An associate product manager and a WSO walk into a bar.....
Entry level product managers are capable of more
A associate product manager and a WSO walk into a bar.....the APM says,
“My boss doesn’t give me enough responsibility.”
The WSO responds,
“Oh yea, well I went to flight school and they don’t even let me fly the plane.”
What the heck is a WSO? If you’re not familiar with the military terminology, which I’m not, WSO stands for ‘weapon systems officer’. It’s typically enunciated as “wizzo”. I came across the term while watching some F-18 videos on YouTube and was interested enough to dig into their role.
In short, the WSO is responsible for monitoring and manning the weapons system of a two man aircraft. The WSO may not fly the plane, but their role is critical. Entry level PMs can output work that leads to success. They’re capable of more than they’re given. If you recognize that and put a structure in place to assist with that, you can improve the performance and ownership of those entry level PMs. After all, leveling up your employees should be your number one goal as a manager.
Performance
I learned how to be a high performing PM by working with another high performing PM. I saw the level of work that was required. Putting an APM on a product that won’t ever move the needle won’t show them that hard work pays off in the PM field.
It’s also easier to tell if an APM is cut out for the job working in a higher stakes environment where the senior PM they’re working with already knows the product. Product management isn’t for everyone and it’s best to learn that early in your career, rather than later.
Overall, I think putting an APM on a low-risk island really only happens at large companies. But I believe that many smaller companies can get value out of hiring an APM. It will free their PM up to spend more time on higher-level tasks.
Ownership
What ownership do you really give an APM? Most companies have products for them that aren’t mission critical, but enable them to sharpen their PM tools. After all, this may be is their first time being a PM.
The problem with this is that it leads to the PM working in a silo and they know that screwing up doesn’t mean much. Product management is a collaborative job. I’ve done my best work as a PM when I’ve had another PM to talk through problems that was familiar with my product.
Pairing an APM with a PM or senior level PM is the solution. Doing so will give them the feeling of true ownership without making major mistakes as long as the PM they are paired with is a good teacher. It will also free up time for that PM to focus on market research or other tasks that get deprioritized.
Take your hands off the stick and let them fly a little.