If you’re a product manager wondering how to get the most from Agile and Scrum we’ve compiled this list of 5 key areas to help you understand what you should be focusing on. 1. Product manager vs product owner? OneofthekeyaspectsofAgileisworkingverycloselywithsomeone whounderstandswhatthecustomerswantfortheproduct.Theroleis criticaltodrivewhatisdeveloped.InScrumthisroleiscalledthe productownerandinvolvesprioritisingthebacklogoffeatures, answeringday-to-dayquestions,providingsign-offsandfeedback. Doneproperlyittakesalargecommitmentofeffortandtime. Productmanagementissetupbycompaniesindifferentways. Howeverafundamentalpartoftheroleisgatheringcustomer requirementsanddefiningtheproductsthatthecompanysells.So productmanagersareideallyplacedtobe productowners.The challengeisthatmostproductmanagershavearangeofother responsibilitiesthatkeepthemverybusy,e.g.in-lifeproduct management,productmarketing,supportingsales. Inourview,asaproductmanageryoumustnotgiveupcontrolof whatisbeingdevelopedforyourroadmapandmustfindawayoftaking controloftheproductownerrole. Onewayistohaveoneormorebacklogmanagers.Thesemaybe businessanalystsorteamleaderswhotakeontheproductownerrole forthedurationoftheproject.Thekeyisthattheyhaveatleastadotted linereportingintoyousoyou’reinvolvedintheprioritisationandsign- offofwork. Anotheroptionistosplittheproductmanagementrolesothatone persontakesontheinboundactivitiesofworkingwiththeAgileteamto defineand delivertheproductandsomeoneelsetakesontheoutbound roleofhelpingthebusinessmarkettheproduct. 14 ProductManagementJournalVolume 7 BEST PRACTICE Checklist SurviveandprosperwithAgile “I think the Scrumterm product owner is a misnomer andworryatthe ‘scope creep’ that seemsto be promoted bysome Scrum advocatesthat gives moreand more product responsibilities tothis project- based role,e.g. budget, strategy. Tomy mind,the product manager owns theproduct andI muchprefer the term backlog managerforthe Scrumrole.” Saeed Khan, Industry expert and founder of Transformation Labs