Writing is a ability that product managers make the most of every single day. Good writing is underrated when carried out properly, however stands proud like a sore thumb when carried out poorly.
Product mangers write loads. As I used to be brainstorming for this text, I spotted simply how a lot writing I do in my day-to-day as a product supervisor.
Right here’s a brief record however non-exhaustive record:
- Assembly Notes & Agendas
- Launch Notes
- Chat Messages and Emails
- PRDs/Requirement Docs
- Epics, Consumer Tales
- Product Memos/Technique Docs
- Standing Stories
A core a part of a product supervisor’s job is to achieve stakeholder alignment. That is carried out by offering context with info instantly or not directly associated to your product. Written artifacts just like the above talked about are a main medium for delivering this context with readability to stakeholders. If poorly executed, your supposed message could possibly be missed and your stakeholder could be left confused, or worse — misaligned.
As firms embrace the remote-first tradition, the necessity to synthesize and convey info that may be consumed asynchronously is turning into more and more essential. There’s solely a lot time in a day to have conferences to share context verbally, so permitting your colleagues and stakeholders to digest info by way of a written narrative is turning into the norm. Product managers which have clear, succinct writing could have an edge amongst their friends.
Constructing nice merchandise and fixing complicated issues requires important pondering. Jeff Bezos has (now famously) instilled a tradition of the written narrative at Amazon. Though there are a lot of components to Amazon’s success, I consider that their product tradition was a key contributor. It’s no accident that one of the modern firms forces their product managers and executives to suppose critically!
When writing a Product Memo or Working Backwards Doc, product managers need to totally analysis the market, enterprise panorama, buyer segments, strategic pillars, downside area and write a story that clearly ties these items collectively.
The steady-state for many product managers is to run round like “headless chickens” from assembly to assembly or from one fireplace to the subsequent. Because of this we aren’t resistant to being lazy or reducing corners in relation to making ready a presentation or writing a product spec or a person story. Nonetheless, with clear writing backed by analysis, info, particulars and insights, we reduce the possibilities of failure inside our workforce and product.
In different phrases, important pondering accompanied by good writing, features as a device to optimize a product’s success.
Writing will not be at all times straightforward. It’s one thing that I nonetheless actively work on — nearly a decade into my product administration profession. Listed below are three suggestions to assist enhance your writing:
Follow intentional writing
Deal with an space of writing that you just discover probably the most difficult and work on enhancing it. It could possibly be grammar, or author’s block, or doing analysis.
Learn
This one is fairly apparent. There’s a robust correlation between studying and stronger writing. You’ll be able to study loads from printed authors and use their examples to enhance your personal writing expertise.
Write first, excellent it later
Attempting to get it proper the primary time is a idiot’s errand. It’s higher to get your uncooked ideas written down first after which do a couple of rounds of edits. I do that on a regular basis with my Groups/Slack and e-mail communications (and Medium articles!).
This is the reason — the easiest way to get higher at writing, is to maintain writing.
