PM Job Seeker's Checklist

I've been helping a lot of techies and accidental PMs to understand the scope of Product Management. So many times that I was able to put most FAQs and basics in this short course. So while this covers the basics, people do come up with more questions on the role, some real challenges they are facing and also about getting the job of a product manager. 

Introduction To Product Management: ChalkStreet

One guy from IIM recently took up a BA role and is now looking to get into PM. But he wasn't getting any calls for job interviews. 

Here's what I suggested. I believe it is also the checklist for anyone looking for product roles:

1. Resume. Not sure if your Resume clearly indicates you are a good fit for the role. Look at the example of another sales guy trying to move to PM role. If you are moving from a non-PM to a PM role, you've to be extra careful that the Resume states clearly you are looking for a PM role, otherwise, the recruiter might just think they've picked an irrelevant resume and trash it. Look for all relevant JDs on Linkedin and tweak your resume to use all the keywords so that it can match those. Mostly the buzzwords are around specifications, PRD, wireframes, metrics, etc. Please make sure you compress your job summary to a 1-page resume. If you have more than 10 years of experience - you can think about a 2 Page as well. Not more than that. 

Before

After

More tips about how to write the BEST resume. 

2. Where can people find you? Better places for a PM role are Linkedin, Hirist, Instahyre, Angellist, Cutshort, and Naukri. Keep all these profiles updated. In fact, if you are applying for consumer profiles also keep Twitter, Facebook and other social profiles active and updated.    

3. Patience: Keep at it. It may take 3 to 6 months if you are doing all the right things, for relevant opportunities to open up. Apply, re-apply with personalized cover letters. Btw, the email that you write is a cover letter, don't write a separate one and attach it with your Resume. That's silly. 

4. Not just what you know, it is also about who do you know. Network! Networking is not just about sending LinkedIn requests. Attend good startup and product related events, join PM communities on FB, Linkedin, Meetup, Whatsapp. Meet people, learn from them, connect at different levels, ask questions, find out what people are looking for. Be active on social media. Engage with relevant folks and comment on their tweets or re-tweet them with your opinions. This will help you understand where you stand and how you can position yourself correctly. Look for ways in which you can help people. That's the best way to network.  

5. Prepare better. The chances you get will be limited, don't mess them up. If you haven't read some of the books like Cracking the PM Interview, Decode to Conquer your preparation may not be complete. At least read one of them. In general, as a PM you should be reading a lot of good books on business, startups, and product design. There are a lot of lists of good books available - here's one of mine. You are expected to know about and have opinions on trending technologies like Blockchain and Machine learning even if it is unrelated. You should also follow some current affairs about your domain. 

I am sure he'd get a job soon. I'd update when he does! :-) 

Update: 23/12/2017 - He is placed at Zynga Bangalore now. 

Update: A More updated deck from a recent workshop I took for Upgrad. In the deck, I talk about how to deal with different types of interview questions and assignments that you get as a part of the interview process.  


If you have reached this far you should totally leave a comment for Ujjwal Trivedi about how you liked it.