Switching teams

As a product manager, switching teams is inevitable. At some point, it is almost certain to be the only way to grow. In bigger companies you may be able to rotate on the same product, but in some industries, like digital marketing, you could end up switching companies, too.

Finding a new ye can be intimidating, not just as a product manager. But as a PM there are some aspects I found really worth emphasizing on when selecting a new opportunity. I’d like to walk you through the advise I got when I wanted to try out something new, in the hope that it provides value to you.

The new manager

Hard to overstate, but scientifically proven, the biggest factor toward your future success is your new manager. That isn’t a secret, or hard to understand, but sometimes we simply forget. If you had a great run, and could consider yourself fortunate to have had an amazing manager, it might be tricky what to watch for when you talk with your future manager as part of the hiring process.

To better understand how he or she ticks, here are some tactics I found useful:

• Ask people who work, or have worked with the person before. Especially folks who have worked with the person are more likely to share an honest perspective.
• Include cords functional folks. X-functional team members aren’t incentivised to lie to you, and the truth is what you need to get to.
• Look for information on the persons background, especially what they studied and how they might think about problems. I studies CS and think more like an engineer, for example. I do well with people who care about the details. Working with a person who is very high level might be ok, but is something to go I to eyes wide open.
• Look for enthusiasm. Even a neutral to positive reaction can be too little. You are looking for something that is boasting with positivity, and at least some key folks who say something like ‘This is the best person I ever worked with.’
• Make sure you find evidence that people like the person as a human being. Your manager needs to care for you, not just be ok that you are here. Ideally they are genuinely thrilled.

The new product

Last I changed teams I totally over indexed on this area. To a fault I later found out. Maybe this is a PM trait, but maybe it was just personal. Either way: don’t over index on the product. Instead, look at it more holistically:

• What state is the new product in? Is it an early product with small adoption, but established product market fit, or are we talking about an established market leader with new regulatory requirements? These aspects will drive your day to day a lot more than if you like the product itself.
• Is it a consumer product or an enterprise product? This matters. I found that the way these products are being built differs greatly, and it will affect your day to day quite a lot. I’ll go I to more detail, but if you plan to change from one to the other, try and really understand the role of the PM on the future product well.
• What will the next 3-5 years for the product likely look like? This is tough to predict, but focus on the macro trend. An established product will likely have less innovation and more compliance work than a fast growing new product.
• Are you joining a product with an established roadmap and broader strategy, or are you asked to join a ‘greenfield’ area? Greenfield is another way of saying we have eng staffed and no clue what they should work on. It’ll be stressful and pressure from day 1, and some PMs like it this way.

The new context

One colleague gave me this important piece of wisdom. When he joined his new gig he said: “I have been working for this big company until now. And if I stay here, I learn what matters to companies like this one, similar in size and maturity. The place I joined is much smaller, and growing much faster, and I am now learning how to do work which is valuable to companies like this one.” He articulated the trade-off here, and that while it sounds exciting, it is much more about what your personal priorities are than what an objective yardstick that can be applied to every situation alike.

I loved his perspective, since it allows to really look at everything from a perspective of relative value and growth, rather than some absolute score. It does require that you deeply understand what you are after, and how it will help you grow as a professional.

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To summarize, in my experience the new manager has been the most important aspect. I totally ignore the product itself shy of the above bullet points. Context does matter, and it also dictates likely the stress levels you can anticipate. Another big learning I found is that even if things don’t go well going for the change is often the only way to find out. So, if things go sour, your learned a ton, and are a lot richer in experience, probably making better decisions the next time around.

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