timely, organized manner.

Product manager tools

There are a wealth of tools you can implement to ensure the success of the product life cycle. Some key tool categories that product managers may need to know include:

  • User tracking

  • Customer surveys

  • Brainstorming

  • Roadmapping

  • Project management or task management

  • Design and prototyping

Product manager salary and job outlook

Glassdoor reports that the average annual base salary for a product manager in the US is $124,688 [1]. Many factors can impact this amount, including your location, industry, education level, and years of experience.

The product manager role has grown in recent years, especially in technology, as companies seek to navigate a rapidly changing market and economy. Product managers who can succeed in being agile and intuitive against trends, unforeseen events, and recessions have an encouraging outlook.

How to become a product manager

Product managers are problem solvers and strategic thinkers who come from varied educational backgrounds and professional experiences.

1. Get a bachelor's degree.

According to Zippia, 72.2 percent of product managers hold a bachelor's degree [2]. Given the specialized knowledge this role requires, employers typically look for at least that level of higher education. Popular majors for this line of work include business, marketing, finance, or a related field.

2. Build up your skills.

Whether you are just starting out or switching from another role, you'll want to build your skills. Familiarize yourself with the product life cycle and the work involved at each stage. You'll also want to grow comfortable using popular software such as Figma for design, Jira for issue tracking, and Amplitude for user tracking and data.

3. Earn a certification.

While certification is not necessary, you may find that certificate programs give you the leverage you need to land a competitive job as a product manager. You'll have a structured learning path so you gain all the essential skills, receive guidance from product managers in the field, build a portfolio of projects, and earn a certification from a credible institution.

Read more: What Is a Certified Product Manager (and How Do I Become One)?

4. Apply for jobs.

If you're just starting out in this field, consider entry-level roles that will expose you to the key facets of working with a product and which will hone your organizational skills. Roles like junior project manager or business analyst can be good entry points.

Many future product managers are currently working in finance, marketing, content strategy, UX design, or project management. As you seek a relevant role for your experience level, it's important to highlight transferable skills on your resume, cover letter, and interviews. Review different job postings and take note of the skills and tools you'll need so you can add them to your materials—or strengthen your abilities in these areas.

Develop your product management skills on Coursera

Gain in-demand skills and hands-on experience to pursue a career in product management with the IBM Product Manager Professional Certificate. Over seven courses, you'll learn how to identify product strategy development and implementation methods and best practices to ensure the right product is produced.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Article sources

1

Glassdoor. "What Does a Product Manager Do?, https://www.glassdoor.com/Career/product-manager-career_KO0,15.htm." Accessed January 21, 2025.

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