Getting Into Product Management: My Unfiltered Perspective

The purpose of this article is to discuss how you can get into product management based on my personal experiences. I want to provide some guidance, some references to where you can go for more information, and point you toward reliable experts in the field.

I was a web developer for quite a lot of my career. Over time, I moved into positions of greater management or authority, but for most of my career, I was an individual contributor. I only learned within the last five years that what I was doing was, in some ways, transitioning from a web developer to a manager. I was essentially doing a lot of product things already.

When you are coming into product management, what is important—at least from my perspective—is to show how your work history actually translates into the product management world.

Product management is a bit of an overarching term. The short version is: You help a company decide the next right thing to build in a way that increases the company’s growth, marketability, and profitability.

That is a high-level view, and there are many ways to interpret it. You have different flavors: the Product Manager, the Product Owner, the Technical Product Manager, the Product Strategist, and so on. What individual companies label a certain term may differ in job responsibilities from a title of the same kind at another company.

Here is what you want to do:

• Think about what you have done in your past career that aligns with product management skill sets and functions.

• Call those out on your resume.

• Show your work. It doesn’t matter how long or short that experience is.

This applies to personal projects, too. If you have a side gig, a freelance project, or a passion project, show your work there. That is actually even better, because it serves as a portfolio you can show off.

Job titles matter, but they can also be nonsensical. When I was at the Federal Reserve, we had job titles that seemed overly complicated—it was often a bit of a “word salad.” It was mainly an HR-based structure to attain a certain pay grade or show development in management vs. individual contributor paths.

When I first started interviewing, I would say, “I’m a Digital Strategy Manager.” People would ask, “What does that even mean?”

I was advised by a close friend to be more accurate with what I did versus what the title was. Titles are often meaningless. Focus more on what you did. Even if it wasn’t formally your job responsibility, if you effectively performed a product management function, call that out on your resume. Make those titles clear so it jumps out.

This isn’t just about beating the ATS (Applicant Tracking System); it tells the recruiter there is a direct connection between you and the job they are trying to fill.

When crafting your resume, focus on a few simple bullets that are the punchiest things about your job description. You are selling yourself—it is a promotional tactic.

For a product manager, focus on numbers:

• Increase of revenue or company growth.

• Reduced costs or build acceleration.

• Show percentages, hours saved, or dollar amounts.

Even if you aren’t in a revenue-producing function—like when I was at the Federal Reserve—you can focus on the impact you made on the business.

You also want to show a balance of strategic and tactical aptitude. Product management is a combination of both.

• Strategic skills: Roadmap planning, long-term strategy, and the “next right thing” decisions.

• Tactical skills: Day-to-day interactions with engineering, indirect leadership, coordination with stakeholders, and saying “no.”

If you come from project management, you likely have a strong tactical background that you can leverage. Be clear about where you want to grow, too. If you want to move from tactical to strategic, talk about what you have done to strengthen those skills, whether through taking on additional responsibility or exploring side projects.

Keep your resume updated, but go further by showing authorship. Recently, I started a blog just to write articles like this one about product management—thoughts I have, experiences I want to share, or feedback on articles I’ve read.

This creates something authoritative you can point back to. It gives recruiters a way to learn more about how you think. Getting on LinkedIn to comment and interact builds awareness that you are active in the product field.

Regarding cover letters: I’ve gone back and forth, but I’ve heard from recruiters that they are still valuable because they provide flavor and context. It takes time, but you should do it to zero in your fit for what the company wants. It sets you apart by showing intentional purpose.

Also, stay informed. A career consultant I follow named Will Rippetoe advised subscribing to newsletters to stay aware of the news. I subscribe to Morning Brew, which touches on technology and business. Being aware of what is happening in the industry makes you sound more context-driven in interviews.

Artificial Intelligence is a huge intersection with product management right now. You will hear leaders talk about “Product Management is dead” and the rise of the “AI Product Manager.”

Here is the deal: AI—ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini—is real and it is not going away. You are not going to get very far if you don’t show interest or evidence of AI work, especially in a tight job market.

• Show your stripes: If you can show off a portfolio piece or talk through a project (even if redacted), do it.

• Get familiar now: This isn’t something to prepare for next year; start using these tools in your day-to-day work now.

• Understand the concepts: You don’t need to know every agent under the sun, but you need to understand how to build an agent or how AI accelerates development.

For deep dives, look at leaders like Aakash Gupta, Paweł Huryn, and Claire Vo. But from my experience, where AI is going to “replace” product management is in the low-level, repetitive, tactical work.

Things like scoring stories, processing work, and tedious requests are ripe for automation. I have built agents at my workplace that save me hours a week on meaningful but low-level tasks. This allows you to focus on what makes you distinct: your strategic, creative thinking. That is the huge lever you can pull.

If you are new to the field, you might have done the work by proxy but don’t know the formal terms.

• Marty Cagan (Inspired / Empowered): An author of several authoritative books on product management. Even if it’s theoretical from your perspective and current experience, Marty’s books can help you understand the terminology so you can speak fluently. When I read Inspired, it gave me the framing I needed to better tell my own story to recruiters.

• Gabriel Steinhardt: Focuses on what I consider a formalized “pure” view of what product management is supposed to be versus what it is not. Gabriel goes back to the roots. While your business might not reflect that reality, having that sense of history and purity helps you frame your understanding.

• David Pereira: Passionately advocates for leveling up product management skillsets and avoiding the trap of “backlog management.” He provides immense clarity in the direction you’re seeking in product management and how best to flourish in your existing or upcoming roles.

Lastly, remember that portfolios aren’t just for designers. Product managers should have them, too—whether it’s redacted roadmaps, PRDs, or a blog.

When you are interviewing, focus on these key soft skills:

• Indirect Leadership: Most of us are individual contributors. Have stories about how you persuaded someone, how you said “no” convincingly, and how you influenced the company’s goals without having direct authority.

• Cross-Functional Communication: You are the glue. Show how you translate concepts between engineers and business stakeholders.

• Humility: No one likes a glory hound. Focus on how you made the business grow, not just your own accolades. Businesses are teams, not families—show why you should be the player selected for the draft.

I hope this provides a good foundation for those of you trying to get into the field. I would love to have anyone reading this provide their own insights or references in the comments.

This article has been lightly copyedited and refined by AI from a recording transcript. For this specific article, I used Google Gemini for the text and Nano Banana for the graphic — my first attempts with either resource.