| consulting vs product management: Hiring Product Managers Kate Leto, 2020-08-31 For many in Product Management, success comes from mastery of tools like roadmaps, MVPs, strategy frameworks and OKRs. These and other technical skills describe what a product person does to design, build and support new complex technologies for our users. But as technologies quickly become ubiquitous, it's the human approach to creativity, innovation, decision-making, and leadership that makes the difference in whether an individual, team, product, and even organization is successful or not. These human skills describe how a product person works and must go hand-in-hand with the technical skills.Through the story of a new director of product's missteps as he and his team try to hire their way to become a thriving product organisation at a global financial services firm, the author pulls from her experience in product management, org design and leadership coaching to introduce practical tools that will change not only how an organisation hires, but how they think of a healthy product management culture and essential product skills. Working together, the team begins to understand and grow their Product EQ, and through the easy tools and exercises in this book, so can you.This book is a fantastic catalyst to rethink which skills you need in a product team in order to be truly innovative - and then details exactly how to change both your hiring and coaching practices to foster those skills in your organisation. Martin Eriksson - Co-Author, Product Leadership I loved this book. It pin points the aspects of Product Management we often gloss over, hiring theright people. Kate shows us that human skills are a pre-requisite for all successful product people, notjust technical skills. Follow her advice and approach, and you'll find the right product person for yourproduct team in no time.Adrienne Tan - Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Brainmates |
| consulting vs product management: Escaping the Build Trap Melissa Perri, 2018-11-01 To stay competitive in today’s market, organizations need to adopt a culture of customer-centric practices that focus on outcomes rather than outputs. Companies that live and die by outputs often fall into the build trap, cranking out features to meet their schedule rather than the customer’s needs. In this book, Melissa Perri explains how laying the foundation for great product management can help companies solve real customer problems while achieving business goals. By understanding how to communicate and collaborate within a company structure, you can create a product culture that benefits both the business and the customer. You’ll learn product management principles that can be applied to any organization, big or small. In five parts, this book explores: Why organizations ship features rather than cultivate the value those features represent How to set up a product organization that scales How product strategy connects a company’s vision and economic outcomes back to the product activities How to identify and pursue the right opportunities for producing value through an iterative product framework How to build a culture focused on successful outcomes over outputs |
| consulting vs product management: Expert Product Management Brian Lawley, 2007 Annotation Lawley teaches new and seasoned product managers and marketers powerful and effective ways to ensure they give their products the best possible chance for success. |
| consulting vs product management: Take Charge Product Management: Time-Tested Tips, Tactics and Tools for the New Or Improved Product Manager Greg Geracie, 2010-07 Unlock your product management potential and achieve breakthrough performance for your products and company! If you're looking for an effective and proven approach to product management – one that recognizes that the majority of product managers enter the field with little or no training and must learn through trial and error – this is the book for you. Take Charge Product Management guides you step-by-step along the product management path with tips, tactics, and tools to make you and your products more successful. Whether you're a new or experienced product manager, or a seasoned executive leading a team of product managers, this hands-on guide arms you with best practices to optimize your time and effectiveness and increase your value. Learn how to: • Understand what's expected of you at each stage of your company's growth • Add value to your organization by understanding your executives' expectations • Evaluate the range of product management approaches available • Gather the mission-critical information you need to succeed • Develop an effective vision for your offering • Align your organization behind your product decisions • Form cross-functional teams and synchronize with the development team • Shift from reactive to proactive product management • Document your results |
| consulting vs product management: The Consulting Apprenticeship Steve Shu, 2015-07-16 The Consulting Apprenticeship is written for business professionals and consultants with a focus on nuances passed on during apprenticeship regarding consulting delivery. Business professionals can benefit with a jump-start approach to applying consulting principles to their business. Designed for the busy professional, The Consulting Apprenticeship is a book of forty, quick-read ideas. These forty, short chapters are divided into four sections: Consulting Mindset - This section covers consulting ways of thinking and can be adopted by both company personnel and consultants. Consulting Techniques - This section covers specific tactics and toolkit methods when using consultative approaches in the trenches as either a company- or consulting firm-practitioner. Consulting Mastery - This section covers advanced perspectives on consulting and may be more useful to either company personnel evaluating consultants or mid- to senior-level consultants. Consulting Special Situations - Whereas the prior sections are applicable to a wide variety of situations, this section covers more infrequent, specific business situations involving consultative approaches in the trenches as either a company- or consulting firm-practitioner. Each chapter of the book concludes with an optional, takeaway exercise. The exercises vary widely in terms of level of involvement. For example, in some cases you can refer to online material. In other cases, you can engage in deeper thinking or apply the concepts over an extended period of time. However you choose to use this book, consulting mastery is a lifelong pursuit. I hope this book helps you with your journey. Stephen Shu Praise for The Consulting Apprenticeship When one of the companies I worked for needed help taking its consulting organization to the next level, I hired Steve Shu. His ability to drive our management team - all with different opinions on what we should or should not do - to a 'so-what' conclusion and pragmatic next steps gave us the jump start we needed. He is one of the best and deeply understands how consulting organizations should work. His book provides great techniques as well as tools you can use immediately. - Prakash Panjwani, CEO at WatchGuard Technologies, former President and CEO of SafeNet Steve Shu has put together a comprehensive guide to the all-important nuts and bolts of being a great consultant. The information in Chapter 21, 'Eight Secret Weapons of the Modern Consultant, ' is worth the price of the book. If you're serious about being a more effective consultant, read this book. - Michael McLaughlin, Author of Winning the Professional Services Sale and Principal Consultant at MindShare Consulting LLC; former Partner at Deloitte Steve Shu has written a hands-on, highly practical guide for new management consultants and internal corporate business strategists alike. So many projects fail because they do not practice the basic consulting project management hygiene Steve describes in chapter 11. If you are new to the trade and want to greatly increase your chance of delivering successful consulting projects, read this book. - Robert Reppa, Vice President Strategy at Johnson Controls and former Partner at Booz & Company Steve Shu has written a Rosetta Stone for both new and experienced consultants. Filled with forty power-packed ideas and practical chapter takeaways, Consulting Apprenticeship is structured for busy executives to easily digest each concept. A must read for those who seek to go beyond the shallow bromides of the consulting profession, and hone their skills with deeper, more meaningful approaches. - Adrian C. Ott, Award-winning author of The 24-Hour Customer, and CEO, Exponential Edge Inc, called One of Silicon Valley's most respected strategists by Consulting Magazine |
| consulting vs product management: Lean B2B Étienne Garbugli, 2022-03-22 Get from Idea to Product/Market Fit in B2B. The world has changed. Nowadays, there are more companies building B2B products than there’s ever been. Products are entering organizations top-down, middle-out, and bottom-up. Teams and managers control their budgets. Buyers have become savvier and more impatient. The case for the value of new innovations no longer needs to be made. Technology products get hired, and fired faster than ever before. The challenges have moved from building and validating products to gaining adoption in increasingly crowded and fragmented markets. This, requires a new playbook. The second edition of Lean B2B is the result of years of research into B2B entrepreneurship. It builds off the unique Lean B2B Methodology, which has already helped thousands of entrepreneurs and innovators around the world build successful businesses. In this new edition, you’ll learn: - Why companies seek out new products, and why they agree to buy from unproven vendors like startups - How to find early adopters, establish your credibility, and convince business stakeholders to work with you - What type of opportunities can increase the likelihood of building a product that finds adoption in businesses - How to learn from stakeholders, identify a great opportunity, and create a compelling value proposition - How to get initial validation, create a minimum viable product, and iterate until you're able to find product/market fit This second edition of Lean B2B will show you how to build the products that businesses need, want, buy, and adopt. |
| consulting vs product management: 42 Rules of Product Management (2nd Edition) Brian Lawley, 2012 42 Rules of Product Management is a collection of product management wisdom from forty experts from around the world. The goal of this book is to expose you to the wisdom and knowledge from a group of the world's leading product management experts. Among the contributors, there are leading authors, professors, CEOs and vice presidents, bloggers, consultants, trainers, and even a few salespeople and engineers. In total, there are over five centuries of collected wisdom represented here. The contributors each share one rule they think is critical to succeed in product management based on their hands-on product management and product marketing experience with companies such as Apple, eBay, Intuit, SAP, and Yahoo! |
| consulting vs product management: Product Leadership Richard Banfield, Martin Eriksson, Nate Walkingshaw, 2017-05-12 In today’s lightning-fast technology world, good product management is critical to maintaining a competitive advantage. Yet, managing human beings and navigating complex product roadmaps is no easy task, and it’s rare to find a product leader who can steward a digital product from concept to launch without a couple of major hiccups. Why do some product leaders succeed while others don’t? This insightful book presents interviews with nearly 100 leading product managers from all over the world. Authors Richard Banfield, Martin Eriksson, and Nate Walkingshaw draw on decades of experience in product design and development to capture the approaches, styles, insights, and techniques of successful product managers. If you want to understand what drives good product leaders, this book is an irreplaceable resource. In three parts, Product Leadership helps you explore: Themes and patterns of successful teams and their leaders, and ways to attain those characteristics Best approaches for guiding your product team through the startup, emerging, and enterprise stages of a company’s evolution Strategies and tactics for working with customers, agencies, partners, and external stakeholders |
| consulting vs product management: Strong Product People Petra Wille, 2020-12-11 Are you a product leader looking for advice on how to be certain that every product manager on your team lives up to their full potential? Do you want to make sure your product people are competent, empowered, and inspired, and would you like to know how you can best help them on this journey? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then this book is for you! By the end of this book, you will understand: - Why you need to focus on the personal development of every product manager-and of the team as a whole-to unlock their full potential. - Why coaching is an important part of your job, and how to do it in the most effective way. - How you can define what a good product manager looks like. - How you can accurately assess product managers and provide them with valuable, actionable, and helpful feedback on their current performance that will help them perform even better. - Which methods/frameworks you can use to make sure product managers learn what they need to know to be more effective-enhancing their people skills. And you will be able to: - Reflect on your own coaching personality and define your own areas for development. - Efficiently prepare and use one-on-ones as your main coaching tool. |
| consulting vs product management: EMPOWERED Marty Cagan, 2020-12-03 Great teams are comprised of ordinary people that are empowered and inspired. They are empowered to solve hard problems in ways their customers love yet work for their business. They are inspired with ideas and techniques for quickly evaluating those ideas to discover solutions that work: they are valuable, usable, feasible and viable. This book is about the idea and reality of achieving extraordinary results from ordinary people. Empowered is the companion to Inspired. It addresses the other half of the problem of building tech products?how to get the absolute best work from your product teams. However, the book's message applies much more broadly than just to product teams. Inspired was aimed at product managers. Empowered is aimed at all levels of technology-powered organizations: founders and CEO's, leaders of product, technology and design, and the countless product managers, product designers and engineers that comprise the teams. This book will not just inspire companies to empower their employees but will teach them how. This book will help readers achieve the benefits of truly empowered teams-- |
| consulting vs product management: The Influential Product Manager Ken Sandy, 2020-01-14 This book is a comprehensive and practical guide to the core skills, activities, and behaviors that are required of product managers in modern technology companies. Product management is one of the fastest growing and most sought-after roles by job seekers and companies alike. The availability of trained and experienced talent can barely keep up with the accelerating demand for new and improved technology products. People from nontechnical and technical backgrounds alike are eager to master this exciting new role. The Influential Product Manager teaches product managers how to behave at each stage of the product life cycle to achieve the best outcome for the customer. Product managers are under pressure to drive spectacular results, often without wielding much direct power or authority. If you don't know how to influence people at all levels of the organization, how will you create the best possible product? This comprehensive entry-level textbook distills over twenty years of hard-won field experience and industry knowledge into lessons that will empower new product managers to act like pros right out of the gate. With teaching experience both from UC Berkeley and Lynda.com, the author boils down the most complex topics into principles that are easy to memorize and apply. This book methodically documents the tools product managers everywhere use to align their teams with market needs and organizational goals. From setting priorities to capturing requirements to navigating trade-offs, this book makes it easy. Not only will your product succeed, you'll succeed, too, when you read the final chapter on advancing your career. Let your product's success become your success! |
| consulting vs product management: Product Management 101 Linda Gorchels, 2017-02-02 Are you ready to skip the dizzying detail of 400-page books? Want the nitty-gritty on product management in short, readable pieces? Product Management 101 is the book one of the Product Management ShortRead Series. It covers the landscape of the job of non-software product managers. Learn what types of companies hire product managers and how to think through the application and interview process. Gain tips on firefighting and improving competencies. Consider three metaphors for the job of product manager and learn the three core principles. And don't skip the last chapter. It contains self-reflection questions to assess how comfortable you are with common aspects of the job. It ends with recommended resources to improve your skills. |
| consulting vs product management: Software Product Management Hans-Bernd Kittlaus, Samuel A. Fricker, 2017-05-23 This book gives a comprehensive overview on Software Product Management (SPM) for beginners as well as best practices, methodology and in-depth discussions for experienced product managers. This includes product strategy, product planning, participation in strategic management activities and orchestration of the functional units of the company. The book is based on the results of the International Software Product Management Association (ISPMA) which is led by a group of SPM experts from industry and research with the goal to foster software product management excellence across industries. This book can be used as textbook for ISPMA-based education and as guide for anybody interested in SPM as one of the most exciting and challenging disciplines in the business of software. Hans-Bernd Kittlaus is the Chairman of ISPMA and owner and managing director of InnoTivum Consulting, Germany. Samuel Fricker is Board Member of ISPMA and Professor at FHNW, Switzerland. |
| consulting vs product management: Product Management For Dummies Brian Lawley, Pamela Schure, 2017-01-24 Your one-stop guide to becoming a product management prodigy Product management plays a pivotal role in organizations. In fact, it's now considered the fourth most important title in corporate America—yet only a tiny fraction of product managers have been trained for this vital position. If you're one of the hundreds of thousands of people who hold this essential job—or simply aspire to break into a new role—Product Management For Dummies gives you the tools to increase your skill level and manage products like a pro. From defining what product management is—and isn't—to exploring the rising importance of product management in the corporate world, this friendly and accessible guide quickly gets you up to speed on everything it takes to thrive in this growing field. It offers plain-English explanations of the product life cycle, market research, competitive analysis, market and pricing strategy, product roadmaps, the people skills it takes to effectively influence and negotiate, and so much more. Create a winning strategy for your product Gather and analyze customer and market feedback Prioritize and convey requirements to engineering teams effectively Maximize revenues and profitability Product managers are responsible for so much more than meets the eye—and this friendly, authoritative guide lifts the curtain on what it takes to succeed. |
| consulting vs product management: The Product Manager's Desk Reference Steven Haines, 2008-07-31 Grab the all-you-need reference and manage your products effectively and efficiently Now, product managers at every level can have an authoritative, one-stop reference to strategizing, introducing, and managing products at their fingertips. The Product Manager’s Desk Reference uses the progression of the practitioner across the career cycle as well as the progression of the product across its life cycle to establish clear guidelines as to what must be done, when, by whom, and with what level of expertise. |
| consulting vs product management: The Secret Product Manager Handbook Nils Davis, 2018-03-05 Product management isn't about you and it isn't about your product. It's about solving problems for your customers, creating a solution, and taking it to market. When I started in product management, I had a lot of questions, like What is product management? It's a common question still, but most people don't have a good answer. After all these years, the same questions keep coming up. I see them on forums, I hear them when I talk to new and experienced product managers, and I still do not see them being answered well or usefully. So I wrote this book, with the answers to the questions I always had. You'll learn: The real reason people choose to buy a product - it's not about how good the product is! How to get the very best from your developers. The 5-word phrase that can accelerate sales and marketing. The best ways to talk to executives and customers about what you're building. Among other critical information, you'll find a powerful framework for thinking about product management - and even for talking to your Mom about what you do. The framework provides an infrastructure for most of The Secret Product Manager Handbook. I provide a concrete and explicit explanation of why product management is so important for businesses, including a calculation of the true business value of product management. And the book is full of specific techniques and practices for transforming your product management career. What People Are Saying Nuggets of product management wisdom and ideas you'll want to hang on your monitor. The book is like having a conversation with a mentor. (Ken Hanson, Growth Product Manager) The summary of product management - identify market problems, guide the creation of solutions, and take the solutions to market - is powerful. As a former engineer, it's especially important to be reminded of the third point (Frank Licea, Product Manager) The intro is one of the clearest and smartest explanations of the value a product manager should bring to the table I've ever read. (Luca Candela, VP of Product Management) |
| consulting vs product management: Product Management Untangled Dinker Charak, 2024-04-09 Unlock the Secrets of Product Management Excellence! Are you an aspiring, accidental, or seasoned Product Manager looking to elevate your skills and career? Look no further! This essential guide is designed for you. Discover a treasure trove of knowledge, frameworks, digital tools, and real-life examples—all expertly woven into an accessible and engaging narrative. Whether you're transitioning into Product Management or aiming to solidify your expertise, this book takes you on a comprehensive journey through the core principles, methodologies, and best practices that will empower your career. Get ready to untangle the complexities of Product Management with confidence and creativity! |
| consulting vs product management: Management Consulting Today and Tomorrow Larry E. Greiner, Flemming Poulfelt, 2010-04-02 This book provides a thorough examination of a variety of specialties within the broad range of management consulting. A book of such scope and depth could only be written by a large number of experts, each from one of the many specialties related to management consulting. Together, all 27 contributors take the reader through an industry that is currently undergoing significant change. While covering all the major practice areas of consulting, the book also offers new insights into change processes and addresses compelling management issues now facing consulting firms. |
| consulting vs product management: What They Didn't Teach You in School Samir Ranjan Majhi, 2017-05-21 How much of what you learnt in school do you still use? You probably aren't using anything you learnt in Chemistry.How much of what you need to know wasn't taught in school? Why is it that no matter how much you earn, you keep eagerly waiting for your next month's salary? This book is an older version of yourself imparting the life lessons that you learned along the way. |
| consulting vs product management: Essential Tools for Management Consulting Simon Burtonshaw-Gunn, 2010-03-01 The second book in the Essential Tools For series... on the topic of Management Consulting Based on Simon Burtonshaw-Gunn's successful The Essential Management Toolbox, this book focuses in greater depth on the topic of Management Consulting. This second book looks at how a management consultant needs to think, view and analyse the workings of an existing organisation in order to efficiently and effectively work to improve the issues facing a business. Check out the new series website featuring sample chapters, tool of the month and solve your management problems by talking direct to the author www.essentialtoolsseries.com Second title in a new series that expands on the information in Simon Burtonshaw-Gunn’s The Essential Toolbox This volume includes 30% new material in the form of new tools and techniques for guiding consultants Covers: Development of Management Consultancy; Problem resolution and Decision Making; Top 10 Tools for Consultancy Interventions; Consultancy delivery and Facilitation; Consultancy Governance and Ethics Active author, Simon Burtonshaw-Gunn speaks regularly Easy to use practical tools and techniques guiding the consultant and business person through their organisational conflicts About the Author: Simon Burtonshaw-Gunn is a practising management consultant with over 30 years experience in both the public and private sectors and covering a range of organizations and industries. He holds two Master's degrees and a PhD in various Strategic Management topics. This second book includes a forward by Malik Salameh. |
| consulting vs product management: Why Decisions Fail Paul Nutt, 2002-07-10 Based on the his analysis of 400 strategic decisions made by top managers in areas such as products and services, pricing and markets, personnel policy, technology acquisition, and strategic reorganization, Nutt estimates that two-thirds of all decisions are based on failure-prone or questionable tactics. He uses the fifteen monumental decision-making disasters to illustrate the potential consequences of these common tactical errors and traps and then details successful alternative decision-making approaches. Why Decisions Fail translates decades of award-winning research into practical terms that managers can use to improve their own decision-making practices. |
| consulting vs product management: The Product Book: How to Become a Great Product Manager Product School, Josh Anon, 2017-05 Nobody asked you to show up. Every experienced product manager has heard some version of those words at some point in their career. Think about a company. Engineers build the product. Designers make sure it has a great user experience and looks good. Marketing makes sure customers know about the product. Sales get potential customers to open their wallets to buy the product. What more does a company need? What does a product manager do? Based upon Product School's curriculum, which has helped thousands of students become great product managers, The Product Book answers that question. Filled with practical advice, best practices, and expert tips, this book is here to help you succeed! |
| consulting vs product management: Product Management in Practice Matt LeMay, 2017-11-08 Product management has become a critical connective role for modern organizations, from small technology startups to global corporate enterprises. And yet the day-to-day work of product management remains largely misunderstood. In theory, product management is about building products that people love. The real-world practice of product management is often about difficult conversations, practical compromises, and hard-won incremental gains. In this book, author Matt LeMay focuses on the CORE connective skills— communication, organization, research, execution—that can build a successful product management practice across industries, organizations, teams, andtoolsets. For current and aspiring product managers, this book explores:? On-the-ground tactics for facilitating collaboration and communication? How to talk to users and work with executives? The importance of setting clear and actionable goals? Using roadmaps to connect and align your team? A values-first approach to implementing Agile practices? Common behavioral traps that turn good product managers bad |
| consulting vs product management: How to Lead in Product Management: Practices to Align Stakeholders, Guide Development Teams, and Create Value Together Roman Pichler, 2020-03-10 This book will help you become a better product leader. Benefitting from Roman Pichler's extensive experience, you will learn how to align stakeholders and guide development teams even in challenging circumstances, avoid common leadership mistakes, and grow as a leader. Written in an engaging and easily accessible style, How to Lead in Product Management offers a wealth of practical tips and strategies. Through helpful examples, the book illustrates how you can directly apply the techniques to your work. Coverage includes: * Choosing the right leadership style * Cultivating empathy, building trust, and influencing others * Increasing your authority and empowering others * Directing stakeholders and development teams through common goals * Making decisions that people will support and follow through * Successfully resolving disputes and conflicts even with senior stakeholders * Listening deeply to discover and address hidden needs and interests * Practising mindfulness and embracing a growth mindset to develop as a leader Praise for How to Lead in Product Management: Roman has done it again, delivering a practical book for the product management community that appeals to both heart and mind. How to Lead in Product Management is packed with concise, direct, and practical advice that addresses the deeper, personal aspects of the product leadership. Roman's book shares wisdom on topics including goals, healthy interactions with stakeholders, handling conflict, effective conversations, decision-making, having a growth mindset, and self-care. It is a must read for both new and experienced product people. ~Ellen Gottesdiener, Product Coach at EBG Consulting Being a great product manager is tough. It requires domain knowledge, industry knowledge, technical skills, but also the skills to lead and inspire a team. Roman Pichler's How to Lead in Product Management is the best book I've read for equipping product managers to lead their teams. ~Mike Cohn, Author of Succeeding with Agile, Agile Estimating and Planning, and User Stories Applied This is the book that has been missing for product people. Roman has created another masterpiece, a fast read with lots of value. It's a must read for every aspiring product manager. ~Magnus Billgren, CEO of Tolpagorni Product Management How Lead in Product Management is for everyone who manages a product or drives important business decisions. Roman lays out the key challenges of product leadership and shows us ways of thoughtfully working with team members, stakeholders, partners, and the inevitable conflicts. ~Rich Mironov, CEO of Mironov Consulting and Smokejumper Head of Product |
| consulting vs product management: Inside Nudging Steve Shu, 2016-07-14 Inside Nudging is written for management professionals and scientists to feed their thinking and discussions about implementing behavioral science initiatives (which includes behavioral economics and finance) in business settings. Situations include the incubation of innovation centers, behavioral science overlay capabilities, and advancement of existing organizations. Companies need to develop grit - the ability and fortitude to succeed. The book introduces the Behavioral GRITTM framework and covers key takeaways in leading an organization that implements behavioral science. Behavioral GRITTM stands for the business functions related to Goals, Research, Innovation, and Testing. The chapters are complemented by an appendix which covers ideas to introduce behavioral science initiatives. I argue that first a company needs to identify its goals and identify what type of predominant organization model it wants to pursue. There are five predominant organizational models I've seen. I also offer that a company should consider a number of implementation elements that may play a role during execution. Example elements include an advisory board and a behavioral science officer. Note that the purpose of this book is not to teach people about behavioral science; there are many other books out there for those purposes. That said, Inside Nudging introduces some behavioral science concepts to provide context and help develop a common language between management professionals and scientists. I see the application of behavioral science as still being in the early adoption phase. Many companies will benefit if they take time to develop the right approach. I hope Inside Nudging helps you with your journey. Stephen Shu Praise for Inside Nudging - More at www.InsideNudging.com Steve Shu's thoughtful and very readable book Inside Nudging provides a unique opportunity to understand how the research from behavioral science can be best exploited by business. While many popular books on behavioral science make a strong case for the value of the research, none have addressed how to exploit it in such a helpful and practical manner. A rarely mentioned secret brought into full view here is the fact that using behavioral science effectively is not so straightforward. Written specifically for business people and consultants Steve Shu shares his wide experience of consulting to explain the challenges and pitfalls of translating the ideas and findings of academic research into actionable solutions for real business problems. This book shows you how by giving examples of how real consultancy projects were shaped to deliver valuable results for working businesses. Inside Nudging acts as an intelligent interface between the ideas of the nerds in academia and the needs of real business people and offers tremendous potential for any business that needs to understand how people respond to their actions. - Peter Ayton, Professor, Associate Dean of Research and Deputy Dean, Social Sciences, City University London Steve Shu has written an excellent book for companies looking to get started with behavioral economics. Through his use of case studies and actionable takeaways, he does a great job showing how decades of research can be combined with other business elements to accomplish amazing results. Inside Nudging is like an executive guidebook for practitioners. - Dilip Soman, Professor and Corus Chair in Communications Strategy, Co-Director, Behavioural Economics in Action at Rotman (BEAR), Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto; Author of The Last Mile This may be a CEO or manager's first glimpse into how they can utilize behavioral science initiatives within their own company or life. - Jenna Gould, San Francisco Book Review |
| consulting vs product management: Ten Years to Midnight Blair H. Sheppard, 2020-08-04 “Shows how humans have brought us to the brink and how humanity can find solutions. I urge people to read with humility and the daring to act.” —Harpal Singh, former Chair, Save the Children, India, and former Vice Chair, Save the Children International In conversations with people all over the world, from government officials and business leaders to taxi drivers and schoolteachers, Blair Sheppard, global leader for strategy and leadership at PwC, discovered they all had surprisingly similar concerns. In this prescient and pragmatic book, he and his team sum up these concerns in what they call the ADAPT framework: Asymmetry of wealth; Disruption wrought by the unexpected and often problematic consequences of technology; Age disparities--stresses caused by very young or very old populations in developed and emerging countries; Polarization as a symptom of the breakdown in global and national consensus; and loss of Trust in the institutions that underpin and stabilize society. These concerns are in turn precipitating four crises: a crisis of prosperity, a crisis of technology, a crisis of institutional legitimacy, and a crisis of leadership. Sheppard and his team analyze the complex roots of these crises--but they also offer solutions, albeit often seemingly counterintuitive ones. For example, in an era of globalization, we need to place a much greater emphasis on developing self-sustaining local economies. And as technology permeates our lives, we need computer scientists and engineers conversant with sociology and psychology and poets who can code. The authors argue persuasively that we have only a decade to make headway on these problems. But if we tackle them now, thoughtfully, imaginatively, creatively, and energetically, in ten years we could be looking at a dawn instead of darkness. |
| consulting vs product management: The Product Manager Interview Lewis C. Lin, 2017-11-06 NOTE: This is the NEWER 3rd edition for the book formerly titled PM Interview Questions. -- 164 Actual PM Interview Questions From the creator of the CIRCLES Method(TM), The Product Manager Interview is a resource you don't want to miss. The world's expert in product management interviews, Lewis C. Lin, gives readers 164 practice questions to gain product management (PM) proficiency and master the PM interview including: Google Facebook Amazon Uber Dropbox Microsoft Fully Solved Solutions The book contains fully solved solutions so readers can learn, improve and do their best at the PM interview. Here are questions and sample answers you'll find in the book: Product Design How would you design an ATM for elderly people? Should Google build a Comcast-like TV cable service? Instagram currently supports 3 to 15 second videos. We're considering supporting videos of unlimited length. How would you modify the UX to accommodate this? Pricing How would you go about pricing UberX or any other new Uber product? Let's say Google created a teleporting device: which market segments would you go after? How would you price it? Metrics Imagine you are the Amazon Web Services (AWS) PM in Sydney. What are the top three metrics you'd look at? Facebook users have declined 20 percent week over week. Diagnose the problem. How would you fix the issue? Ideal Complement to Decode and Conquer Many of you have read the PM interview frameworks revealed in Decode and Conquer, including the CIRCLES(TM), AARM(TM) and DIGS(TM) Methods. The Product Manager Interview is the perfect complement to Decode and Conquer. With over 160 practice questions, you'll see what the best PM interview responses look and feel like. Brand New Third Edition Many of the sample answers have been re-written from scratch. The sample answers are now stronger and easier to follow. In total, thousands of changes have made in this brand new third edition of the book. Preferred by the World's Top Universities Here's what students and staff have to say about the Lewis C. Lin: DUKE UNIVERSITY I was so touched by your presentation this morning. It was really helpful. UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN I can say your class is the best that I have ever attended. I will definitely use knowledge I learned today for future interviews. COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY I'd like to let you know that your workshop today is super awesome! It's the best workshop I have been to since I came to Columbia Business School. Thank you very much for the tips, frameworks, and the very clear and well-structured instruction! UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN I wanted to reiterate how much I enjoyed your workshops today. Thank you so much for taking time out and teaching us about these much-needed principles and frameworks. I actually plan to print out a few slides and paste them on my walls! CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY I'm a very big admirer of your work. We, at Tepper, follow your books like the Bible. As a former associate product manager, I was able to connect your concepts back to my work experience back and Pragmatic Marketing training. I'm really looking forward to apply your teachings. |
| consulting vs product management: The Professional Product Owner Don McGreal, Ralph Jocham, 2018-06-04 The Professional Product Owner’s Guide to Maximizing Value with Scrum “This book presents a method of communicating our desires, cogently, coherently, and with a minimum of fuss and bother.” —Ken Schwaber, Chairman & Founder, Scrum.org The role of the Product Owner is more crucial than ever. But it’s about much more than mechanics: it’s about taking accountability and refocusing on value as the primary objective of all you do. In The Professional Product Owner, two leading experts in successful Scrum product ownership show exactly how to do this. You’ll learn how to identify where value can be found, measure it, and maximize it throughout your entire product lifecycle. Drawing on their combined 40+ years of experience in using agile and Scrum in product management, Don McGreal and Ralph Jocham guide you through all facets of envisioning, emerging, and maturing a product using the Scrum framework. McGreal and Jocham discuss strategy, showing how to connect Vision, Value, and Validation in ROI-focused agile product management. They lay out Scrum best-practices for managing complexity and continuously delivering value, and they define the concrete practices and tools you can use to manage Product Backlogs and release plans, all with the goal of making you a more successful Product Owner. Throughout, the authors share revealing personal experiences that illuminate obstacles to success and show how they can be overcome. Define success from the “outside in,” using external customer-driven measurements to guide development and maximize value Bring empowerment and entrepreneurship to the Product Owner’s role, and align everyone behind a shared business model Use Evidence-Based Management (EBMgt) to invest in the right places, make smarter decisions, and reduce risk Effectively apply Scrum’s Product Owner role, artifacts, and events Populate and manage Product Backlogs, and use just-in-time specifications Plan and manage releases, improve transparency, and reduce technical debt Scale your product, not your Scrum Use Scrum to inject autonomy, mastery, and purpose into your product team’s work Whatever your role in product management or agile development, this guide will help you deliver products that offer more value, more rapidly, and more often. Register your book for convenient access to downloads, updates, and/or corrections as they become available. See inside book for details. |
| consulting vs product management: Ask a Manager Alison Green, 2018-05-01 From the creator of the popular website Ask a Manager and New York’s work-advice columnist comes a witty, practical guide to 200 difficult professional conversations—featuring all-new advice! There’s a reason Alison Green has been called “the Dear Abby of the work world.” Ten years as a workplace-advice columnist have taught her that people avoid awkward conversations in the office because they simply don’t know what to say. Thankfully, Green does—and in this incredibly helpful book, she tackles the tough discussions you may need to have during your career. You’ll learn what to say when • coworkers push their work on you—then take credit for it • you accidentally trash-talk someone in an email then hit “reply all” • you’re being micromanaged—or not being managed at all • you catch a colleague in a lie • your boss seems unhappy with your work • your cubemate’s loud speakerphone is making you homicidal • you got drunk at the holiday party Praise for Ask a Manager “A must-read for anyone who works . . . [Alison Green’s] advice boils down to the idea that you should be professional (even when others are not) and that communicating in a straightforward manner with candor and kindness will get you far, no matter where you work.”—Booklist (starred review) “The author’s friendly, warm, no-nonsense writing is a pleasure to read, and her advice can be widely applied to relationships in all areas of readers’ lives. Ideal for anyone new to the job market or new to management, or anyone hoping to improve their work experience.”—Library Journal (starred review) “I am a huge fan of Alison Green’s Ask a Manager column. This book is even better. It teaches us how to deal with many of the most vexing big and little problems in our workplaces—and to do so with grace, confidence, and a sense of humor.”—Robert Sutton, Stanford professor and author of The No Asshole Rule and The Asshole Survival Guide “Ask a Manager is the ultimate playbook for navigating the traditional workforce in a diplomatic but firm way.”—Erin Lowry, author of Broke Millennial: Stop Scraping By and Get Your Financial Life Together |
| consulting vs product management: Managing The Professional Service Firm David H. Maister, 2012-12-11 Professional service firms differ from other business enterprises in two distinct ways: first they provide highly customised services thus cannot apply many of the management principles developed for product-based industries. Second, professional services are highly personalised, involving the skills of individuals. Such firms must therefore compete not only for clients but also for talented professionals. Drawing on more than ten years of research and consulting to these unique and creative companies, David Maister explores issues ranging from marketing and business development to multinational strategies, human resources policies to profit improvement, strategic planning to effective leadership. While these issues can be complex, Maister simplifies them by recognising that 'every professional service firm in the world, regardless of size, specific profession, or country of operation, has the same mission statement: outstanding service to clients, satisfying careers for its people and financial success for its owners.' |
| consulting vs product management: Innovate Products Faster John Carter, Jeanne Bradford, 2012 |
| consulting vs product management: Discover to Deliver Ellen Gottesdiener, 2012 |
| consulting vs product management: Jobs to Be Done Anthony W. Ulwick, 2016-10-25 Why do some innovation projects succeed where others fail? The book reveals the business implications of Jobs Theory and explains how to put Jobs Theory into practice using Outcome-Driven Innovation. |
| consulting vs product management: Handbook of Management Consulting Services Sam W. Barcus, Joseph W. Wilkinson, 1995 Written by more than twenty experts in management consulting, the Handbook of Management Consulting Services shares the technical knowledge, administrative skills, business acumen, and hands-on perspective needed to set up and run a cost-effective, client-oriented practice that's right for today's business environment. Provided here from the actual files of leading consultants are checklists, work plans, and practice aids. |
| consulting vs product management: Decode and Conquer Lewis C. Lin, 2013-11-28 Land that Dream Product Manager Job...TODAYSeeking a product management position?Get Decode and Conquer, the world's first book on preparing you for the product management (PM) interview. Author and professional interview coach, Lewis C. Lin provides you with an industry insider's perspective on how to conquer the most difficult PM interview questions. Decode and Conquer reveals: Frameworks for tackling product design and metrics questions, including the CIRCLES Method(tm), AARM Method(tm), and DIGS Method(tm) Biggest mistakes PM candidates make at the interview and how to avoid them Insider tips on just what interviewers are looking for and how to answer so they can't say NO to hiring you Sample answers for the most important PM interview questions Questions and answers covered in the book include: Design a new iPad app for Google Spreadsheet. Brainstorm as many algorithms as possible for recommending Twitter followers. You're the CEO of the Yellow Cab taxi service. How do you respond to Uber? You're part of the Google Search web spam team. How would you detect duplicate websites? The billboard industry is under monetized. How can Google create a new product or offering to address this? Get the Book that's Recommended by Executives from Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Oracle & VMWare...TODAY |
| consulting vs product management: The Consulting Way Erik Gausel, 2013-08-09 If you want to become a better consultant or are seeking to learn more about entering the consulting field, this guidebook offers the perfect starting point. Whether youre considering your options after college, looking to switch careers or already working at a consulting firm, youll find a trove of invaluable information here. You can learn how to develop interpersonal skills that can help you succeed; improve your project management skills; approach the problem-solving process; present recommendations; and communicate clearly. Not everyone succeeds as a consultant, but its not because they arent smart enough. It usually boils down to a misunderstanding of the consulting rolebeing unaware of what to do and when to do it. In this business, timing can mean everything. Discover tips and strategies that can help you succeed as a consultant in this guide to consulting essentials. Its time to separate yourself from competitors and further your career with The Consulting Way. |
| consulting vs product management: Cracking the PM Interview Gayle Laakmann McDowell, Jackie Bavaro, 2013 How many pizzas are delivered in Manhattan? How do you design an alarm clock for the blind? What is your favorite piece of software and why? How would you launch a video rental service in India? This book will teach you how to answer these questions and more. Cracking the PM Interview is a comprehensive book about landing a product management role in a startup or bigger tech company. Learn how the ambiguously-named PM (product manager / program manager) role varies across companies, what experience you need, how to make your existing experience translate, what a great PM resume and cover letter look like, and finally, how to master the interview: estimation questions, behavioral questions, case questions, product questions, technical questions, and the super important pitch. |
| consulting vs product management: 97 Things Every Scrum Practitioner Should Know Gunther Verheyen, 2020-04-27 Improve your understanding of Scrum through the proven experience and collected wisdom of experts around the world. Based on real-life experiences, the 97 essays in this unique book provide a wealth of knowledge and expertise from established practitioners who have dealt with specific problems and challenges with Scrum. You'll find out more about the rules and roles of this framework, as well as tactics, strategies, specific patterns to use with Scrum, and stories from the trenches. You'll also gain insights on how to apply, tune, and tweak Scrum for your work. This guide is an ideal resource for people new to Scrum and those who want to assess and improve their understanding of this framework. Scrum Is Simple. Just Use It As Is., Ken Schwaber The 'Standing Meeting,' Bob Warfield Specialization Is for Insects, James O. Coplien Scrum Events Are Rituals to Ensure Good Harvest, Jasper Lamers Servant Leadership Starts from Within, Bob Galen Agile Is More than Sprinting, James W. Grenning |
| consulting vs product management: The Art of Product Management Rich Mironov, 2008 The Art of Product Management takes us inside the head of a product management thought leader. With color and humor, Rich Mironov gives us a taste of Silicon Valley's tireless pursuit of great technology and its creation of new products. He provides strategic advice to product managers and tech professionals about start-ups, big organizations, how to think like a customer, and what things should cost. He also reminds us to love our products and our teams. The Art of Product Management brings together the best insights from more than seven years of Product Bytes, Rich Mironov's long-running series on product strategy, technology companies, and how the two interact. This collection is for everyone who builds or markets the next new thing.This is more a how to think about products book than how to templates. Product managers (and others who are deeply committed to great products) will recognize themselves and their daily process struggles. How do I think about customers and solutions? Why does my organization behave the way it does? Can I help others to think long-term, or do I need to think for them? This book captures the inner life of product champions. |
| consulting vs product management: Turn Ideas Into Products Steve Johnson, 2017-04-02 We've all heard stories of amazing product successes: the brilliant college kid who started a business in his dorm room; the team who built a business from the back of a napkin with just a few friends and sold it for millions. Yet for every amazing success story, there are thousands of stories of products that went nowhere. Most of us aren't looking at billion-dollar valuations; we're not looking for an exit. Instead we have a few ideas -- some innovative, some not -- and we're trying to determine which to pursue. Likely, you're working for a company today and you need a step-by-step approach to turn ideas, regardless of their source, into businesses. In Turn Ideas into Products, author Steve Johnson introduces a nimble idea-to-market process with strong emphasis on personal experience with customers. From business planning to product launch, this approach for managing products empowers your product team to work smarter and collaborate better with colleagues and customers. |
Global management consulting | McKinsey & Company
McKinsey partners with leaders on strategy, innovating to net zero, leading with tech, and building capabilities for a sustainable, inclusive, growing future.
What Is Consulting & What Do Consultants Do? [2025]
Oct 24, 2021 · Consulting is a term for providing business advice on various topics including, corporate strategy, product development, marketing, information technology, and operational …
The Complete Guide to 25 Types of Consulting in 2025
Jun 8, 2025 · The consulting industry has never been more diverse or dynamic. With over 25% of professionals identifying as management consultants and rapid technological changes reshaping …
Our services - Deloitte
Explore Deloitte’s vast range of services to help your turn your organization’s greatest challenges into opportunities for growth.
What Is Consulting? Facts and Misconceptions About the Industry …
Jul 12, 2023 · Consulting is the practice of providing expert advice and solutions to organizations or individuals facing specific challenges. Consulting entails specialized knowledge, skills, and …
21 Types of Consulting and How to Start Your Consulting ... - Looka
Nov 8, 2023 · Having an MBA or Bachelor of Commerce/Business is a great first step, along with 5+ years of strategy experience in various industries. Having experience with consulting firms like …
Consultant - Wikipedia
According to Institute of Management Consultants USA, "The value of a consultant [as compared to a subject-matter expert (SME)] [11] [12] [13] is to be able to correctly diagnose and effectively …
Strategy & Consulting - Accenture
Strategy and Consulting careers. Reinvention starts here with people who drive change across industries, functions, platforms, and partnerships. Join our team to architect the future for …
15 Types of Consulting (And How To Choose Your Specialty)
Jun 9, 2020 · Consulting is the process of providing advice to clients to address and resolve specific issues or projects. As a consultant, you are a professional problem solver. Clients hire …
Consulting services | Case studies & insights | EY - US
Consulting at EY is building a better working world by realizing business transformation through the power of people, technology and innovation. The nature of work is evolving fast, we’re all being …
Global management consulting | McKinsey & Company
McKinsey partners with leaders on strategy, innovating to net zero, leading with tech, and building capabilities for a sustainable, inclusive, growing future.
What Is Consulting & What Do Consultants Do? [2025]
Oct 24, 2021 · Consulting is a term for providing business advice on various topics including, corporate strategy, product development, marketing, information technology, and operational …
The Complete Guide to 25 Types of Consulting in 2025
Jun 8, 2025 · The consulting industry has never been more diverse or dynamic. With over 25% of professionals identifying as management consultants and rapid technological changes reshaping …
Our services - Deloitte
Explore Deloitte’s vast range of services to help your turn your organization’s greatest challenges into opportunities for growth.
What Is Consulting? Facts and Misconceptions About the Industry …
Jul 12, 2023 · Consulting is the practice of providing expert advice and solutions to organizations or individuals facing specific challenges. Consulting entails specialized knowledge, skills, and …
21 Types of Consulting and How to Start Your Consulting ... - Looka
Nov 8, 2023 · Having an MBA or Bachelor of Commerce/Business is a great first step, along with 5+ years of strategy experience in various industries. Having experience with consulting firms like …
Consultant - Wikipedia
According to Institute of Management Consultants USA, "The value of a consultant [as compared to a subject-matter expert (SME)] [11] [12] [13] is to be able to correctly diagnose and effectively …
Strategy & Consulting - Accenture
Strategy and Consulting careers. Reinvention starts here with people who drive change across industries, functions, platforms, and partnerships. Join our team to architect the future for …
15 Types of Consulting (And How To Choose Your Specialty)
Jun 9, 2020 · Consulting is the process of providing advice to clients to address and resolve specific issues or projects. As a consultant, you are a professional problem solver. Clients hire …
Consulting services | Case studies & insights | EY - US
Consulting at EY is building a better working world by realizing business transformation through the power of people, technology and innovation. The nature of work is evolving fast, we’re all being …
