Because product managers serve as an advocate for both the business and its customers, it’s crucial for them to maintain integrity and build trust within their roles.
That’s according to Tanya Sadovnichaya, a sales channels integrations product manager at retail operations platform Brightpearl.
Sadovnichaya said that PMs can accomplish the above by taking an active stance on sharing new information and lessons learned, and fostering a culture of open information exchange between both internal and external stakeholders.
She added that this type of honesty has long-lasting positive effects when it comes to sustaining stakeholder relationships — which plays a large role in informing overall product strategy.
Which stakeholders do you include in the product planning process, and what role do they play in informing the product strategy?
All stakeholders influence product strategy in their own unique ways. To ensure we gain a complete understanding of product priorities, we involve both external (customers and partners) and internal (customer-facing teams and engineering) stakeholders. We typically organize each of these stakeholder categories into smaller groups so we can best understand where those interests overlap. This helps validate our hypotheses and align products with customer needs while also avoiding unsuitable investments.
Since our growth works in tandem with our customers’ growth, we look for opportunities that best serve each of those priorities. When internal stakeholders are concerned, we walk the customer journey with them — starting with sales to implementation and then into support, which helps us gather appropriate feedback across all touchpoints. Where problems are consistent, we dig in to best understand the root cause and define an appropriate solution.
Making a promise and keeping it helps build trust in the product manager as a source of objective truth.”
What steps have you found to be particularly helpful in managing stakeholders and their expectations regarding how products and features are prioritized?
Transparency and consistency in our communication is key, in addition to announcing the principles that drive product decisions from the beginning. Before initiating any discussions, we provide plenty of context about what logic and strategic directions support the priorities. This helps stakeholders level-set their expectations and understand that there is nothing arcane in our prioritization. When competing priorities need to be managed, particularly in the case of internal stakeholders, it is very effective to hold an open and honest workshop, where we facilitate an intelligent compromise and work out a solution that best serves our customers.
Lastly, it’s important to remember that strategic prioritization is a highly sensitive and impactful topic that will be scrutinized. The product manager must remember that they serve as an advocate for customers and their business, and maintain integrity, which ultimately contributes to a mutual level of trust.
What steps have you taken to build trust with stakeholders?
Taking an active stance on broadcasting new information and lessons learned, and fostering a culture of open information exchange builds trust and respect between stakeholders. In an agile environment, priorities can change quickly. Ambiguity is a constant factor. It’s important to set that expectation so that when stakeholders’ priorities are unexpectedly impacted, they can be addressed immediately. This type of honesty has long-lasting positive effects on stakeholder relationships.
For example, as soon as I learn of a sudden market change or of new customer research that may impact our roadmap, I always provide an immediate situation report of my findings to key stakeholders by aligning everyone around the urgency, strategic impact, options and timeline for a more concrete update. This approach has helped me to build trust in day-to-day operations as well as more urgent situations, and be known as someone who executes on their promises while owning their successes and failures. Making a promise and keeping it, and showing why something had to change, helps build trust in the product manager as a source of objective truth.
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