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Greetings everyone.  I thought I'd start off with a post about how to build a new product team in a company that has never had one before.  There are so many different ways to start but one question I'm asked all the time is this:

What's more important, hiring a seasoned product manager or hiring someone with the domain knowledge you need and teaching them how to be a product manager?

What do you think?

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Founder
Interesting Blazer
St Petersburg, FL
------------------------------

I could say it depends. I've seen both approaches work in my time.  I could say that to be effective in a product management role, you need both domain knowledge and product management skills. So if someone comes in with deep domain knowledge but no product skills, they will need training and coaching to augment their considerable industry skill to be effective. Vice-versa, if they are expert product managers in another field, then they will need to dive into the industry and domain in order to make the transition work. I could argue that if the domain is complex, then a product manager will need quite a bit of time to get up to speed, however, if they are supported by a seasoned manager, that can work.

Another argument is that it depends on the makeup of the wider team and if individuals in the team have strengths and weaknesses then it can still work if all the right skills and knowledge is available and collaborating well.

But if you pushed me off the fence, I think product management is a hugely transferrable skill, more than most organisations appreciate. The patterns of product management are similar across industries and a good product manager knows what information to go after and which people they need to interrogate in order to assess a market and a portfolio. Also, I don't believe you need to be an expert on everything to be a great product manager. A good product manager with strong skills, the humility that they won't know everything on day one and the benefit of a fresh perspective in a new industry, I believe can bring enormous value to an organisation.

------------------------------
Brian Martin
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 04-06-2019 11:34
From: Ernie Harris
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Greetings everyone.  I thought I'd start off with a post about how to build a new product team in a company that has never had one before.  There are so many different ways to start but one question I'm asked all the time is this:

What's more important, hiring a seasoned product manager or hiring someone with the domain knowledge you need and teaching them how to be a product manager?

What do you think?

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Founder
Interesting Blazer
St Petersburg, FL
------------------------------

Ernie:

I have actually done this several times over for clients, bootstrapping the product management function.  So here are some highlights from lessons learned over the years.  One of the things to consider is your resource budget for the function.  Are you hiring only a single product manager, or are you creating a department?  If the latter, then you can hire both to create a team that has a wide range of skills.  If you are talking about hiring a single product manager, then that is a different issue, and the short answer here is hire a seasoned product manager.

The reason why I say this is that building a product management function impacts more than just having a product manager.  Not previously having one has other implications regarding process, culture, etc.  These are areas that will need some adjustment, and you will need a seasoned veteran to know how to navigate the organization politics involved.  The one thing the company already has is domain knowledge.  What it is likely lacking is the other aspects of the product management function.  A seasoned product manager doesn't necessarily need domain knowledge as they know how to harvest the tacit knowledge in an organization.  The lack of domain knowledge can be an asset, as it forces the PM to ask a lot of questions, to which they will get differing answers to which they must reconcile. 

Someone with domain knowledge won't ask the questions, will foster their own opinions, which may not be the best.  Meanwhile they are struggle with how to address the organizational issues that gave rise to the need for a product management function.  Often these people just become Product Specialist in a sales support role, which is fine, if that is what you need.

Therefore, it is important to first outline the problems and issues you are trying to address by adding product managers, and define what success look's like.  That analysis should give you a clearer picture of which type of candidate you need.

Happy to discuss in more detail with you,

Dan Lewis



------------------------------
Daniel E. Lewis PhD, PE, PMP, NPDP
President - Product Acuity Consulting
www.productacuity.com
The Woodlands, Texas
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 04-06-2019 11:34
From: Ernie Harris
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Greetings everyone.  I thought I'd start off with a post about how to build a new product team in a company that has never had one before.  There are so many different ways to start but one question I'm asked all the time is this:

What's more important, hiring a seasoned product manager or hiring someone with the domain knowledge you need and teaching them how to be a product manager?

What do you think?

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Founder
Interesting Blazer
St Petersburg, FL
------------------------------

Brian and Daniel - 

Both great points and thank you for your thoughts on the subject.  When I look to solve this problem I tend to focus most on something you said Brian.

"...a good product manager knows what information to go after and which people they need to interrogate in order to assess a market and a portfolio."

When you're looking at someone that doesn't have any product management experience/skills, how do you know if they'll be good?  How do you know if they receive the product management knowledge you wish to transfer?  What are your thoughts on the "unteachable" qualities of a product manager - or are there any?  Here are two that I think are not necessarily unteachable but very hard to develop in a person not already pre-disposed to these traits:

1. The need to ask why.  Some people want to know why and some people accept what they're given.  Great product managers are always asking why.
2. An inherent understanding of things.  Often, it's called intuition or the "sniff test", but great product managers are able to review a set of facts/information and determine if they are internally consistent and the effort is directionally correct.

I find these soft skills are so important and so hard to teach - then again, maybe I'm not the best teacher :)

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Principal
Interesting Blazer
Saint Petersburg FL
727-512-6021
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 06-05-2019 12:09
From: Daniel Lewis
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Ernie:

I have actually done this several times over for clients, bootstrapping the product management function.  So here are some highlights from lessons learned over the years.  One of the things to consider is your resource budget for the function.  Are you hiring only a single product manager, or are you creating a department?  If the latter, then you can hire both to create a team that has a wide range of skills.  If you are talking about hiring a single product manager, then that is a different issue, and the short answer here is hire a seasoned product manager.

The reason why I say this is that building a product management function impacts more than just having a product manager.  Not previously having one has other implications regarding process, culture, etc.  These are areas that will need some adjustment, and you will need a seasoned veteran to know how to navigate the organization politics involved.  The one thing the company already has is domain knowledge.  What it is likely lacking is the other aspects of the product management function.  A seasoned product manager doesn't necessarily need domain knowledge as they know how to harvest the tacit knowledge in an organization.  The lack of domain knowledge can be an asset, as it forces the PM to ask a lot of questions, to which they will get differing answers to which they must reconcile.

Someone with domain knowledge won't ask the questions, will foster their own opinions, which may not be the best.  Meanwhile they are struggle with how to address the organizational issues that gave rise to the need for a product management function.  Often these people just become Product Specialist in a sales support role, which is fine, if that is what you need.

Therefore, it is important to first outline the problems and issues you are trying to address by adding product managers, and define what success look's like.  That analysis should give you a clearer picture of which type of candidate you need.

Happy to discuss in more detail with you,

Dan Lewis



------------------------------
Daniel E. Lewis PhD, PE, PMP, NPDP
President - Product Acuity Consulting
www.productacuity.com
The Woodlands, Texas

Original Message:
Sent: 04-06-2019 11:34
From: Ernie Harris
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Greetings everyone.  I thought I'd start off with a post about how to build a new product team in a company that has never had one before.  There are so many different ways to start but one question I'm asked all the time is this:

What's more important, hiring a seasoned product manager or hiring someone with the domain knowledge you need and teaching them how to be a product manager?

What do you think?

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Founder
Interesting Blazer
St Petersburg, FL
------------------------------

​Ernie:

Great call out about  "The need to ask why.  Some people want to know why and some people accept what they're given.  Great product managers are always asking why."  This is an example to what I was referring to about those without domain expertise will ask questions, while those with domain expertise will assume they already know the answer, and will be biased by their prior knowledge.  The soft skills are critical in being able to maneuver the inherent politics of the organization, and these only come with experience.

Back to Brian's point about having seen both work.  The best fit will depend upon the point of pain you are trying to address.  I cannot stress how critically important this is.  The role of product management in an organization varies quite a bit, and I have found this is dependent upon the overall product innovation maturity of the organization.  Don't put a sprinter in to lead a environment where everyone is just learning to crawl.  Some examples of differing needs include (1) too many moving parts with new products, and what is needed is someone to pull it all together on time, on budget, and be the go to person on issues.  (2) The ability to generate customer facing collateral and sales tools for use in sales presentations, and be a customer facing subject matter expert, or (3) be an expert in competitive offering, emerging trends, and hidden customer needs to generate and  foster new product concepts.

Some companies will roll all three needs into one role, with differing priorities.  In more mature organizations with more resources you will actually see dedicated roles of Project Manager, Marketing Manager, and Product Manager, for a given product set.

The emphasis on the priority of soft skills versus domain expertise will depend upon the driving need, and the defined success metrics or objective and key results desired.

Dan Lewis

------------------------------
Daniel E. Lewis PhD, PE, PMP, NPDP
President - Product Acuity Consulting
www.productacuity.com
The Woodlands, Texas
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 06-06-2019 07:59
From: Ernie Harris
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Brian and Daniel -

Both great points and thank you for your thoughts on the subject.  When I look to solve this problem I tend to focus most on something you said Brian.

"...a good product manager knows what information to go after and which people they need to interrogate in order to assess a market and a portfolio."

When you're looking at someone that doesn't have any product management experience/skills, how do you know if they'll be good?  How do you know if they receive the product management knowledge you wish to transfer?  What are your thoughts on the "unteachable" qualities of a product manager - or are there any?  Here are two that I think are not necessarily unteachable but very hard to develop in a person not already pre-disposed to these traits:

1. The need to ask why.  Some people want to know why and some people accept what they're given.  Great product managers are always asking why.
2. An inherent understanding of things.  Often, it's called intuition or the "sniff test", but great product managers are able to review a set of facts/information and determine if they are internally consistent and the effort is directionally correct.

I find these soft skills are so important and so hard to teach - then again, maybe I'm not the best teacher :)

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Principal
Interesting Blazer
Saint Petersburg FL
727-512-6021

Original Message:
Sent: 06-05-2019 12:09
From: Daniel Lewis
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Ernie:

I have actually done this several times over for clients, bootstrapping the product management function.  So here are some highlights from lessons learned over the years.  One of the things to consider is your resource budget for the function.  Are you hiring only a single product manager, or are you creating a department?  If the latter, then you can hire both to create a team that has a wide range of skills.  If you are talking about hiring a single product manager, then that is a different issue, and the short answer here is hire a seasoned product manager.

The reason why I say this is that building a product management function impacts more than just having a product manager.  Not previously having one has other implications regarding process, culture, etc.  These are areas that will need some adjustment, and you will need a seasoned veteran to know how to navigate the organization politics involved.  The one thing the company already has is domain knowledge.  What it is likely lacking is the other aspects of the product management function.  A seasoned product manager doesn't necessarily need domain knowledge as they know how to harvest the tacit knowledge in an organization.  The lack of domain knowledge can be an asset, as it forces the PM to ask a lot of questions, to which they will get differing answers to which they must reconcile.

Someone with domain knowledge won't ask the questions, will foster their own opinions, which may not be the best.  Meanwhile they are struggle with how to address the organizational issues that gave rise to the need for a product management function.  Often these people just become Product Specialist in a sales support role, which is fine, if that is what you need.

Therefore, it is important to first outline the problems and issues you are trying to address by adding product managers, and define what success look's like.  That analysis should give you a clearer picture of which type of candidate you need.

Happy to discuss in more detail with you,

Dan Lewis



------------------------------
Daniel E. Lewis PhD, PE, PMP, NPDP
President - Product Acuity Consulting
www.productacuity.com
The Woodlands, Texas

Original Message:
Sent: 04-06-2019 11:34
From: Ernie Harris
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Greetings everyone.  I thought I'd start off with a post about how to build a new product team in a company that has never had one before.  There are so many different ways to start but one question I'm asked all the time is this:

What's more important, hiring a seasoned product manager or hiring someone with the domain knowledge you need and teaching them how to be a product manager?

What do you think?

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Founder
Interesting Blazer
St Petersburg, FL
------------------------------

What are your thoughts on the "unteachable" qualities of a product manager - or are there any? 

Great discussion. I think Product Managers are intense generalists across business functions. One minute they could be mining for customer insights, next creating a business case and presenting it to the CFO for approval, then talking tech with a developer, then trying to understand issues in customer service from a call centre agent and soon after training up sales on a new proposition or campaign. The list goes on and on. Without that continuous thirst to understand all facets of their product portfolio, I think a product manager can soon find themselves out of their depth.

Can you teach that thirst for understanding, the constant asking of why? I think if someone doesn't have it naturally, then it is likely the person will limit their scope somewhat to a subset of the activities Dan mentions. You can teach domain knowledge. You can teach product management and development tools, techniques and practices. What you can't teach is how to have the drive and determination to take ownership across the board in order to deliver optimal commercial outcomes for the business.

------------------------------
Brian Martin
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 06-06-2019 07:59
From: Ernie Harris
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Brian and Daniel -

Both great points and thank you for your thoughts on the subject.  When I look to solve this problem I tend to focus most on something you said Brian.

"...a good product manager knows what information to go after and which people they need to interrogate in order to assess a market and a portfolio."

When you're looking at someone that doesn't have any product management experience/skills, how do you know if they'll be good?  How do you know if they receive the product management knowledge you wish to transfer?  What are your thoughts on the "unteachable" qualities of a product manager - or are there any?  Here are two that I think are not necessarily unteachable but very hard to develop in a person not already pre-disposed to these traits:

1. The need to ask why.  Some people want to know why and some people accept what they're given.  Great product managers are always asking why.
2. An inherent understanding of things.  Often, it's called intuition or the "sniff test", but great product managers are able to review a set of facts/information and determine if they are internally consistent and the effort is directionally correct.

I find these soft skills are so important and so hard to teach - then again, maybe I'm not the best teacher :)

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Principal
Interesting Blazer
Saint Petersburg FL
727-512-6021

Original Message:
Sent: 06-05-2019 12:09
From: Daniel Lewis
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Ernie:

I have actually done this several times over for clients, bootstrapping the product management function.  So here are some highlights from lessons learned over the years.  One of the things to consider is your resource budget for the function.  Are you hiring only a single product manager, or are you creating a department?  If the latter, then you can hire both to create a team that has a wide range of skills.  If you are talking about hiring a single product manager, then that is a different issue, and the short answer here is hire a seasoned product manager.

The reason why I say this is that building a product management function impacts more than just having a product manager.  Not previously having one has other implications regarding process, culture, etc.  These are areas that will need some adjustment, and you will need a seasoned veteran to know how to navigate the organization politics involved.  The one thing the company already has is domain knowledge.  What it is likely lacking is the other aspects of the product management function.  A seasoned product manager doesn't necessarily need domain knowledge as they know how to harvest the tacit knowledge in an organization.  The lack of domain knowledge can be an asset, as it forces the PM to ask a lot of questions, to which they will get differing answers to which they must reconcile.

Someone with domain knowledge won't ask the questions, will foster their own opinions, which may not be the best.  Meanwhile they are struggle with how to address the organizational issues that gave rise to the need for a product management function.  Often these people just become Product Specialist in a sales support role, which is fine, if that is what you need.

Therefore, it is important to first outline the problems and issues you are trying to address by adding product managers, and define what success look's like.  That analysis should give you a clearer picture of which type of candidate you need.

Happy to discuss in more detail with you,

Dan Lewis



------------------------------
Daniel E. Lewis PhD, PE, PMP, NPDP
President - Product Acuity Consulting
www.productacuity.com
The Woodlands, Texas

Original Message:
Sent: 04-06-2019 11:34
From: Ernie Harris
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Greetings everyone.  I thought I'd start off with a post about how to build a new product team in a company that has never had one before.  There are so many different ways to start but one question I'm asked all the time is this:

What's more important, hiring a seasoned product manager or hiring someone with the domain knowledge you need and teaching them how to be a product manager?

What do you think?

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Founder
Interesting Blazer
St Petersburg, FL
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 04-06-2019 11:34
From: Ernie Harris
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Greetings everyone.  I thought I'd start off with a post about how to build a new product team in a company that has never had one before.  There are so many different ways to start but one question I'm asked all the time is this:

What's more important, hiring a seasoned product manager or hiring someone with the domain knowledge you need and teaching them how to be a product manager?

What do you think?

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Founder
Interesting Blazer
St Petersburg, FL
------------------------------

I agree, Rolando, it's hard to find a domain specialist who will naturally, out of the gate, take on that wider perspective in terms of customer and market needs, competitive positioning, etc.

Sometimes, in the past, when I written a job spec for a Product Manager, I look at it realise that I am looking for someone who effectively walks on water, such are the demands of the position! Inevitably I find the need to compromise, as few such people exist. And then you get into what is teachable vs. inherent when making that call.

------------------------------
Brian Martin
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 06-23-2019 18:40
From: Rolando Cruzado
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Interesting forum! In my experience, working with the National Council of Science & Technology from the Peruvian government, the professionals who: Get funds for creating technological innovation, and have highly Domain experience in a specific knowledge (New Materiales, Biotechnology, Mechatronics, Biology, Environment, etc) contribute with highly great inputs (technical) for Development stages, however, they require too much help for the fuzzy front-end side of the New product development process. There, they usually need to cover answers such as: What customers need, what are the marketing trends, what CEOs and Internal operative areas need, what are the legal frameworks, and How competitors are operating. Greetings!  Rolando Cruzado

Original Message:
Sent: 04-06-2019 11:34
From: Ernie Harris
Subject: Product Expert or Domain Expert

Greetings everyone.  I thought I'd start off with a post about how to build a new product team in a company that has never had one before.  There are so many different ways to start but one question I'm asked all the time is this:

What's more important, hiring a seasoned product manager or hiring someone with the domain knowledge you need and teaching them how to be a product manager?

What do you think?

------------------------------
Ernie Harris
Founder
Interesting Blazer
St Petersburg, FL
------------------------------