What are the top product managers doing differently? In this roundtable hosted by Products That Count CEO Hoda Mehr, members of the PM Awards Advisory Board will break down key trends they spotted across hundreds of award nominations on what top product managers are doing differently. You’ll hear from seasoned product leaders across industries as they share what sets standout PMs apart today—and what that means for the future of the role. Whether you’re building your product team or growing your own career, this is a must-attend conversation on what great looks like right now.
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Show Notes:
- AI is transforming product management, but core fundamentals remain the same
- Top product managers are continuously curious about AI technologies and experimental in their approach
- Successful PMs use AI as a co-pilot, not a complete replacement for human thinking
- Outcome measurement is shifting – less focus on tool usage, more on task efficiency
- Responsible AI is critical – top PMs consider potential biases and ethical implications
- Great PMs focus on customer outcomes, not just feature delivery
- Cross-functional collaboration now includes legal, compliance, and marketing teams more extensively
- Direct customer interaction remains irreplaceable, even with advanced AI tools
- Product managers need deep customer empathy and entrepreneurial mindset
- AI lowers technical barriers, enabling PMs to understand code bases more easily
- Successful PMs balance three roadmaps: building new features, improving existing products, and maintaining infrastructure
- Trust and verification are crucial when using AI-generated information
- Product leaders must build trust across teams, not just give orders
- Prototyping with AI has become faster and more accessible
- PMs should seek to “disconfirm” rather than always validate their assumptions
- Commercial viability remains a key metric for product success
- Understanding the entire business ecosystem is more important than tactical feature development
- AI tools are best used for specific, deterministic tasks like creating user stories
- Product managers should contribute to building and improving the product management community
- The role of PM is expanding, requiring broader skills and deeper strategic thinking
About the speaker
Products that Count is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that helps everyone build great products. It celebrates product excellence through coveted Awards that inspire 500,000+ product managers and honor great products and the professionals responsible for their success. It accelerates the career and rise to the C-suite of >30% of all Product Managers globally by providing exceptional programming – including award-winning podcasts and popular newsletters – for free. It acts as a trusted advisor to all CPOs at Fortune 1000, and publishes key insights from innovative companies, like Capgemini, SoFi, and Amplitude, that turn product success into business success.