The article critiques the common misconception that product management can be a straightforward process characterized by rigid structures and clearly defined roles. Through a personal experience in a complex infrastructure project, the author emphasizes that effective product development often arises from collaborative and iterative practices, rather than a strict adherence to documents like PRDs. The lead engineer's insights highlighted the need for a flexible approach, advocating for co-authorship in project planning and emphasizing that the messy nature of innovation is where true product excellence is achieved. It concludes with six habits to enhance PM-engineering collaboration.
The best outcomes often stem from integrated, messy, co-created partnerships grounded in shared ownership, open dialogue, and mutual trust.
My approach was efficient and optimized for immediate delivery but it was fragile at scale.
The PM-to-engineer handoff isn't just inefficient, it's a complete fiction. We often act like development follows a neat sequence. It doesn't.
Innovation is messy. And that mess is where great products live.
Collection
[
|
...
]