Product Management Assessment Tool

Richard Mironov -

PM leaders, such as VPs or Director of Product Management, worry about the health of their teams and processes, not just the health of their products. (See my recent post on metrics.) There’s a shortage of tools to help us evaluate how well we’re doing as PM organizations.

I created this simple assessment tool based on a diagram I’ve been using for several years. The diagram highlights three key relationships for a (tech) product manager: with Development, with Marketing/Sales/Customers, and with Executives. (This point of view is not unique. See, for instance, Pragmatic's triad model.)

I created this simple assessment tool
based on a diagram I’ve been using for several years. The diagram highlights three key relationships for a (tech) product manager: with Development, with Marketing/Sales/Customers, and with Executives. (This point of view is not unique. See, for instance, Pragmatic's triad model.) This tool provides a few indicators as to whether we’re meeting our core obligations to these three groups. A fourth category pulls together indicators of good process. Simple 1-to-5 self-ratings roll up into intermediate scores and a RADAR diagram. Consider a working session for the PM team to rate itself and (safely) identify opportunities for improvement.

This tool provides a few indicators as to whether we’re meeting our core obligations to these three groups. A fourth category pulls together indicators of good process. Simple 1-to-5 self-ratings roll up into intermediate scores and a RADAR diagram. Consider a working session for the PM team to rate itself and (safely) identify opportunities for improvement. Download it here.
Comments, improvements and brickbats appreciated. Thanks to Scott Gilbert for his encouragement on this.