Why the product manager should build the competency model of the product manager

Now, more and more people want to do product Manager This position, many companies, teams have also established a product-centric organization. So, there are a lot of "product manager's ability model", we all feel very important, understand can join, at the same time found that various models are very different, tangled unceasingly. In recent times, the more I think about the so-called competency model, the more I think of the "Method Center" thinking, and "Best document Templates", "optimal organizational Structure" is no different, the nature behind it is to "the problem of the heart", that is, thinking "why to build a Product Manager Competency model ”。

There are so many reasons to say: companies want to know what kind of people to recruit, how to cultivate people, individuals want to know how to develop ... Merging into one question-what is the ability of a product manager? The way we use our products to dig deeper, why do we need these abilities? My answer is: be competent in the work at hand. Why do you do the job at hand? This should not be answered. So, so far, see the key points:

The ability to work is more important than the ability to cultivate, and different work will lead to different abilities.

"Competent work is more than training ability" break apart, is the biggest difference between school education and vocational Education, school education is "to apply", because at that time did not know what to do, so the complete method center. and vocational education is "to use to learn" is obviously with the problem of learning, such a study, more efficient, but also more dynamic. So, we first put the "ability model" aside, put forward the concept of "task model", through the analysis of product managers to do the work, combined with the surrounding environment and personal characteristics, to confirm their current, exactly what needs to be competent.

This matter is divided into the following steps. Each step of the conclusion is given by a large number of deep visits, questionnaires and literature research, the object is the company's senior, expert product managers, product team managers, senior, new products, such as several key roles.

1) Enumerating typical tasks

For "Product Manager", all call this title, but do things differently, this step is to list your team, the product manager to do what you need to be aware of, the ability to do this thing behind, here for the time being, is the next step, get "Internet companies, product managers to do the typical task" List。

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2) Post subdivision

According to the actual situation of the company, consider the level division of the product manager, or the direction subdivision, give one example.

Level, can be divided into first/middle/Senior Product Manager, the primary work is the requirements analysis, document writing, product design, such as the implementation of the task, intermediate mainly to do project management, communication and collaboration, user research and other needs more experience tasks, senior is more inclined to business planning, product planning, team management and other fields.

direction, now more commonly used in the division, is the product manager subdivided into four directions: product architector--is mainly responsible for the production structure and planning, products designer--bias demand and design, product manager--do project management, Team management work, Product marketing--is responsible for operations related issues.

Each level, direction, for each task's ability requirements must be different, here can do a rating. such as the following table, is graded according to the example, the specific score for reference only.

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3 Environmental factor correction

Because the product manager in different environments, so the requirements of the various tasks are different, we have summed up the following key factors.

The first is "industry", such as "Electric Dealer", "PC Software", "Game", "telecom" ... The requirements of the various tasks must be different, the corresponding industry practitioners to discuss themselves.

Then there is the "Product type", which is related to the industry, and the example above is for the electric business sector:

-Platform type: More rely on the background system, the understanding of technology requirements to strengthen, such as the dealer's trading line products, security products;

--Vertical type: More business level content, the industry knowledge requirements, such as online supermarkets, online pharmacies;

--Site Type: More biased front page site, ued related knowledge requirements, such as some group purchase website, social shopping site;

--Custom: Some products can not be categorized, need to be judged independently.

Finally, "peripheral team", if there is a special person, the team to do the corresponding task, you can reduce requirements, such as a dedicated user research team, the user research requirements can be reduced, a full-time project manager, the project management requirements can be reduced.

Note that it is difficult for us to quantify the increase or decrease in the task requirements, so we have explored the "+1/-1" correction.

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4 Personal factor correction

Each product manager is different, so it is impossible to have a universal model, and there must be some personalized elements.

Personal experience, we believe that if the person has done the job of the corresponding task (or already partially competent), can reduce the requirements.

Personality traits, personality factors can lead to doing well/do bad things, but it is difficult to become, so here is the personality caused by the task preference, if you like to do this task, we think it is easy to do, can reduce the requirements, do not like, strengthen the requirements.

What is the most common task at the moment, to strengthen the requirements and to embody the "use and learning".

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5 Evaluation Results

Job requirements, is added to the "environmental factor correction" after the ability requirements, the higher the score, the more important to visit when selecting;

Personal requirements, plus the "environmental factor correction" and "personal factor correction" after the ability requirements, the higher the score, the more he is currently required to work to be competent task;

The ranking of gaps is based on the "personal requirements" of the number from the big to the small sort, more convincing, the first few are currently on this person's most important direction of effort.

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Let's give an example of an application, such as the following table.

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The company's request to him is a mid-level product manager, he does the product is platform-oriented products, therefore, "Product planning", "familiar with the technology" two tasks of the capacity requirements of +1; His peripheral team, is the technical staff to do project managers, so "project management" Capacity requirements-1; his personal experience, because he had done 2 years of technical , so "familiarity with technology" requires 1 of his personality traits, relatively introverted, poor communication, so the "communication and collaboration" Capacity requirements of +1, at the same time, he likes to do "user research", so this ability requirements-1; His current task, need to do a lot of data analysis work, so "data analysis" capacity requirements of +1.

To sum up, the evaluation results interpretation (for reference only):

From the position request, this position to the product planning ability request highest;

From the perspective of the gap, he should be given priority to work on a number of tasks: communication and collaboration, product planning, data analysis.

This is our exploration of the Product Manager competency model, with four major upgrades:

First, from the more illusory "ability model" into a more realistic "task model", a change of the rigid practice of learning, really do so to learn.

Second, from "thousand people side" into according to individual, team customization "thousand people thousand Noodles" personalized model.

Third, never change with time "static model" into an adaptable "dynamic model", every once in a while, the method, each team, individual can draw different results.

Four, from no priority "monolithic" to be able to distinguish between various task priority "divide and conquer", it can help everyone to judge their own at this stage should be priority to do what, but also can help seniors Judge new learning order, so as to achieve personalized learning.

Of course, this is in a "product-centric" of some of the practice of the Organization, there must be its applicable scenarios and constraints, but also, it itself is a vague "qualitative" model, can not be "quantitative".

Endnote: As for the specific options for how to do the tasks, not in this discussion, simply mention a few things that need to be done next, and these practices must have a "panel of experts" to be confirmed step by step.

One, detailed task process: the tasks in the table above, some may need to be refined to the appropriate granularity, in order to "task point" and "ability point" mapping.

Second, the analysis of competencies: from the "ability point" to "task point" mapping, pay attention to "task point" is to do the thing itself, "ability point" is to do this thing, behind the need for knowledge, skills and attitude.

Third, the construction task model: According to a "task point" requirements, to determine the back of each "ability point" requirements, divided into five levels, "memory, understanding, use, evaluation, creation", in turn, each ability point, corresponding to each level need to have an explanation and case. Behind these steps, something like "Job Model".

Iv. determine the way of learning: how to be competent for a particular task, is to participate in training, self-study data?

Draw the Learning Path: Determine the order of study.