Product Manager vs Project Manager

Products represent the essence of the business – how it thrives, grows and brings revenue to the firm. A Product Manager’s first and foremost job is to ensure the organization launches, maintains and supports products that meet user and market needs. Projects are the vehicles used to deliver the executable units of the product strategy – they get the product to launch. Project Managers lead the teams responsible for making a product vision a reality. They communicate the scope and delivery expectations and work with teams to develop the plan. Project Managers monitor day-to-day activities and alert Product Managers when there are issues, potential risks and roadblocks.

Product Manager’s Core Functions

Product Managers are the product or product line “mini-business” owners. They lead cross-functional product teams. These teams are formed to optimize the product’s market position and financial return over its life cycle and their performance should be consistent with division and corporate strategies.

Project Manager Core Functions

Project Managers lead the teams responsible for making a product vision a reality.Effective Project Managers can adapt to changing requirements and priorities and can clearly communicate project status to all levels of the organization. They foster a collaborative environment for their teams and engage Product Management for feedback throughout the development process.

Product Managers vs. Project Managers vs Other Key Organizational Roles

Project Manager vs Scrum Master vs Product Owner

Scrum masters coach and advises the team. They serve as a champion of the product team across the organization to knock down roadblocks and facilitate communication.

Product owners validate and prioritize product features that best meet customer needs and add value.

Project managers lead timeboxed units of work called projects.  Project managers are sometimes more prevalent in waterfall or linear / stage-gate environments than in organizations that employ a purely agile methodology. Oftentimes, project manager responsibilities are split between the scrum master and product owner in agile environments.

Product Owner vs Product Manager vs Project Manager

Product managers determine which product is best to build, based on market insights and strategy. Product owners determine the best way to build the product through feature validation, backlog grooming and prioritization.

Project managers lead timeboxed units of work called projects.  Project managers are sometimes more prevalent in waterfall or linear / stage-gate environments than in organizations that employ a purely agile methodology. Oftentimes, project manager responsibilities are split between the scrum master and product owner in agile environments.

Types of Product Managers vs Project Managers

Scrum Product Owner vs Project Manager

Product owners validate and prioritize product features that best meet customer needs and add value.

Project managers lead timeboxed units of work called projects.  Project managers are sometimes more prevalent in waterfall or linear / stage-gate environments than in organizations that employ a purely agile methodology. Oftentimes, project manager responsibilities are split between the scrum master and product owner in agile environments.

Agile Product Management vs Project Management

“Agile” is an umbrella term for iterative product development. There are many different types of agile development, including scrum, kanban, XP and many others. Regardless of development methodology an organization opts to use, the key to product success is market insights, understanding customer needs and uniquely addressing those needs and problems.

Project management is the collection of processes and tasks that take a unit of work (a project) from beginning to end in the most efficient and effective way possible.

Tips & Resources for Product Managers

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