What is product owner?

In SaaS companies, a product owner is responsible for developing the product’s vision and navigating the product roadmap to maximize value. This means defining goals to be achieved so that everyone, from the development team to the customers, is on the same page about the product’s future. The product owner is also often referred to as the voice of the customer (VOC) on the Scrum team.

The role also calls for tactical expertise. The product owner not only has to communicate the tasks to be done but also organize sprints and coordinate teamwork until the final product is delivered.

Product owner’s main responsibilities

There are multiple facets of product development that the product owner needs to constantly keep an eye on. These vary from customer understanding to release management to tracking product performance, all the while collaborating across teams as well.

Here are all the main responsibilities that every product owner has to fulfill:

• Define a clear product vision and strategy, aligned with the overall goals of the organization.
• Maintain the product backlog so it is up-to-date and contains detailed user stories and well-documented acceptance criteria.
• Regularly plan and coordinate sprints, closely collaborating with customers and the development team to prioritize requirements based on customer needs and resources utilized.
• Work with cross-functional teams, including customer support, design, and marketing, to ensure everyone is on the same page for a smooth release.
• Gather and analyze customer feedback, track product usage, and perform relevant analysis, like funnel or path analysis, for examining problem areas to inform product decisions.
• Oversee the release process to ensure quality guidelines are met and to optimally schedule new features or updates.
• Monitor product performance by regularly tracking metrics such as user engagement, retention and conversion rates, and customer satisfaction to measure product success.

Product owner career path

• Product Assistant/Junior Product Owner: This is an entry-level position, where you need to prove your expertise and develop your understanding of the product to advance.
• Product Owner: Typically, after 2 years at the entry-level position, once you develop your Agile methodology skillset, you can become a product owner.
• Senior Product Owner: For this role, you need at least 5 years of experience and advanced knowledge of product roadmap techniques like Kano or Pareto. A CSPO or equivalent certification is a strong plus.
• Product Manager: To reach this role, you need over 6 to 8 years of product ownership, project management, and product design experience. You should also have extensive experience working with engineering, development, and user research teams.
• Director of Product Management: Requires 10-plus years of product manager experience strategically running a successful product and continuously learning through certifications like Certified Product Manager (CPM) or Advanced Product Management Certification (APMC). Familiarity with the E-Verify program is also a necessity (as required by law in certain locations).
• Vice President of Product Management: To become the VP, you need over 15 years of experience handling a portfolio of products, effectively collaborating with C-Suite, PMs, engineering, design, and data while learning relevant guidelines for operations, compliance, and legal as well.
• Chief Product Officer (CPO): Responsible for all products and their entire lifecycles, a CPO position typically requires 15 to 20 years of relevant experience in similar companies. At least 8 to 10 of those years should be in leadership or managerial roles, along with a Master’s degree as well, more often than not.

How to become a product owner?

In order to become a product owner, you typically need a relevant educational background or appropriate work experience, coupled with the right technical skills as well.

In terms of education, there is generally no strict requirement of one specific field. However, having a bachelor’s degree in fields such as computer science, engineering, data, business, or some related field is beneficial. To further cement your product owner resume, you can pursue certifications or courses related to Agile methodologies, such as the Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), or specific domains like SaaS product management.

You can also transition into a product owner by acquiring relevant experience in roles such as project management, software development, or business analysis. If possible, look to be a part of cross-functional teams where you can work on Agile projects.

Lastly, don’t underestimate the power of networking. Networking is a great way to learn about any fresh opportunities out there that you might be perfect for. Start building a network by participating in relevant professional events or joining product owner groups on LinkedIn.

What skills should a product owner have?

A successful product owner needs to possess a diverse skillset to be able to effectively manage their various tasks.

For example, they don’t just need technical expertise because the role also involves interpersonal skills like customer understanding and team coordination. So the best product owner needs to strike a fine balance between both, soft and hard skills.

With this said, let’s take a deeper look at all the skills necessary for a great product owner.

• Analytical skills: Proficiency with data to make well-informed decisions for product development by analyzing usage and customer behavior, and tracking KPIs to measure progress accurately.
• Understanding of Agile methodology: A deep understanding of methodologies such as Scrum or Kanban, sprint management, and iterative planning is necessary to survive in this fast-paced product development.
• Project management: Initiation and selection, planning, execution, monitoring and control, and closing—product owners collaborate with other departments to perform all these tasks.
• Prioritization & backlog grooming: Product owners face hundreds of customer requests and even more ideas from their teams. To manage all this information, they need to prioritize product initiatives effectively, keeping the backlog in mind.
• Collaboration: A product owner is always collaborating with the development team, customers, and other departments like customer support and marketing, to closely coordinate releases.

Best certifications for a product owner

The most suitable certification depends on your experience level, career goals, and the specific Agile methodologies used in your workplace. You should also research the program’s cost, learning format (online/offline), and the prerequisite if any.

Here are a few suggestions to get you started:

• Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO)™ (Scrum.org): This advanced certification validates your in-depth understanding of Scrum principles and product ownership. It emphasizes advanced topics like product vision, backlog refinement, and risk management. Earning a PSPO demonstrates expertise and is ideal for experienced product owners.
• SAFe® Product Owner/Product Manager (POPM) (Scaled Agile Framework): This certification focuses on product ownership within the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) for large enterprises. It teaches you to collaborate across teams in an Agile Release Train (ART) environment. Consider POPM if you work in a SAFe environment or want to specialize in large-scale agile product management.
• PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP)® (Project Management Institute): This certification is broader than just product ownership, encompassing the entire agile project lifecycle. It validates your knowledge of agile practices, frameworks, and value delivery. PMI-ACP is a well-rounded choice if you want a broader understanding of agile project management beyond product ownership.
• PMHQ Product Owner Certification Course (Product HQ): This vendor-neutral course offers a comprehensive curriculum on product ownership fundamentals, user research, product strategy, and road mapping. It’s a good option for those seeking a practical and in-depth learning experience.
• APMG International Agile Project Management (AgilePM®) (APMG International): This certification program offers two levels: Agile Project Management Foundation and Agile Product Owner. It covers core agile principles, product lifecycles, and user story development. Consider this path if you’re interested in a structured learning program with a foundation and product owner specialization.

Best resources for product owners

Becoming a product owner means exploring several diverse fields, from leadership and teamwork to the technical side of things, like Agile and Scrum projects. Here are some resources to help you along in your journey.

Best books for product owners

• “Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time” by Jeff Sutherland: From the co-creator of Scrum, uncover insights into the approach that changed how software companies work in Agile environments.
• “Inspired: How to Create Products Customers Love” by Marty Cagan: Discover tips on how big tech giants like Google and Amazon design their products to continuously deliver great value.

You can find both these books on Amazon, along with their audiobooks as well.

Best webinars for product owners

Here’s a comprehensive list of top webinar sources for product owners, encompassing various needs and focusing on both general product management and software-specific topics:

• Userpilot Events focuses on product growth and user onboarding, key areas for product success. Their webinars can provide valuable insights into optimizing user experience, feature adoption, and engagement strategies.
• Product School offers a mix of free and paid webinars on a wide range of product management topics like product strategy, user research, user story creation, and prioritization.
• Mind the Product frequently hosts webinars on product management best practices, including backlog management, building a product roadmap, and fostering collaboration with development teams.
• Brighttalk offers webinars on various topics, including product management. You can find upcoming webinars on product management by searching for the topic on their website.

Best blogs for product owners

• Userpilot Blog: This is a helpful resource for all things product management. You can collect actionable insights from their articles and find a wide range of topics covered such as user experience, onboarding best practices, user research, product development, etc.
• Product Coalition: The largest community of product management resources, this blog provides everything product-related you can imagine, from building roadmaps and user stories to iterative product improvements and stakeholder management.
• The Scrum.org blog: Find guides about various Scrum roles and how to grow in them, including product owner roles as well.

Best podcasts for product owners

• “Agile for Humans” podcast by Ryan Ripley: Available on Audible and Apple podcasts, this discusses Agile and Scrum practices and different roles necessary to build a successful product.
• “The Product Podcast” by The Product School: Available on Apple podcasts and The Product School site, this features expert interviews with product leaders and experts from Google and Facebook.

Best tools for product owners

If you’re seriously considering growing in your product owner career, there are certain tools that you definitely need to know of. These tools don’t just relate to product management but instead cover a wide variety of skills, from task collaboration to making data analysis easier. Here are the top 5 picks for you:

1. The best tool for product management – Confluence: Makes knowledge management easier by providing a single source of truth for all product-related documentation, such as product specifications, meeting notes, and approval guidelines.
2. Project management made easy with Jira: A popular bug and issue-tracking tool to help you manage and prioritize product backlogs and plan sprints.
3. The answer to all progress tracking problems – Trello: Great for task organization, Trello enables you to assign tasks, track team progress, and easily collaborate with all team members.
4. Perfect product design effortlessly with InVision Studio: Easily collaborate with the design team for upcoming product updates or releases, view prototypes, and test out design updates.
5. The most popular tool for data analysis – Tableau: Product owners need to extract and visualize actionable insights from the customer feedback and usage tracking data they gather, which becomes easier with Tableau.

Product owner FAQs

• What is a product owner vs. product manager? A product owner is actively involved in designing the product vision and roadmap, whereas a product manager deals with the overarching details of the entire product lifecycle from start to launch, such as budgets and resources needed to meet the vision.
• Who becomes a product owner? Typically, individuals with experience in project management and business analysis, coupled with some technical experience in software development, easily transition into product owners.
• Is being a product owner a skill? Becoming a successful product owner is indeed a skill, as it requires learning how to manage several project tasks and outcomes professionally. Product owners generally rely on skills such as communication and collaboration, analytical thinking, and Agile methodologies.
• Is product owner a tech role? Within SaaS organizations, a product owner is more of a tech role because it requires understanding complex technical requirements and translating them into achievable product features aligned with the overall vision.
• Is the product owner’s role in demand? Industry trends suggest that the role of product owners still remains crucial. This is due to the very nature of the job, which requires great skill to be able to act as a bridge between technological development and strategic goals.

Conclusion

Becoming a successful product owner requires dedication, continuous learning, and a proactive approach to developing relevant skills.

By following the outlined steps and leveraging the resources available, you can effectively navigate your career path and achieve your professional goals.

We hope this guide has provided you with valuable insights and practical advice to help you on your journey to becoming a proficient and impactful product owner!

Looking into tools for product owners? Userpilot is an all-in-one product platform with engagement features and powerful analytics capabilities. Book a demo to see it in action!