Why Great Product Managers Are Business System Stewards

Several years ago, I consulted with a large IT organization working for the VP of program management. This VP and I have a long history of delivering results for more than 25 years. His organization was comprised of program directors with varying levels of project managers working in each program director’s organization. The program management VP had a peer VP accountable for product management. The product management VP also had directors, which included product managers and product owners.

The product management and program management organizations didn’t get along well. There was confusion on role clarity, and a chronic “that’s not my job” mentality. The product managers didn’t think they should be accountable to the program managers, and the program managers had difficulty pinning down what the product managers were—and were not—accountable to deliver.

Shortly after I started my consulting gig, the VP of product management hired a new product management director. In one of his first meetings, which included the program management VP, the product management director referred to himself as “CEO of the Product.”

Read more at ProjectManagement.com.