Where do Product Managers come from?

Patrick O’Malley

Product Tank Paris

5th April 2013

@@pomalley

How did I become PM?

Recognise this man?

This was Frederic Tutor

Known as the “Ice King”

Made a fortune shipping and selling ice from 1805 to 1864

Why Ice?

Ice creams

Serving cold drinks

‘Wenham Lake Ice’ was served at the most exclusive dinner parties in London

How exactly?

Laborers literally “sawed” the ice into blocks

Blocks were brought to an icehouse.

Layers of straw prevented the ice from melting

Storing the Ice

Ice houses held about 150 tonnes of ice.

Blocks packed as closely as possible

Ice pried loose with chisels as it was needed.

Problems?

Most of the ice melted (76% on one notable voyage)

Need a frozen lake!

Months of travel.

Competition

Recognise this man?

Ferdinand Carré

Invented the absorption refrigerator

Patented in 1860

Fitted on ships In 1876

Tons of Wenham Lake Ice

1806 .......... 1301816......... 1,200 1826 .........4,0001836 .......12,000 1846........65,000 1856..... 146,0001860 .....142,463 1865 .....131,2751866 .....124,7511872 .......69,500 1873 .......70,3701874 ...... 69,800 1884.........60,000

Discontinuous Innovation

Artificial Ice Plants

1879 – 35 plants1889 – 222 plants

32% Successful

44% Challenged

24% Failed

Standish Group Study 2009

68% of software development is unsuccessful!

~ 76% of ice melted!

State of Software Dev

Brought a new set of tools

New channels

Facilitated new practices

=> Technological Discontinuity (like the refrigerator)

Internet

Agile Manifesto (2001)

SCRUM has PO “role”

Lean

Internet

New tools

Agile Product Owner role

Lean principles

Chronic waste!

=> Product Management discipline grows

All these things -> Product

The Link

Huge waste

High demand

Solution

ICE SOFTWARE

Refrigeration Better Product Management

Project Manager

Business Analyst

Marketing Executive

Architects

Customer representatives

Business Manager

Other?

* Note: PM = Product Manager or Product Owner

Before PM, you were..

“The product owner has two main responsibilities: creating and delivering the vision”

Roman Pichler

“One person responsible for ROI of the product”

Ken Schwaber

Why have a PM?

Has a vision

Yet gets his hands dirty

Open, honest communicator

Excellent negotiator, encourages consensus

Understands the domain

Passionate and committed

A good PM

Sales Marketing

Finance Engineering

Bridge Internal Gaps

Unifies marketing and engineering

Leverages the genius of whole organization

Relentlessly adds value

Takes responsibility for understanding what ‘value’ means and makes the business clear and in agreement on that.

Better than before?

Product Tank!

Continuous upskilling

Evangelism

Networking

Best Practice

Enjoying it

Where to go from here?

Thank You!

@pomalley

http://pomalley.co.uk/blog