Product Management Model

Effective product management certainly depends on the coordinated efforts of a cross-functional team, but from our experience and research, product success can be highly correlated to the instrumentality of the product manager. By MIDIOR’s definition, product managers are the “CEOs of their products.” Where product management lives often differs by company or industry and individuals performing the function may not even be called product managers; seek out the entrepreneurs and you will find the true product managers.

At MIDIOR, we believe that product management is a critical discipline, but it is often misunderstood and even more frequently, insufficiently leveraged. There are processes that can help to facilitate success and capture best practices, but there are few generic solutions. To help our clients improve product management effectiveness, MIDIOR has developed a model that distinguishes between the two sides of product management; the internal “Development & Operations” side and the externally facing “Commercial” side. We also conduct annual, structured research into the discipline of product development and product management. The growing emphasis on product management as a discipline is evidenced by the trending data gathered in our annual Benchmark Study of Product Development & Management Practices. Participants tell us that respect and recognition for the importance of a strongly defined product focus is critical to the success of the enterprise and is increasingly translated into an organizational model that features product management as a distinct discipline and more often, a standalone function.

Accelerating new product success means more than accelerating the development cycle- it means you need to be accurate about what you will deliver and excellent at delivering it. In order to be accurate, you need to understand the business of your product as thoroughly as you understand the development specs. In other words, you need to have “all of your wood behind one arrow.” From taking responsibility for where and how the product or service touches the customer, to the myriad business and technical dimensions of the product as it crosses functional lines within the organization, the buck stops at the product manager.

Excellent product management is critical to product success. We support product teams in identifying target markets, defining and prioritizing product requirements, accelerating key initiatives, reducing cycle time and improving bottom line performance – essentially anything a product manager would do. We also provide experienced people to shore up product teams when resources are limited.