For many rookie products, they don't know the product manager's competency model and judgment criteria at each stage. In this article, we will start with the competency model, from basic to advanced to expert, and explain it to you.
After a year and a half of B-end product work, it has gradually entered a stage of stable work or the stage of rebuilding wheels. From the beginning of the product novice, in the process of going through different projects to actively explore the corresponding product methodology, to gradually form their own product work experience. Among them, I have stepped on many pits, and I have also been confused.
Now summarize the product work experience in the past year and a half, and systematically sort out the product manager ability map, in order to seek a higher level of ability improvement and plan the future development path.
1. Capability map
For me, there are three levels of competency development for product managers:
At the lowest level are the foundational competencies that any type of product manager in any industry. It is the most basic thing like the conditioned reflexes of living beings, and the basis for a product manager to be able to respond quickly to any need.
The second level is to be able to look at the product from a higher perspective, be responsible for a complete product, and have more comprehensive knowledge to support the product architecture design and planning and promote the implementation of the project.
At the first level, if a product manager wants to become an expert in a certain field, in addition to having the knowledge and ability of the first and second levels, it is more important to have a deep knowledge reserve in a certain field and have the ability to commercialize.
Because your goal is not simply to design a specific function, but also to understand the underlying business, but also to understand that the ultimate goal of the product is to help the enterprise make profits directly or indirectly.
2. Basic competency standards
1. Competitor analysis
Standard: Output an objective and true analysis report according to the analysis objectives of competing products
For competitive product analysis reports with different goals, the focus and output content are definitely different, and the competitive product analysis on the B-side is definitely more difficult than that on the C-side, mainly because it is difficult to collect competitive product information. But the results of the analysis must be helpful for a person who has no experience with the relevant product.
The usual competitor analysis steps are as follows:
2. Demand research
Standard: Output an objective and real demand research report according to the research objectives
In the initial stage of work, it is often the leader who directly issues a small requirement to me to complete. At this time, I didn't do much needs research. However, as the work progresses, I need to conduct requirements research to help me better conduct requirements analysis. The steps of a typical needs survey are as follows:
3. Needs analysis
Standard: Accurately understand the essence of user needs and transform them into optimal product solutions
When I was a newcomer to the product, I basically drew the prototype and formulated some rules directly according to the surface requirements put forward by the operation. The consequence of ignoring the requirements analysis is that the users are not satisfied with the requirements made.
But I obviously did it according to your request, why didn't I buy it?
This brings us to the most critical question of requirements analysis: insight into the solution behind the requirements that the user most wants.
In the case of the demand egg model, it is to try to draw a clear line between what the user wants and what the user does not. In general, the steps and methods I take for requirements analysis are shown in the following diagram:
However, for B-end product managers, I often get the requirements at the beginning, unable to analyze the core demands of users, and unable to translate them into product requirements, such as designing a risk control system for cargo financing from 0 to 1. This is because I don't have a background in the relevant field, so it is difficult to conduct requirements analysis and requirements design through superficial methodology. Therefore, the professional background of the B-end product manager in your field is also very important.
4. Interaction design
Standard: Interaction design maximizes user experience
For B-end products, interaction design does not need to be as critical and important as C-end, but reasonable interaction design can improve the efficiency of users, which is also one of the key goals of B-end products.
There are many designs that can be referred to in interaction design, but how to choose in the specific requirements still needs to be combined with the actual application scenarios and the results of demand analysis. In the process of using other products, you can also bring the identity of the product to think about why the interaction here is designed the way it is and learn how it is designed.
5. Prototyping
Standard: Interaction design that meets the needs + clear interface display
Before joining the product manager, I worked hardest to draw prototypes, thinking that prototypes were the most important part of product work, but after joining the company, I realized that drawing prototypes is the easiest part of product work. However, in order to draw a perfect prototype, the most important thing is to build on an accurate analysis of requirements and a reasonable and standardized interaction design. For prototyping itself, you only need to be familiar with Axure's features.
6. Documentation
Standard: Convey exactly what you want to convey to the intended audience of the document
Requirements documents, competitive product research documents, user research documents, etc., it can be said that the writing of Chinese files for the daily work of product managers is essential. However, in fact, there is no standard fixed template for these documents, but different modules need to be divided according to the actual situation.
Before I joined the company, I collected a large number of standard templates on the Internet, hoping that one template would go all over the world. But in fact, the most important thing is that you can express the content you want to express to the target user through document clearing. For example, if you need to make the development and testing of this document not have to look for you throughout the development and testing cycle, and the final acceptance is the result that you are satisfied with, then this document is perfect.
How to achieve this perfect effect requires you to distinguish the content of each module, and describe in detail the project background, business process, system flow, requirement description, prototype content, change record, project plan, etc.
7. Technical knowledge
Standard: Basic technical knowledge of daily communication
B-end product managers are still very necessary to master technical knowledge, and the most common words in work and technical communication may be "interface", "database", "Token" and so on.
It is not necessary to be proficient in depth, but at least it is necessary to understand and communicate without pressure. Otherwise, it is easy to be bullied by development.
8. Data analysis
Standard: Data-driven product design and B-end report design capabilities
B-side products may not use data as frequently as C-end products for data analysis. However, B-end product managers will often encounter data report requirements, which require certain data analysis capabilities. For me, the ability in this area is still relatively weak, and there is not much content involved in the work, which needs to be supplemented and strengthened in the follow-up.
9. Communication skills
Standard: Efficient communication
Many people's first impression of a product manager is that they can speak well, and communication skills are very important. It's also the reason why many introverts can't be product managers. The day-to-day communication parties of B-end supply chain finance include operations, back-end, front-end, testing, project management, employers, business systems, etc. Accurately gain insight into user needs in communication, convey product requirements, introduce product functions, and pull with management or business systems to facilitate internal development, etc
10. Product training
Standard: Accurate and comprehensive description of product features
After the B-end product requirements are launched, it is often necessary to train users, complete the writing of operation manuals before training, agree on the time of all participants, and introduce them accurately and comprehensively in the meeting, and follow up on the feedback collected.
3. Advanced Ability Standards
1. Project management
In the past year and a half, I have not improved my ability in project management much. Because it is basically promoted by the department's project management. After reviewing the requirements, except for following up on the problems raised in the development and testing, I always pay little attention to the progress of the project. However, for some small and medium-sized companies, product managers often take on the role of project management. Follow-up capacity in this area needs to be strengthened.
2. Expertise
A good product manager must be an all-rounder, and the disciplines involved must be very broad. You can improve more in-depth technical knowledge, you can also learn financial knowledge to control product costs, learn psychology to gain insight into the essence of demand, learn sociology to understand the structure of the crowd, learn aesthetics to improve user experience, and so on.
3. Advanced product capabilities
In the year and a half of product work, I have experienced the stage from a small function, to a functional module, to a complete product, and then to a multi-system product, which constantly requires me to stand on a higher perspective for product design. Advanced product capabilities require the ability to design a product function architecture with well-defined boundaries and strong scalability, and to define the development plan for each stage. At this point, it is necessary to be responsible for a complete product.
Fourth, the standard of expert competence
If B-end products want to precipitate into experts, in addition to having the following two levels of capabilities, the most important thing is to precipitate in related fields.
Take me as an example, if you want to precipitate as a product expert in supply chain finance, then the most basic financing model of supply chain finance must be understood, and on this basis, risk control, payment, etc. need a long time of accumulation and precipitation.
In addition to having domain knowledge, it is also necessary to define the business model of the product. To understand the business canvas, find out the market positioning, formulate the strategic plan for the product to hit the market, profit model, etc.
This article is written by Everyone is a Product Manager Author [B-end A Chao], WeChat public account: [B-end A Chao], original / authorized Published in Everyone is a product manager, without permission, it is forbidden to reprint.
Image from Unsplash, based on the CC0 license.