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> ...good PMs which by definition review and write good tickets with a clear explanation of the problem and what they want the solution to be This is where the
by necovek 5mo ago
> ...good PMs which by definition review and write good tickets with a clear explanation of the problem and what they want the solution to be
This is where the problem is — such PMs are not "good PMs...by definition". They are usually terrible PMs who start with a solution they envision and work backwards to a customer problem or two.
PMs should be able to clearly form a customers' world model, fit that into their business, and clearly articulate needs to the "builders": UX designers and software engineers.
Builders need to form a sufficiently good mental model of the needs to be able to quickly envision a few solutions with different balance between effort/cost and customer/business value, and then dive deeper on the one they agree on with a PM.
IOW, solutions are provided by the builders who understand the effort part better than the PMs.
Yes, there are PMs who can do that just as well (frequently designers/engineers who switched careers, but not only!) — yet they are far and few between!
This desire to own the solution is usually why engineers and PMs cross horns, and why many a smart person will appear a terrible PM too.
- graemep 5mo ago> PMs should be able to clearly form a customers' world model, fit that into their business, and clearly articulate needs to the "builders": UX designers and software engineers What your describing fits a job I did many years ago and my role was distinct from that of the PM and my job title was Business Designer. That was in the context of software that required complex and precise specifications so may not be typical, but I do think running a project and understanding customer needs are different skills.
- necovek 5mo agoDepends on your "business moment" (how mature you are, how complex your product is, etc) if you want to have more specialization or less. Most software teams benefit from getting daily access to someone who deeply empathises with customers and understands how can their challenges translate into business wins, especially when the problem space is still being explored. Note that I am referring to product managers, and not project managers (since you bring up projects).
- graemep 5mo agoThat explains it. I interpreted PM as project manager.
- satvikpendem 5mo agoI was too terse, what I meant by writing good tickets is what you just said, gathering requirements, running it through UX designers and engineers then writing their collective findings into a ticket that can be picked up by an engineer with minimal questions, as they've already been answered in the ticket.