Introduction to product management in India. Useful for newcomers to product management, or for people moving into product management in India from overseas.

1. High-Tech. Product Management in
India
Website:
http://desiproductmanager.wordpress.com
Twitter: @desiprodmgr

2. Disclaimer
• Views offered are my own
• These are observations, not golden truths
• Future trends are predictions, not facts
• Product management dimensions can vary
from firm to firm even in the same market or
customer segment
©DesiProductManager

3. Overview
• 4 Types of Product Managers in India
• Product Management Dimensions
• PM Recruitments in India
• PM - Compensation Trends
• Future of Product Management
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4. 4 Types of High Tech. PM Roles in India
• Enterprise Software Firms
– Market facing (India, APJ)
• Dell, HP, Tally, IBM
– Offshore R&D Centers (mainly supporting US)
• Microsoft, IBM, CA Technologies, Oracle, Cisco
• Consumer/Web Software, Apps, VAS Firms
– Market facing (India, APJ)
• Google India, Flipkart.com, Amazon, Dell, Onmobile
– Offshore R&D Centers
• Adobe, Microsoft, Yahoo!, Amazon, Nokia
Note: some firms offer all work profiles. There are many startups offering roles in all
of these categories.
©DesiProductManager

5. Dimensions of Product Management
• Product Requirements • Competitive Analysis
• Use Cases, User Stories • Budgeting/Financial Analysis
• Pricing and Costing, P&L • Project Management
• UX/Usability Testing • System Architecture & Design
• Market Research/Surveys • Statements Of Work
• Strategy Formulation • Sales Support, Pre-sales
• Customer Interviews • Industry Analyst Interactions
• “Buy-Build-Partner” • Technology Research
• Marketing Support • Win-Loss Analysis
• Roadmap/Backlog • Product Trainings
• UI Design, Wireframes • Product Demos
• Usage Analytics
©DesiProductManager

6. Offshore Enterprise Product Management
• Key Dimensions
– Product Requirements
– Use Cases, User Stories
– “Buy-Build-Partner”
– Marketing Support
– Roadmap/Backlog
– UI Design, Wireframes
– Competitive Analysis
– Project Management
– System Architecture & Design
– Sales Support, Pre-sales
– Technology Research
©DesiProductManager

7. Offshore Consumer Product Management
• Key Dimensions
– Product Requirements
– Use Cases, User Stories
– UX/Usability Testing
– Customer Interviews
– Roadmap/Backlog
– UI Design, Wireframes
– Usage Analytics
– Competitive Analysis
– Project Management
– Technology Research
– Product Demos
©DesiProductManager

8. Market Facing Enterprise Product Management
• Key Dimensions
– Product Requirements
– Pricing and Costing, P&L
– Market Research/Surveys
– Strategy Formulation
– “Buy-Build-Partner”
– Marketing Support
– Competitive Analysis
– Budgeting/Financial Analysis
– Statements Of Work
– Sales Support, Pre-sales
– Industry Analyst Interactions
– Win-Loss Analysis
– Product Trainings
– Product Demos
©DesiProductManager

9. Market Facing Consumer Product Management
• Key Dimensions
– Use Cases, User Stories
– UX/Usability Testing
– Market Research/Surveys
– Customer Interviews
– Marketing Support
– UI Design, Wireframes
– Usage Analytics
– Competitive Analysis
– Project Management
– Product Demos
©DesiProductManager

10. PM Recruitments In India
• These 4 firms require PMs with vastly different skills sets
• All 4 kinds of product managers are recruited in India
today
• Active recruitments in offshore roles is totally dependent
on budget availability in the US and relative maturity of
local organization
• A PM with a technical background, MBA and relevant
experience is easily able to transition between these
different roles
• Knowing people at your target firm is very important for
getting an interview
©DesiProductManager

11. PM – Compensation Trends
• Compensation offered is in line with the local market
conditions for each firm
• High paying US consumer internet firms also pay the
most in India
• High paying enterprise software firms in the US also pay
similarly in India (exception: when the Indian PM reports
to a PM in US)
• Lowest salary is offered by startups, Indian market facing
domestic firms in low margin businesses (e-commerce,
VAS etc.)
• MNCs operating in Indian market also offer competitive
salaries
©DesiProductManager

12. Future of Product Management - I
• As Indian market matures and firms grow in size, local market
PMs will be in high demand
• There are very few Director-PM roles in offshore
organizations, this will continue for the near term
• Growth prospects in the PM role are limited in offshore
organizations, they offer most opportunity for relocation
overseas
• Offshore PM roles are likely to remain one-
dimensional, mainly about product development
• Many offshore PMs are likely to return to US or move back to
engineering roles
©DesiProductManager

13. Future of Product Management - II
• Head of Products will remain a top management role in the
Indian market, MBA a must
• Cloud, Analytics and UX Design will remain key skills for
successful PMs
• Pricing and strategic analysis will remain with PMs in Indian
market facing firms
• Lateral movements into PM roles will continue to be from
Business Development Manager (BDM) and Software
Engineering roles
©DesiProductManager

14. Connect With Us
• Blog: desiproductmanager.wordpress.com
• Twitter: @DesiProdMgr
• Email: dhja611@gmail.com
©DesiProductManager