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The role of the Product Manager has changed significantly over the past decade so keeping ahead of technology and domain development is key to remain competitive in the employment market.
The foundations of growth in any career include personal development, practical experience and knowledge. Sometimes the kind of domain specific knowledge Product Managers require can only be provided by those who have a deeper understanding and experience of this field.
Product Management training is often an essential component of any successful Product Manager’s career but before you rush into training here are some words of advice.
Should I invest in product management training?
There are some important questions to ask yourself before you commit to investing in product management training:
Where am I in my career and level of knowledge?
What do I want to get out of training?
What is my budget?
What learning format will work for me?
Where am I now?
Training courses come in various shapes and sizes to suit individuals at different stages of their careers. Experienced Product Managers and Product Owners working in this field already may not be interested in learning the fundamentals (although it’s always good to refresh on the basics!) whereas a Business Analyst who is looking to develop their skills to move into a Product Owner role may require this kind of knowledge.
Roman Pichler provides a simple test that can be quickly completed to assess your level of skill in product management.
What do I want to get out of training?
Ask yourself, do I want practical help in my current role or a qualification which will help me get into product management? Do I want to gain some basic knowledge or do I want to create and use tools and outputs from my training (for example you may want to create a Product Canvas).
What is my budget?
Training courses can cost from a few pounds to thousands of pounds so thinking about budget is important to help ensure you get value for money. Any good Product Manager should understand the importance of value, more affordable training courses may be lacking in quality whilst it is also true to say that expensive courses may lack ROI if they are not right for you.
Think about training as an investment related to your desired outcomes and this will help. For example, if you have a high level of confidence that investing in a particular type of product management training will help you secure the type of product role you want then the return is clearer than simply undertaking training because you think it’s a ‘good idea’.
Which format should I choose?
Deciding which training format will work for you is important, the amount of time and availability to travel to and from training are important factors to consider. If you are fortunate enough to receive sponsorship or funding for your training then flexibility to attend may not be an issue as you will likely attend with colleagues and be encourage to participate.
For those of you who are planning to self-fund training and self-guided study in your own time, an online course which is provided remotely may be the best option. There is a greater choice than ever before of product management courses which can be accessed online.
Instructor-led workshops and one-to-one training may fit your needs better than an online course delivered via video. You may decide that both formats work for you and choose a provider who blends these methods of delivery together.
Quality and experience count
Training provided by organisations and/or individuals can risk wasting valuable time and money. Look for recognised organisations, accreditations and recommendations before committing financially.
Find out about the instructor or those responsible for delivering the training and ask:
Do they produce their own training materials?
Do they have credible and proven experience in product management and even the sector in which I work?
Experience is really valuable here in terms of what you can potentially get out of any training course, textbooks don’t tell you what to do when things go wrong – experienced trainers do. A good product management trainer should have the experience to be able to demonstrate how to apply the theory in practise, how to lead teams to build great products and how to deal with events when they don’t go to plan.
Ready to go?
If you would like to speak to someone regarding your product management training needs then complete the form below.
[contact-form-7 id=”1000″ title=”Digital Product Training Enquiry”]