I got asked via my newsletter about the traits of the best and worst #productmanagers I've worked with..
.. and man, this question really took me on a walk down memory lane.
I immediately had flashbacks of my time at Amazon as an engineer, working with some of the most talented product managers I’ve ever worked with… and ironically, also some of the most frustrating.
What separated them? Three things immediately come to mind:
- Willingness to improve your technical skills
- Ability to bridge the pm<->engineering communication gap
- Having an “enabling” vs. “telling” mindset
I share a bunch of personal stories on each of these in the latest edition of the Skiplevel newsletter where I answer questions directly from YOU about technical skills/knowledge, tips on collaborating with devs, and tips for becoming more technical.
Ask me ANYTHING and I'll respond in an upcoming newsletter! Subscribe here -> newsletter.skiplevel.co
Common struggle from #productmanagers I coach:
Q: How do I go about user stories? What do engineers want to see from them?
Pro-tip I teach them:
Write broad epic user stories first.. then break them down into functional user stories.
First, write broad epic user stories to..
- Communicate customer problem & get team alignment
- Encourage coming up w/ creative solutions for problem
❗Do ⬆️ early on in your reqs research/documenting and use epic user stories as a way to engage devs EARLY in the product roadmap
..then break them down into more specific functional user stories to..
- Help engineers understand the details of the product solution
- Helps engineers start thinking through what technical implementation details