Finding Your Perfect Job in Product Development

Tech Nation reports the demand for Product Managers in the UK tech and digital industries increased eightfold last year. This astounding statistic bodes well for those considering a move into Product Management jobs.

If that’s you, what follows is a comprehensive overview of this exciting and rewarding role, giving you an inside look at the types of Product Manager jobs on offer, the salaries that come with them, as well as the required skills and qualifications you need to land one.

Types Of Product Manager (PM) Jobs

You can think of a tech or digital Product Manager as the champion of a product, responsible for its entire lifecycle, including ideation, creation, testing and launch.

The multidisciplinary nature of the role is what makes it so exciting. You get to draw on and employ a vast skillset including your business and financial acumen, technology knowledge, management skills and keen understanding of user experience.

There’s a wide variety of types of Product Management jobs on offer in the UK technology sector. Here are just a few examples:

Technical Product Manager

These PMs have a strong technical background, so they naturally excel in working on technology-intensive products. They bridge the gap between engineering teams and business goals, ensuring the product aligns with the company’s technical capabilities.

Consumer Product Manager

This role focuses on products aimed at individual consumers. These PMs often work in industries like e-commerce, mobile apps or entertainment, with their primary focus on user experience and consumer satisfaction.

Platform Product Manager

This role is all about creating and maintaining the underlying platforms or infrastructure that support other products. It’s common in industries like fintech, where platforms serve as the foundation for financial services.

Data Product Manager

With the increasing importance of data-driven decision-making, these PMs work on products related to data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence. They ensure their products deliver valuable insights to help their companies meet their business objectives.

Internet of Things (IoT) Product Manager

IoT Product Managers work on products that connect physical devices to the internet, like smart home systems or industrial sensors. They manage both the hardware and software components of IoT solutions.

Software Product Manager

These PMs collaborate with developers and designers to create functional software, analyse software solutions and work on updates to not only ensure optimal performance, but adapt to evolving consumer needs.

The Product Manager’s Career Lifecycle

Whether you’re just starting to contemplate the merits of a Product Manager role, or are ready to make the move, it’s good to understand the potential career trajectory you might follow.  

It’s quite common for professionals to begin as a Product Owner, where their primary focus is on the day-to-day product development process. They gain a strong understanding of the entire workflow, from defining detailed user stories, to ensuring the product is being built correctly, to being solely accountable for delivering what’s been prioritised.

However, not all PMs start in a Product Owner role. There are other ways to get your foot in the door, but this requires building up a store of work experience in the field in which you want to enter.

Here is a rundown of the ‘typical’ PM career pathway:

PRODUCT MANAGER CAREER PATH

Entry-level or Associate Product Manager

Most people begin with Junior Product Manager jobs, such as an entry-level or Associate Product Manager position. In this role, they assist more experienced PMs, engage in market research and familiarise themselves with the fundamentals of product management. This phase typically spans 1-3 years.

Median salary – £43,000 (Glassdoor 2023)

Product Manager

As they gain experience and confidence, professionals typically transition into the PM role. Here, their responsibilities expand significantly by defining product strategy, creating roadmaps, and taking charge of managing a specific product or product portfolio. This stage typically lasts 3-5 years.

Median salary – £70,000 (Movement8 Tech Salary and Market Report 2023)

Senior Product Manager

With several years of experience under their belt, PMs can advance to Senior Product Manager jobs. At this level, they handle larger and increasingly complex product portfolios, assume strategic leadership responsibilities, and often take on a mentoring role for those in Junior Product Manager Jobs. This phase typically extends over 3-5 years.

Median salary – £88,750 (Movement8 Tech Salary and Market Report 2023)

Lead Product Manager

At this level, PMs manage people just as much as the products. They usually lead a team of PMs, as well as significantly contribute to shaping the product strategy for a department or division. They might also get involved with recruiting new PMs. The length of time spent in this role varies, but it usually follows several years in a senior PM role.

Median salary – £98,430 (Glassdoor 2023)

Head of Product

The Head of Product assumes a high-level leadership position, with responsibilities including aligning product strategies with overall business objectives, managing multiple PM teams and driving innovation and growth. The duration of this phase varies, but it typically follows several years as a Lead PM.

Median salary – £146, 000 (Movement8 Tech Salary and Market Report 2023)

Product Manager Education & Skillset

Most PMs hold a university degree that’s connected in some way to the industry they’re working within. For instance, PMs within a technology firm usually have an undergraduate degree in either computer science or software engineering.

Others choose to shore up their PM knowledge with specific certifications and/or additional training in different working methods, such as Agile software development and Kanban.

In our role as tech sector recruitment specialists, we’ve found many companies value practical experience and skills over formal education. If you have a strong track record of working on product-related projects, even without a degree, you can still be considered for Product Management jobs.

Skills-wise, PMs are a jack of all trades. Having a solid understanding of the product design and development process is foundational, but successful PMs also have top communication, project management, time management and problem-solving skills. They usually have a great business mind, can think strategically and effectively manage people.

We’ve also found candidates who do best in PM roles are committed to continuous learning and show proven ability to take the initiative in their work — including goal setting and taking proactive measures to motivate their team.

Further Product Management Jobs Support

Here at Movement8, our tech recruiters not only have a plethora of exciting junior and senior Product Manager jobs for you to consider but can also help you land and prepare for that all-important interview.

From tweaking your CV to increase your interview chances, to knowing what questions to expect and how to answer them, we’d love to help you take that next step in your Product Manager career.