Comments on: I am NOT the CEO of my Product http://www.theproductologist.com/index.php/2008/01/03/i-am-not-the-ceo-of-my-product/ Exploring the Depths of Product Management Sat, 17 May 2008 00:54:34 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.3 By: Saeed Khan http://www.theproductologist.com/index.php/2008/01/03/i-am-not-the-ceo-of-my-product/#comment-449 Saeed Khan Sun, 04 May 2008 00:10:31 +0000 http://www.theproductologist.com/index.php/2008/01/03/i-am-not-the-ceo-of-my-product/#comment-449 I agree with you strongly. I cringe whenever I hear someone say that Product Management is the CEO of the product. If that were truly the case, things would run very differently in the company WRT products. Even CEO's have constraints though. The BOD can constrain a CEOs ability to run the company in the way he/she sees fit. And certainly there are a number of external pressures that make the CEOs job difficult. In the end, as a PM, I have a lot of say into what goes on in the product, but there are clear constraints and limits, and no matter how hard I try, a marketing team (for example), who has their own agenda is not going to budge unless the real CEO sets their agenda for them. Saeed I agree with you strongly.

I cringe whenever I hear someone say that Product Management is the CEO of the product. If that were truly the case, things would run very differently in the company WRT products.

Even CEO’s have constraints though. The BOD can constrain a CEOs ability to run the company in the way he/she sees fit. And certainly there are a number of external pressures that make the CEOs job difficult.

In the end, as a PM, I have a lot of say into what goes on in the product, but there are clear constraints and limits, and no matter how hard I try, a marketing team (for example), who has their own agenda is not going to budge unless the real CEO sets their agenda for them.

Saeed

]]> By: It’s MY Product » The Productologist http://www.theproductologist.com/index.php/2008/01/03/i-am-not-the-ceo-of-my-product/#comment-299 It’s MY Product » The Productologist Tue, 11 Mar 2008 15:57:21 +0000 http://www.theproductologist.com/index.php/2008/01/03/i-am-not-the-ceo-of-my-product/#comment-299 [...] the Product Manager should feel a sense of ownership of their product(s). Despite not being the CEO of the Product, the Product Manager is the one person within an organization that has a wholly vested interest in [...] […] the Product Manager should feel a sense of ownership of their product(s). Despite not being the CEO of the Product, the Product Manager is the one person within an organization that has a wholly vested interest in […]

]]> By: The Productologist » Book Review: Getting It Done http://www.theproductologist.com/index.php/2008/01/03/i-am-not-the-ceo-of-my-product/#comment-161 The Productologist » Book Review: Getting It Done Sun, 13 Jan 2008 17:01:08 +0000 http://www.theproductologist.com/index.php/2008/01/03/i-am-not-the-ceo-of-my-product/#comment-161 [...] an apt one and it reminds us that while Product Managers are the stewards of the product, we must expand our viewpoint beyond what we know or are comfortable with in order to best serve [...] […] an apt one and it reminds us that while Product Managers are the stewards of the product, we must expand our viewpoint beyond what we know or are comfortable with in order to best serve […]

]]> By: Ivan Chalif http://www.theproductologist.com/index.php/2008/01/03/i-am-not-the-ceo-of-my-product/#comment-141 Ivan Chalif Mon, 07 Jan 2008 06:15:06 +0000 http://www.theproductologist.com/index.php/2008/01/03/i-am-not-the-ceo-of-my-product/#comment-141 @UPDATE After I wrote this, I found some other posts that supported and contradicted my position. You can see them here-- <a href="http://allaboutproductmanagement.blogspot.com/2007/11/great-product-managers-are-on-route-to.html" rel="nofollow">allaboutproductmanagement</a> <a href="http://writethatdown.com/archives/2007/03/not-being-the-ceo" rel="nofollow">write that down</a> They each have different takes that are not necessarily the same as what I wrote about, but the topic is the same (PM is/isn't like CEO...). The really sad part about finding these after having written my post was that I subscribe to both of these blogs. The first one was just posted a couple of months ago and I have been swamped, so I can side-step that one, but Adam's was from way back in March of 2007. I just plain missed his excellent post. @UPDATE

After I wrote this, I found some other posts that supported and contradicted my position. You can see them here–

allaboutproductmanagement
write that down

They each have different takes that are not necessarily the same as what I wrote about, but the topic is the same (PM is/isn’t like CEO…).

The really sad part about finding these after having written my post was that I subscribe to both of these blogs. The first one was just posted a couple of months ago and I have been swamped, so I can side-step that one, but Adam’s was from way back in March of 2007. I just plain missed his excellent post.

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