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#1028 From: "Greg Council" <greg@...>
Date: Mon Jun 8, 2009 7:55 pm
Subject: Product management experience or industry experience? 		gregdcouncil
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Hi,



I've been in product management for about 10+ years and have always wondered

what prospective employers value most: prior product management experience or

industry experience (i.e. for the industry the employer serves).



Obviously "both" would be the desired goal for any employer but, going over

numerous postings it would appear that there might be a preference to industry

experience. Am I reading it wrong?



I have always believed that a really good product manager can learn a new

industry and apply their know-how over the other way around. I've seen companies

try to "finesse" the role with industry experts with subpar results. Personnaly

I've learned 4 new industries as a product manager and had very positive results

each time.



As I'm looking to relocate to the PS area, I am interested in the group's take

on this topic with regard to the area's employers.



Thanks.


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#1029 From: John Mansour <jmansour@...>
Date: Mon Jun 8, 2009 9:46 pm
Subject: RE: Product management experience or industry experience? 		mansourjc
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Greg,

I can’t speak for companies in the PS area, but in every other region of the country most employers try to find candidates with both the PM and industry experience and they tend to get pickier when the market conditions favor the employer as they do right now. 

 

I do however agree strongly with your assessment in learning new markets and would encourage you to position that strength very heavily in your search.  Good luck.

 

John Mansour, Managing Partner

ZIGZAG Marketing, Inc.

Learn.  Execute.  Grow.

3475 Lenox Road NE

Suite 400

Atlanta, GA 30326

Direct: (404) 601-2866

Corporate: 866-797-3647 Ext. 2

Web: www.zigzagmarketing.com

 

From: PSPM@yahoogroups.com [mailto:PSPM@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Greg Council
Sent: Monday, June 08, 2009 3:56 PM
To: PSPM@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [PSPM] Product management experience or industry experience?

 




Hi,

I've been in product management for about 10+ years and have always wondered what prospective employers value most: prior product management experience or industry experience (i.e. for the industry the employer serves).

Obviously "both" would be the desired goal for any employer but, going over numerous postings it would appear that there might be a preference to industry experience. Am I reading it wrong?

I have always believed that a really good product manager can learn a new industry and apply their know-how over the other way around. I've seen companies try to "finesse" the role with industry experts with subpar results. Personnaly I've learned 4 new industries as a product manager and had very positive results each time.

As I'm looking to relocate to the PS area, I am interested in the group's take on this topic with regard to the area's employers.

Thanks.


Reply | Forward
#1030 From: "Brian Lawley" <brian@...>
Date: Mon Jun 8, 2009 11:28 pm
Subject: RE: Product management experience or industry experience? 		brian_lawley...
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Hi Greg,

 

My experience has been that when there is a downturn employers are flooded and tend to insist on having both types of experience, so right now it will be tough to switch industries.

 

During “normal” times any company that understands the value of product management (which is probably the kind of company where you want to work) will take a chance with someone outside of their market. I personally have landed several position (many years ago) where I had no experience with the market or technology whatsoever.  There is usually more than enough industry knowledge and experience in the company/PM group already and you can learn it rapidly. But to become a great PM takes time.

 

My two cents…

 

Brian

***************************************************************

Brian Lawley | CEO | www.280group.com | TWITTER.com/brianlawley

Author, Expert Product Management

***************************************************************

The Product Marketing & Product Management Experts (tm)

       Consulting - Contractors - Training - Templates

 

 

.

 

 

 

From: PSPM@yahoogroups.com [mailto:PSPM@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Greg Council
Sent: Monday, June 08, 2009 12:56 PM
To: PSPM@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [PSPM] Product management experience or industry experience?

 




Hi,

I've been in product management for about 10+ years and have always wondered what prospective employers value most: prior product management experience or industry experience (i.e. for the industry the employer serves).

Obviously "both" would be the desired goal for any employer but, going over numerous postings it would appear that there might be a preference to industry experience. Am I reading it wrong?

I have always believed that a really good product manager can learn a new industry and apply their know-how over the other way around. I've seen companies try to "finesse" the role with industry experts with subpar results. Personnaly I've learned 4 new industries as a product manager and had very positive results each time.

As I'm looking to relocate to the PS area, I am interested in the group's take on this topic with regard to the area's employers.

Thanks.


Reply | Forward
#1031 From: Jeff Lash <jeff@...>
Date: Tue Jun 9, 2009 1:35 am
Subject: Re: Product management experience or industry experience? 		jefflash
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While I personally agree with you -- good product managers can learn new industries quickly -- it's probably more important what the hiring manager thinks.

Some are easier to learn than others, of course, and going from one industry to the next may be more easy/difficult depending on the difference between the two industries. Anyway, this subject seems to come up a lot for discussion -- here's a few helpful links:

My take on it, from my blog:
http://www.goodproductmanager.com/2007/10/09/understand-your-products-domain/

Not directly related, though some good discussion around the value of industry experience:
http://ask.goodproductmanager.com/2008/07/14/how-can-i-persuade-others-who-have-more-industry-experience/

How to Be a Good Product Manager: http://www.goodproductmanager.com

Hope this helps,
Jeff
--
How to Be a Good Product Manager: http://www.goodproductmanager.com


On Mon, Jun 8, 2009 at 2:55 PM, Greg Council <greg@...> wrote:


Hi,

I've been in product management for about 10+ years and have always wondered what prospective employers value most: prior product management experience or industry experience (i.e. for the industry the employer serves).

Obviously "both" would be the desired goal for any employer but, going over numerous postings it would appear that there might be a preference to industry experience. Am I reading it wrong?

I have always believed that a really good product manager can learn a new industry and apply their know-how over the other way around. I've seen companies try to "finesse" the role with industry experts with subpar results. Personnaly I've learned 4 new industries as a product manager and had very positive results each time.

As I'm looking to relocate to the PS area, I am interested in the group's take on this topic with regard to the area's employers.

Thanks.



Reply | Forward
#1032 From: Sanjay Motwani <sanjaymotwani@...>
Date: Tue Jun 9, 2009 8:19 pm
Subject: RE: Product management experience or industry experience? 		sanju_bits
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Hi Greg,
 
I blieve it depends on the product offering - E.g. if the product offering is meant for a specific industry (say Insurance) or an industry sector (say Financial Services), then I woul dexpect the candidate to have some skillsets in that industry. For instance, if my offering is meant for the telecom service providers then I would expect the candidate to know business domains like Service Provisioning, Asusrance, etc. This industry experience will be over and above the base product management skills.
 
On the contrary, if the product offering is agnostic to an industry / sector and is more of a horizontal offering (e.g. Quicken, Systems Management, etc.) then the base product management skills apply. Here too, one can look for specialization....product management with expertise in technology products or manufacturing products ...and so on.

I do agree that it is not difficult for a good product manager to understand a specific industry domain pretty quickly however it will be difficult for him / her to gain desired depth unless there is prior experience or passion / affinity for that industry.

Regards
Sanjay

i'm EMAILING FOR THE GREATER GOOD
Join me


 



 
On Mon, Jun 8, 2009 at 2:55 PM, Greg Council <greg@councilnet.com> wrote:


Hi,

I've been in product management for about 10+ years and have always wondered what prospective employers value most: prior product management experience or industry experience (i.e. for the industry the employer serves).

Obviously "both" would be the desired goal for any employer but, going over numerous postings it would appear that there might be a preference to industry experience. Am I reading it wrong?

I have always believed that a really good product manager can learn a new industry and apply their know-how over the other way around. I've seen companies try to "finesse" the role with industry experts with subpar results. Personnaly I've learned 4 new industries as a product manager and had very positive results each time.

As I'm looking to relocate to the PS area, I am interested in the group's take on this topic with regard to the area's employers.

Thanks.



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    Reply | Forward
    #1033 From: "graycole" <greg@...>
    Date: Tue Jun 9, 2009 8:38 pm
    Subject: Re: Product management experience or industry experience?     		graycole
    Offline Offline
    Send Email Send Email
      
    Greg,
    

    
I agree with your assessment and the comments that it is harder to make an
    
industry switch in a down market.  One technique that has worked for me is to
    
put in the time to do a small project for a prospective employer. For example, I
    
once did a four person usability study (four hours of total work) for a new
    
online service for a company had no current openings and was in an industry in
    
which I had not worked.  The study was insightful to the company and addressed a
    
pain point they were having.  The study landed me an interview with the CEO who
    
later called me when they had a product management opening.
    

    
At a minimum, expect to spend some time researching whatever new industry you
    
are pursuing so that you can be conversant about strategic issues in the
    
interview. I would also suggest investing more time preparing for fewer
    
opportunities than trying to play the numbers game by applying to every open req
    
you see.
    

    
Also, phone screens, especially for candidates who are not in the area, are
    
becoming much more rigorous. You may be asked the types of questions you would
    
normally have received during the second or third rounds of interviews. 
    
Preparation is everything!
    

    
Lastly, I'd recommend picking-up "Don't Send a Resume: And Other Contrarian
    
Rules to Help Land a Great Job" by Jeffrey J. Fox.  It has a number of great
    
techniques to get your foot in the door and open up the conversation.
    

    
Best of luck,
    

    
-greg
    

    
280 Group: The Product Marketing & Product Management Experts
    
Consulting, Contractors, Training & Templates
    
*************************************************************
    
Greg Cohen | Principal Consultant
    
280 Group LLC | www.280group.com |650 776-4734
    

    

    

    
--- In PSPM@yahoogroups.com, "Greg Council" <greg@...> wrote:
    
>
    
> Hi,
    
>
    
> I've been in product management for about 10+ years and have always wondered
    
what prospective employers value most: prior product management experience or
    
industry experience (i.e. for the industry the employer serves).
    
>
    
> Obviously "both" would be the desired goal for any employer but, going over
    
numerous postings it would appear that there might be a preference to industry
    
experience. Am I reading it wrong?
    
>
    
> I have always believed that a really good product manager can learn a new
    
industry and apply their know-how over the other way around. I've seen companies
    
try to "finesse" the role with industry experts with subpar results. Personnaly
    
I've learned 4 new industries as a product manager and had very positive results
    
each time.
    
>
    
> As I'm looking to relocate to the PS area, I am interested in the group's take
    
on this topic with regard to the area's employers.
    
>
    
> Thanks.
    
>


    Reply | Forward
     
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