Useful Readings for a Product Manager

By Bruce Firestone | Uncategorized

Jan 02

I was recently asked by two young
people to compile a list of useful readings for would-be product managers. Of course,
their obvious course of
action is to come to a Learn By Doing course on Advanced Product Management given
by an expert in the subject, namely yours truly. The next course starts Monday
Dec. 3, 2012 in Ottawa
(it is five consecutive 3-hour morning lectures followed by student
presentations on Saturday morning).

This
is a course developed for techies, biz dev execs, marcom people, engineers,
architects, artists and design professionals.

First, What is a Product
Manager?

A
Product Manager is a person who has technical expertise as well as marketing
and communications skills. He or she is present at the very beginning of a new
initiative, i.e., at the ideation stage. Their responsibilities include taking
a new product or service from ideation though its development phase and then
into the marketplace via pre-selected marketing channels. They bring an
understanding of concept planning, functional programming, scheduling,
budgeting, business modeling, pricing theory, guerrilla and social marketing to
bear on this process.

They
provide team leadership and take responsibility for delivery of products (or
services) that are in demand by the market and to the market on time and on
budget and that produce target rates of return. They understand the value of
launch clients and pre-sales not only to provide a revenue stream for each new
product or service but also to obtain product feedback before launch.

Useful Readings

Here
are some useful readings to get a would-be product manager started:

Product Management
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_management

The Parallels between Product
Manager and Entrepreneur
Posted on Saturday 16 July 2011
Guest Post by Alan Mcnaughtan, Associate Director – Internet Product
Development – Bell
Internet
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=2649

Concept Planning, Functional
Programming & Critical Path Methodology
Posted on Sunday 12 September 2010
For Product Managers
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=1410

iPhone Yields at least 288% p.a.
Return to Apple
Posted on Saturday 16 October 2010
Advanced Spreadsheet Use—For Product Managers
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=1714

IRR, Internal Rate of Return
Posted on Saturday 23 April 2011
Power of Leverage/Goal Setting
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=2462

Cash Conversion Cycle, CCC
Posted on Friday 4 February 2011
Plus How the CCC Affects Your Internal Rate of Return,
The Power of Leverage to Work for You and Against You, and
Effectively Manage your Enterprise by Measuring your Cash Position
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=2257

Looking Back to Look Forward
Posted on Saturday 7 April 2012
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=3527

The Complete Business Model
Posted on Saturday 16 January 2010
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=692

Message
Map
https://www.dramatispersonae.org/?p=87

How, Why and Whether to Write a
Media Release
Posted on Thursday 8 March 2012
Understanding the simple arithmetic of how blogs, Twitter, FB, Digg, Reddit and
YouTube are cratering mainstream media
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=3420

MMB, Magic Marketing Button
Posted on Sunday 12 February 2012
(How Picture Inc can Develop a Sustainable Community Built Around its
Redesigned Biz Model)
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=3335

Bundling
Posted on Sunday 12 February 2012
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=3325

Why Business Models Are Important
Posted on Thursday 19 January 2012
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=3120

Product Managers and Decoy Pricing
Posted on Saturday 18 June 2011
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=2525

Is Corporate Planning Obsolete?
Posted on Friday 27 May 2011
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=2484

Standards
Posted on Sunday 12 September 2010
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=1366

A Product Manager’s Fatal Mistake
Posted on Monday 16 November 2009
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=494

Why Businesses (Really) Fail
Posted on Sunday 29 November 2009
Or Why Gadgets and Gizmos Don’t Make for Sound Businesses
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=548

How to Get Sponsors For Practically
Anything
Posted on Friday 8 October 2010
How to Find Launch Clients
Useful Co-opetition
Strategic Investors
Social Norms v Commercial Ones
https://www.eqjournal.org/?p=1649

Advanced Product Management Course
Description
https://www.dramatispersonae.org/?p=50

Product
management is a fast growing profession and essential to the health of all
organizations and that includes not-for-profits, charities, NGOs, even
governments who all have an obligation and duty to be effective and efficient
too. So they need decent business models and top notch product managers to
deliver on their promises.

@ProfBruce

Dr.
Bruce M. Firestone, Founder, Ottawa Senators; Author, Quantum Entity Trilogy;
Executive Director, Exploriem.org; Broker, Century 21 Explorer Realty;
Entrepreneurship Ambassador, Telfer School of Management, University of Ottawa.

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About the Author

Bruce is an entrepreneur/real estate broker/developer/coach/urban guru/keynote speaker/Sens founder/novelist/columnist/peerless husband/dad.

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