New PM On The Block
Step by step, oh, baby, gonna get to you, girl
Step by step
Rock!Step one! We can have lots of fun
Step two! There’s so much we can do
Step three! It’s just you and me
Step four! I can give you more
Step five! Don’t you know that the time is right. Huh!
Cheezy Parts of the lyrics from 90’s Hit “Step by Step” by New Kids On The Block. Basically, The song tells us that you need several steps to get a girl (or girls :D). I believe It is the same case if you are in the adaptation phase in your new company. No need to mention the Job Title, we will be a New Kids On The Block at least once. And It is not a comfortable situation for everybody. Usually higher position or higher salary that you got, will give you higher pressure, complexity, and density to something that some people call THE ONBOARDING PROCESS. I will share my previous onboarding experience as a Product Manager (PM) at one of the largest e-commerce in Indonesia.
I was not new to the PM role (but not a senior too), at least I understand how PM works ideally and theoretically.
Intermezzo for everybody that does not understand what PM is :
PM is someone that will sh*t on his/her pants, in order to make the product fulfill USERS needs perfectly. Sometimes they also need to serve KPI numbers or stakeholders + investors needs, which is r̶a̶r̶e̶l̶y should be related. However, I believe that the USERS are our top priority.
Back to the topic, these are my Step by Step :
Talk to someone who hires you
It is important to know what they are expecting from you as a PM. You also need to communicate your expectation about the company and your role. Ask them who are your team members and stakeholders, it will help you on the next step. (Optional) Ask them about in what scope do they want you to help/work for, it will make your onboarding process more focus.
nb: PMs are usually hired by CEO or Chief/VP/Head of Product. So, focus on the high-level direction, learn the details from the stakeholders or your team.
Set 1 on 1 with your stakeholders and the team members
Take initiatives to invite your team members on a 1 on 1 meeting, Ask :
- What is their expectation to you as a PM?
- How does it work in your team or their team?
- What do the things that need to improve, keep, and remove?
- Other details base on their expertise (Maybe you can ask about how good is the lunch menu to your engineers, but you cannot ask about Software Architecture to the GA Staffs)
Write Everything, I repeat WRITE EVERYTHING
If you think that you will remember everything, then you won’t. If you think that you won’t remember everything, then you won’t.
Read every documentation that related to your product scope
Captain says “Do you know the similarity between the most high-tech multicorn company and your grandma’s store? The Documentation”. So if you are lucky enough, please read it to understand a lot of details without waste somebody’s “precious” time.
Do what your users do
After you know your users, do mirroring or shadowing to your user. It will be easier if your users are internal users. However, if your users are napping on the sofa in their home topless with flower boxer, then you can look at the tracker to understand their behaviour and try to do mirroring. These activities will make you understand their mental model, you need to understand how your users think before you solve their problems.
Here is Wikipedia link of mental model guys! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mental_model
Talk to other PMs/Product Team Members
(Unless you are the only product team member)
If you are new to the PM role, shadowing to the PMs on the company will help you a lot. If you are not new to the role, learn how it works in the company and you express your opinion about the process. PM’s job description sometimes different from one to another company depends on a lot of parameters (Company size, Number of Users, Number of PMs, Product type, Number of Engineers), but the goal is the same.
Eat Lunch
The onboarding process will be tiring, so eat your calories. Eat with your team members to build your trust and their trust. Treat them once won’t make you under the line of poverty.
Just F**kin Work
If you took too long to onboard, (maybe) your company is starting to wonder about your contribution. Trust our ancestors “learning by doing”, it will be faster most of the time. If you are a NASA Rocket Product Manager, at least onboard until you are not stupid enough to measure takeoff thrust temperature by stand under the nozzle with a thermometer in your hand.
Those were my Step by Step of onboarding. Don’t worry guys, unless your job is a Pilot you do not need land safely. You need to keep THE ONBOARDING MENTALITY forever, so you will always learn with anarchy. The success ONBOARDING PROCESS is when you land hard and not die, then you learn continuously.
By the way, I have several TIPS.
To be honest, I did not do several of my tips. But as a useful human being, I learn.
Just ask if you do not understand any JARGONS or ABBREVIATIONS
Guys, you are not stupid if you do not understand any jargons or abbreviations. Some people prefer them to look smart as hell or the thing that they want to say is crazy long enough to say it as it is.
I repeat WRITE EVERYTHING
If you think that you will remember everything, then you won’t. If you think that you won’t remember everything, then you won’t.
Talk with other PMs from competitors
Try to talk (at least connect to their LinkedIn Account) with PMs from different companies especially the competitor especially the PM of the same scope. Share your knowledge to them, and expect the same from them. Remember, your company and their company are fighting about numbers, money, idea. Not knowledge. Share the knowledge and grow together.
