As product managers we produce and consume a lot of information. Can one person do it all?
For many of us, there is only one person. Yet the product manager, in theory, is supposed to stay abreast of market conditions, technology, customer problems, prospect problems, monitor the sales process, frame marketing content, write requirements, etc. You get the idea. You know the tremendous amount of content that must go in one ear, get processed and come out the other.
Can your product be successful if you don’t have time for it all? I vote no.
However, do you need to do it all today? Again, I vote no.
If you are in a situation, where delagation is not possible the most important task for you is to understand the most important strategy for the CEO and the timeline for their vision.
The timeline is likely the most important factor here, likely because if you are in a smaller company the CEO is only thinking about revenue and has quotas to demonstrate to the board.
Assume your CEO is focused on revenue for the next 6 months? Does it make sense to be tweaking your roadmap for features to be delivered in 18 months? One could argue that as a product manager you need to be thinking long-term and I agree. However, if your product doesn’t deliver revenue in the next 6 months you may not be around to see 18 months.
Your goal is to deliver the right product at the right time. Why should you not be working on the right activities at the right time? Work smart, not hard.
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