Talia Aukema-Gray

March 18, 2023
3 Minutes

During my last quarter as a Marketing student at Western Washington University, I took a class called Applied Integrated Marketing Communications. The class structure is unique in the sense that it mimics a work environment rather than a school environment. I “worked” as a Product Manager, along with other PM’s, an Executive Team, and groups of Content Creators. I led my group of Content Creators in the formulation, planning, and implementation of a marketing campaign for our client (the WWU Marketing Program). Here are some of the lessons I learned during my time as a PM.

First, What is a Product Manager?

A Product Manager is a person who identifies customer needs and larger business objectives that a product will fulfill, and then articulates what success looks like for a product and guides their team to turn that vision into a reality. Essentially, product managers set goals, define success, help motivate their teams, and are responsible for the outcome. (Check out the article linked here for more info about PM’s!).

My Advice for Future Product Managers

Being a product manager for the first time can be difficult and incredibly confusing, which is why I want to share some of the knowledge I’ve gained over the past few months to help future PM’s! Here is some of my advice for future product managers in AIMC:

• Empower your team to create products they’re passionate about: This is so important, but also very hard to balance. The best thing you can do is support your team’s interests and passions, while also using the client’s Creative Strategy and overall objectives to guide the direction of your product. Encourage your team to find connections between their ideas and their overall goals for the product. Try asking, “How will this product solve the target market’s problem?” If they can’t answer that, go back to the drawing board!

[Pictured above: A visual representation of the Fogg Behavior Model – which says that all three elements (trigger, motivation, and ability) must converge at the same moment to cause a behavior to occur. How will you motivate your team? Remember that purpose, autonomy, mastery, and progress are important aspects of motivation!]

• Understand and embrace the process: The key to success as a product manager in leading a group of content creators is to fully understand and embrace the agile marketing process. Before your first meeting, take time to review the sprint schedule, the agile process, and the client creative strategy. Having a strong understanding of the material will allow you to explain the process to your group more effectively and guide them in the right direction! For more on this, check out my blog about Agile Marketing.

[Pictured above: My agenda for my first meeting with my team. Notice the time set aside for explaining the process, including the Sprint Development Lifecycle, Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), and lean meeting process.]

• Don’t expect instant results: Even though it may be incredibly difficult to watch your team make mistakes and struggle to embrace the process, in order to allow them to learn from their mistakes you need to let them fail (sometimes). Don’t get frustrated when results take longer than you expect and your team runs into roadblocks. It’s part of the process and it’s a good thing! It means your team is learning, and ultimately, that’s the goal.

[Pictured above: My team’s first meeting – they struggled to create their first kanban and I had to push them to keep at it! Eventually, they became kanban pros.]

• Listen to your team: As a product manager, listening to your team, and encouraging them to be open with you is one of the hardest and most essential parts of your role! Establish a safe environment early on and make it clear to your team that they won’t be punished for being confused or facing challenges with their work. During meetings, pay attention to what your team is confused about. Stand-ups serve as a designated time to find out your team member’s blockers. Take notes and think about how you can support them. Resources, one-on-one meetings, and extra check-ins are all things to consider. If you’re really unsure of what to do – talk to your fellow product managers, your executive team, and your professor!

[Pictured above: Every AIMC class begins with a stand-up. Stand-ups during AIMC are a great time to share your personal blockers and any problems with your team that you need help with!]

My last piece of advice is to believe in yourself and your team! Remember that you and your fellow content creators and PM’s are college students. Just like you, they’re still learning, growing, and making mistakes. Embrace it! Learn from your mistakes, gain confidence from your successes, continue growing, and always try again!