The impacts of software product management

The success of any product depends on the skills and competence of the product manager. This article evaluates the relevance of good product management on the success of a product. The empirical study is supported by data from 178 industry projects from telecommunication industry over a period of three years throughout which the product management role and competency was defined, deployed and improved. The behaviors and project performance before and after strengthening the product management discipline are compared. We found that with increasing institutionalization of a consistent and empowered product management role, the success rate of projects in terms of schedule predictability, quality and project duration improves. To allow better transfer of achieved results to other settings, the article provides concrete guidelines about key success factors for good product management. (C) 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.