How To Become a Product Manager? Simple Steps to Follow in 2025

Any business thrives on the success of its products. This is why the role of a product manager is essential for the overall success of a company. A product management role essentially entails.

Depending on the industry and company, product managers can be of various types, ranging from a technical product manager, and product marketing manager, to a user experience product manager.

If you are wondering how to become a product manager, you are on the right track. In this article, we shall find out how to become a product manager and how you can take control of your journey to success in this particular specialization of business. 

Read along to discover easy and adoptable strategies for you to follow.

Also Read: Product Management As A Career Option

Steps to become a Product Manager

Product management is a highly interesting and lucrative career field both in India and abroad. It requires an advanced level of knowledge and expertise from professionals who essentially work towards bridging the gap between the product function and the market demand. 

If you would like to work in a role where you require a diverse skill set and domain knowledge, then this will be the perfect role for you. Wondering how to become a product manager? Read along to find out more.

Let’s dig deeper into the various steps you can follow to become a product manager:

STEP 1: Get the Basics in Place 

First and foremost, you need to develop an understanding of the core functions of a product manager. You need to know what does a product manager do and accordingly plan your route to learn any lagging skill. The key responsibilities of a product manager are:

• Defining and strategising the vision and roadmap for a product a
• Leading teams across engineering, marketing, sales, and design departments
• Monitoring customer feedback, analyzing market trends, and ensuring that the product meets user needs
• Prioritizing product features based on business value and user needs
• Working with teams to deliver product features and improvements timely

STEP 2: Work on Building Relevant Skills

As a product manager, you require a diverse skill set, with skills in:

• Basic software development principles, programming languages, and how products are built can be very helpful.
• Understanding of market trends, competition, and business goals for making informed decisions.
• Ability to communicate clearly with stakeholders, engineers, designers, and customers.
• Familiarity with design and user experience (UX)

STEP 3: Gain Practical Experience

Since there are several paths to becoming a product manager, experience is the key component to entering the field. Let’s find out how you can work your way: 

• You can begin with a relatable and known job role. A lot of Project Managers hail from fields like engineering, UX/UI design, data analysis, 

• or marketing. If you’re already in one of these roles, you can transition into product management by gaining a deeper understanding of the role
• You may pursue internships or entry-level positions where you can learn the ropes while working under senior PMs.
• Work on your venture with freelance and side projects 
• Try to learn to work in cross-functional roles. It could involve supporting product launches, working with engineers, or conducting user research

STEP 4: Focus on Building a Strong Network

Networking, like in any management role, will play a big part in your career advancement opportunities. You can build a reliable network through the following measures:

• Seek experienced Product Managers for guidance 
• Join communities like online forums and social networking groups on platforms like LinkedIn, or Mind the Product to connect with other professionals
• You can participate in product management workshops, webinars, and meetups to learn from experts and expand your network

STEP 5: Apply for Product Manager Roles

Once, you have taken care of the fundamental prior steps required for a product manager, you can start applying for suitable positions. Follow the following steps: 

• Tailor your resume to the specific job description and emphasize relevant skills and any product management related work or projects
• Prepare for interviews by preparing technical questions, problem-solving scenarios, and behavioral questions. 
• Do not hesitate to ask for feedback from recruiters and improve your approach towards job applications

STEP 6: Master Product Management Tools

Familiarity with product management tools and technology used in the industry will give you an edge. Learn these tools to set yourself up for a good impression:

STEP 7: Build Your Portfolio

A strong portfolio can make a huge difference. So, whether you are looking to transition your existing career or work your way up in this role, you need to develop your portfolio. A portfolio might include:

• Case Studies where you outline how you managed a product from concept to launch
• Product Roadmaps wherein you share experience in setting a clear product vision and planning features and improvements
• Metrics and numbers such as that in increased user retention or engagement

 Also check out our management courses to upskill yourself!

Essential skills required to become a Product Manager

While product managers come from diverse backgrounds such as engineering, computer science, communications, and marketing, all successful product managers have mastered some essential hard and soft skills. 

While hard skills or technical knowledge are relatively objective to learn, soft skills can also be mastered with the right training. Read more on various skills required to become a product manager.

These are some essential skills that you need to hone to become a product manager:

1. Technical Proficiency

• A lot of technical details go into the development of a product. While a product manager need not work on them, they should be aware of how all the technical elements come together in the final product
• Technical expertise includes knowing how the product functions at the level of code, understanding the software development lifecycle methodologies, and working on product analytics

2. Empathy

• You can appeal to users with empathy and understanding of how the user thinks
• These are critical soft skills that a product manager must develop for both audience understanding and market strategizing

3. Creative and Strategic Thinking

• Whether it is creating a roadmap to bring a product to the market or responding to problems that might pop up along the way, innovation, and creativity are keys in the day-to-day tasks of a product manager
• While critical thinking and problem-solving skills cannot be taught, you can acquire them through experience and exposure.

4. Communication Skills

• As a product manager, you will act as a bridge between  various departments and stakeholders across the organization
• This role, thus, demands efficient diplomatic, interpersonal, and communication skills to ensure better understanding and communication flow between the leadership and stakeholders  

Master this essential skill now with upGrad’s Communication courses! 

5. Data Analysis  

• Product managers also analyze various forms of datasets to make data-driven decisions.
• They work on market trends analysis, product performance analysis as well data interpretation

Start your data analysis learning journey with our Data Analysis courses!

How much can Product Managers earn in India 

In India, product managers are highly valued for their abilities, and their pay varies according to their experience, industry, region, company revenue and size, and skill level. 

The average salary of a product manager in India is 20 lakhs per year. However, this number highly depends on the variables mentioned previously. 

Below is an outline of the pay range for differently experienced product managers in India:

upGrad’s Exclusive Product Management Webinar for you –

How to craft GTM Strategy for a Product?

Note: These numbers can vary depending on data changes made across salary survey sources and platforms

Read here for an in-depth understanding: Project Manager Salary in India

Level up your Product Management journey with upGrad 

Product management too, like many roles today requires you to be at par with the industry standards and upscale yourself to present as a potential candidate in the competitive job and business world. Moreover, being a multi-skilled job, product management requires you to know emerging skill requirements. 

Continuous learning and upskilling is not an ongoing trend but an essential demand in the current job market. This calls for you to take charge of your learning journey. 

upGrad provides you the opportunity to learn and grow in your career through its one-of-a-kind learning approach in the form of domain-specific courses, free courses, as well as tie-ups with reputable institutions.

For instance, our PG certificate in Project Management is our bestseller course from Duke Cornell and provides you with the following features:

• 3 years of content access
• 1:1 mentorship from experts
• A choice between executive and leader track
• Hiring opportunities
• More than 200 hours of learning

If you are just starting out, check out our free introductory course on Product Management, and earn a certificate of completion!

Conclusion

Thus, the role of a product manager is critical in ensuring the company’s long-term success. There is no one true path to becoming a product manager, and there is no shortcut. No school or university can prepare a full-fledged product manager as the role involves continuous learning to build upon the knowledge of the areas that product managers oversee. 

Above all, if you want to get complete hands-on experience in the field and make your skills credible in the eyes of recruiters, signing up for a product management certification program is the best call.

Still unsure about your options in management, book a free counseling session with us and avail 1:1 mentorship for free!

References:

https://careerfoundry.com/en/blog/product-management/how-to-become-a-product-manager
https://in.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/product-manager-skills
https://www.glassdoor.co.in/Salaries/product-manager-salary-SRCH_KO0,15.htm

Elevate your career with our Popular Management Courses, designed to develop leadership skills and drive success in any industry!

Boost your career with the top management skills that drive performance, teamwork, and strategic growth!

Gain valuable insights and expert advice with our top management articles, your go-to resource for mastering leadership and strategy!