These problems will appear in many industries and many positions. The author starts with the inefficiencies that product managers will make to see why it is inefficient and can attack high efficiency.

Editor’s note: This article is from WeChat public account “Jacob” (ID: Jacobb), author Jacopo. The original title “The Inefficient Product Manager I have seen”

I have recently been busy with the launch of new products. If I remember correctly, this is my fifth product from 0 to 1. The so-called 0 to 1 is from the business planning level until the product is generated on the line, and I am directly responsible for it. There are probably fifteen or six necessary steps.

The top five products are completely cool, and the fourth is still in the air. But each has progress and is more grounded, which is more conducive to the balance between business value and user value.

In the process of preparation, I continued to work with my colleagues and partners, and found many industries and workplaces. The biggest hazard of these rickets is not only wasting your most precious time, but also taking you off in minutes, leaving you at a loss.

The so-called inefficiency is half the effort, which is the result that everyone does not want to see.

Among the problems I have summarized, there is almost universal occupationality, and there is a high probability of being placed in which position.

In order to be easy to understand, I will start with the product manager:

First, still have no knowledge of the professional field

Since the social division of labor, various fields of the industry have been deliberately subdivided, with professional people solving professional problems, improving the accuracy, efficiency and industry influence of decision-making.

But more and more people are ignorant of the professional field, and still use solutions outside the industry to solve the problem of specialization in the industry. More often, even the general solutions outside the industry are not familiar, and they are constantly exploring the project.

I have seen many product managers, and many of the demands that have been raised are very daunting. They neither increase business value nor enhance user value, and the effect cannot be quantified. Not to mention whether this requirement is a pseudo-demand, as far as it is concerned, there are two problems that cannot be solved:

  • What if it does, what is the role?

  • Even if you did, how to define it is done?

Many times, the needs review is over, the technology has also entered development, and the entire project cycle has passed. It is only when the re-discovery that these two problems are unsolvable and how sad they are.

Determine the project’s input and output, demand development priorities, and effectiveness verification. These are the responsibility of the product manager. In addition to the parts of the demand that must be promoted, these predecessors are judged by the product manager for the entire team.

The lack of accuracy and inefficiency are extremely deadly in project development. In the final analysis, there is a problem: most people do not use professional solutions to deal with problems, or most people still do not know anything about the professional field.

Recommendation: In the time remaining necessary work, make more supplementary classes, and pay more attention to why people who are doing well can do well.

Second, I am confused, but I can’t figure out what the problem is

It will be confusing at work, and it is normal to encounter problems. But most people are confused. At the same time, the problem has not been solved. The reason for the big part is that he does not know that he is experiencing a problem.

A lot of times, don’t think about solutions first, can summarize the problems you have encountered, and write them clearly. This has already been solved halfway.

The human brain is conceptually and abstractly expressed, and you have the context of this problem in your mind. Many times it is really just a rough idea and needs to be further concretely expressed.

Many people are masters of problem solving. Really, just a lot of times they don’t know what the problem is.

Recommendation: Ask yourself a few more questions. What is the problem I am facing now?

Three, will prioritize, but never deal with issues by priority

The reason why there is a priority is that something can be abandoned. It’s not that all the listed lists need to be completed, and the reviewed requirements must be fully developed; just that in a limited time, we have to do the most important thing.

This explanation is not unfamiliar, everyone knows. But as soon as I got back to the station, I immediately changed: the left one, the right one, and I completely forgot my priority in three minutes.

The 28th law is suitable for use in many fields. If you have enough data to contact, basically you will find that all things are objectively divided by the 28th law.

I have calculated that sometimes in order to really improve a certain part of the product, I actually spent three days to go out of the product plan, but only something that was made in about half a day is decisive. That is to say, the things that I have made in the remaining two days are not particularly big to do and not to do; as long as the front is done well, the back is just a icing on the cake.

Therefore, the time for thinking about these important links must be the most adequate and most important. You don’t have to do all the work, just do the best thing and do it.

If you still feel thatSome are important, that is, your priority processing is problematic.

Recommendation: Prioritize and strictly enforce it every day, unless some of the things that are inserted can be resolved within five minutes or not killed, otherwise they will be queued behind.

Four, often meet, and often no conclusions

It’s been a long time since I hate meetings, especially those that are purposeless and always stay on ideas and ideas.

The term brainstorm does not know when it suddenly became popular. It seems that nothing can be solved. As long as three or five people waste a morning’s time, a brainstorm can produce results. In fact, most of these meetings are self-deception.

Overall, there are three types of meetings:

  • Reporting to superiors, in order to request resources to advance something and synchronize progress;

  • A subordinate meeting for lower levels, in order to lay out tasks and synchronize progress;

  • A discussion session for peers is designed to find the best solution.

Since it is the best solution, there are definitely some candidate solutions. In the meeting, we can understand the respective ideas, weigh the optimal solution, and combine the conclusions of each person into a meeting conclusion. This is the most efficient and direct approach.

In reality, those so-called brainstorms are the waste of using the time of the meeting to conceive candidates. When everyone is completely unprepared and has not thought deeply about it, all the assumptions made are meaningless. Especially in the early planning meeting of the product, it is easy to become a self-proclaimed place.

Recommendation: Don’t meet often, unless you have already reached a preliminary conclusion, the time of solitude is more efficient and precious.

V. Inter-departmental communication, did not let everyone understand the business purpose

No one can have time to do everything, and no one can excel in all areas.

As products continue to advance during the planning process, cross-departmental collaboration is increasingly inevitable.

But my own observations show that not many people know how to communicate across departments. Especially as a product manager, you can’t co-ordinate the departmental resources outside the product department, it is difficult to ensure that your needs go smoothly.

And those who don’t communicate well, or who don’t communicate, usually make a mistake: don’t let everyone know what the purpose of the business is at the beginning.

This is important because we are generally unfamiliar with colleagues across departments. Especially in big companies, heWe can’t judge your ability from the experience of working with you in the past.

At this time, they have to give extra energy to help you complete the business purpose that seems to belong to you only. Isn’t that awkward? How can others have the patience and passion to follow you all the time?

I have seen a lot of coordinators. When I came up, I said that I want this because I want to make this thing. And what can be used after this thing is done, everyone knows it.

As a result, everyone seems to understand after listening to it, but when they return to the station, they are close to each other.

Business that requires cross-departmental cooperation must be collectively conscious, meaning that this business goal must be top-level. If you only start from where you can see, don’t say that others can’t help you, your direction must be problematic.

Recommendation: Before the cross-departmental communication, clearly explain the background of the project, and determine the purpose of doing this for everyone, and make sure everyone recognizes it.

Six, summary

The above five questions are all from the daily work advancement, and I can find problems that will be repeated with great probability. Undoubtedly, these problems are accumulating and will make your efforts go to waste.

Comment on the third question:

How can one thing be done in the end, and it often depends on whether the 20% important work is done well.

– Obviously, this is the 20%.