PDM 101
What is product management?
*50 bonus points if you can explain it in your own words to a beginner
Definition: "Product management is an organizational function that guides every step of a products lifecycle- from development to positioning and pricing- by focusing on the product and its customers first and foremost"
Name at least 5 topics that a student will be learning during Part #1: Essentials of our bootcamp.
- The Product Development Cycle
- Building Business Models
-Business Fundamentals
-Hypothesis Validation
-Design Thinking
-Product Planning (building roadmaps)
-Understanding Minimum Viable Product (MVPs)
-Product Analysis
-Building a Product Strategy
-Working with & Hiring Teams
-Landing a Job as a PDM
Name 3 job titles that we prepare students for upon completion of our bootcamp?
Associate Product Manager, Product Manager and Senior Product Manager
Others:
Product Owner, Technical Product Manager, Ecommerce Product Manager
What is the current schedule that is offered and how is the bootcamp structured? (hint: make sure to include days of week)
-Part Time Structure (25 Weeks),24 weeks of instruction with 1 week break
Breakdown:
Part #1: Essentials, 12 weeks, Tuesdays and Thursdays
**Break**
Part #2: Four 3-Week Specialty Courses (12 weeks). Tuesdays, Wednesdays ADDED, and Thursdays
Product management is at the intersection of which 3 key areas?
User Experience (UX), technology & Business
How many ADDITIONAL hours should students plan on spending outside of the class sessions during Part #1 & and Part #2 of our bootcamp?
Part #1: 3-4 hours
Part #2: 1-2 hours
Besides their Certification of Completion, which additional certification do we also prepare our students for?
Sike!
Additional certifications are NOT required within a majority of roles.
200 POINT FREEBIE:
Captain, what is the most interesting thing you have learned regarding PDM?
no wrong answers!
Which tool is used by product managers to plan a product lifecycle that is also a shared source of truth?
Product Roadmaps
How many portfolio assessments (projects) can a student expect to do during the course of the bootcamp?
-5. Each of the 5 courses in the bootcamp includes solving an authentic problem that a real product manager working in an existing company faces.
-Students will leave with a portfolio of work showcasing their PDM abilities.
Where can you direct students to view jobs?
Sites such as LinkedIn, Indeed, ZipRecruiter, Google, etc.
What was the traditional route students have historically taken to learn about product management?
MBA degree
What does a Product Manager do? Name at least 4 things.
- Decide what should be built/why it should/how it should work.
- Communicate a clear vision strategy to a team working across departments.
- Motivate and lead a team to develop/launch new products and features.
- Make sure plans are completed on time, while consulting with other departments and stakeholders. (communication)
- Review customer data (survey, 1 v 1, market/research)
- Utilize project tracking cools and ticket tracking systems.
- Decision making/consulting/strategy
Name at least 5 tools that a student will gain exposure to during our bootcamp?
- Prototyping in Balsamiq
-Agile for Product Management
-Learn product development
-Atlassian Jira
-Google Analytics
- Strategyzer Business Development
-Figma
-Adobe Fresco
-Sketch
-Hugo
-Basic Javascript
When does Career Success begin? Also, name at least 4 career success services that are provided to our students.
- Career Success begins during Part #1: Essentials of the bootcamp.
-Can be; building a technical resume, linkedin profile, network within industry, preparation for behavioral interviews, job search motivation, negotiate offers, portfolio
What is our free self-paced course "Intro to Product Management" designed for?
It is designed to help students explore how their current skill set fits into the profession, learn more bout the career path, and outlines the day-in-the-life of a Product Manager. Plus it gives a taste for Fullstack Instruction.
What were product managers originally known as?
the "brand man"
What are the 4 specialty courses that we include in our curriculum? Please give us a brief explanation of what the student will be learning in each one.
1. User Experience (US) & User Interface (UI) Research: learn/practice both quantitative and qualitative methods to gain understanding of users needs/interests.
2. Product Design: strong foundation in key design concepts and prototyping products across a wide range of industries.
3. Product Marketing: Techniques include empathy mapping, product storytelling, and creating go-to-market plans. (most critical to a PDM's job)
4. Software Development and Metrics: Learn agile, technical concepts like APIs and machine learning, and tech stack concepts.
Pretend I am a student, how would you explain a day in the life of a product manager?
-utilize project tracking tools
-Track feature requests through a ticket tracking system
-Reviewing customer data
-Communication/Documenting
-Decision making/consulting/advising on strategy
-Conduct market research
What are the minimum computer requirements?
-Apple or Windows Computer
-OS; MacOS 10.15, Windows 10 or Ubuntu 18.04
-Dual-core Intel i5, AMD 3000 processor (CPU), or Apple M1
-8GB RAM
-128 GB solid-state hard drive (SSD) with at least 60 GB free
-Webcam and microphone
-13'' screen