The difference between Product Manager & Product Owner?

In the agile world, Product Manager and Product Owner are two key roles that are often confused with each other. Both play a crucial role in the development and management of products, especially in the context of Scrum, an agile framework. But what exactly is the difference between these two roles?

First of all: companies certainly do not use the two role descriptions perfectly according to the definitions mentioned below. The roles can definitely also be identical in practice, even if they are titled differently. The role of Product Manager is probably officially less well defined than the role of Product Owner - overall, the two roles are similar.

The term “Product Owner” comes from Scrum, an agile framework that helps teams structure their work and ultimately solve complex problems effectively. A Scrum team typically consists of a Product Owner, a Scrum Master, and developers with specific responsibilities.

According to the “Scrum Guide”, the Product Owner is responsible for “maximizing the value of the product resulting from the work of the Scrum Team”. 

The main tasks of the product owner include creating user stories for the development team and ensuring that these stories meet customer requirements. The product owner therefore advocates for the customer’s needs and represents the voice of the customer in the development team to ensure that the right product is developed.

Other responsibilities of the Product Owner include

• Manage the product backlog by creating and communicating backlog items and prioritizing them to maximize value.
• Definition and “management” of the product vision.
• Understanding market and customer needs and translating them into realizable user stories.
• Work closely with the teams to ensure that products meet customer needs.
• Acting as the main point of contact for all stakeholders and ensuring their approval of important decisions and strategies.

Product Managers play a more strategic role by focusing on the long-term vision of a product and aligning the product roadmap with the overall organizational goals.

The responsibilities of a Product Manager may vary depending on the organization, but typically include:

• Carrying out market and user research to determine customer needs for the product vision.
• Assembling and aligning teams around the “product roadmap”, if you can call it that.
• Helping to decide which features should be developed next.
• Monitoring of teams and projects to ensure a successful product launch.

The Product Manager usually has a more outward focus. In contrast, the Product Owner is more internally focused as they work closely with development teams to ensure that the product is developed according to these requirements.

In an ideal situation, for example, there could be a Product Manager who manages the product strategy and vision, and a Product Owner who is responsible for implementing this strategy.

So what is the key difference between Product Owner and Product Manager?

In agile product development, the key difference between product managers and product owners lies in their focus and responsibilities. While the product owner acts tactically, focusing on maximizing customer value by managing the product backlog and working closely with the development team, the product manager takes on a strategic role. He defines the long-term vision, aligns the product roadmap with organizational goals and keeps an eye on the entire product life cycle.

The decision between the role of a Product Owner and a Product Manager depends on individual preferences and professional goals. Those who prefer a tactical focus, like to work directly with development teams and drive the implementation of specific customer requirements could thrive as a Product Owner. On the other hand, the Product Manager path is attractive to those who value a more strategic perspective, want to take full product lifecycle responsibility and enjoy shaping the long-term vision of a product. Both roles offer unique challenges and opportunities – ultimately, as mentioned, the choice should be guided by individual interests and career goals.

At the same time, as always, it is important to start small: Ultimately, it doesn’t matter which of the two roles you take on first, or whether you first take on a preliminary stage of the roles (for example, also as a software developer). The more experience you gain, the easier it will be to take on your desired position later on. So just get started in a product team and learn!

The relationship between the Product Owner and the Product Manager is of central importance for the success of agile product development. While the product owner works closely with the development team and focuses on the implementation of specific customer requirements, the product manager creates the overarching strategic direction of the product. 

This symbiotic relationship requires continuous communication, clarity in the distribution of tasks and a shared understanding of long-term goals. The harmony between the two roles ensures that short-term implementation steps are in line with the long-term vision of the product, resulting in holistic and successful product development.

Here are some concrete tips if you, as a product owner, want to improve your relationship with the product manager: 

1. Clear communication: Make sure that communication between you as the product owner and the product manager is clear and open. Regular meetings and clear communication channels help to avoid misunderstandings.

2. Common goals: Define common goals and ensure that you and the Product Manager understand the overarching company goals. This promotes collaboration in terms of a coherent product development process.

3. Distribution of tasks: Clarify the responsibilities and distribution of tasks between you and the product manager. A clear demarcation helps to avoid overlaps and increase efficiency.

4. Regular feedback: Establish regular feedback loops in which you can share your perspectives. This promotes continuous improvement and adaptation to changing requirements.

5. Mutual understanding: Make sure that you develop a deep understanding of the product manager’s work, and vice versa. As the product owner, you should understand the strategic considerations, while the product manager should understand the tactical challenges.

6. Joint training courses: Attend joint training courses to expand your skills and knowledge. This not only promotes your professional development, but also creates a shared knowledge base.

7. Team orientation: Do not view the relationship in isolation, but as an integral part of the entire development team. A strong team orientation promotes collaboration and the success of the entire project.

Regardless of your role, continuous improvement of your team is the key to satisfying stakeholders and impressing your managers. This is where Echometer can help you, designed specifically for teams that don’t have a dedicated full-time Scrum Master.

Echometer is a digital tool that helps agile team leads with agile retrospectives and team Health Checks. Whether remote, hybrid or on-site: it makes team coaching measurable and professionalizes your work while saving you a lot of work. Just take a look at our website to find out more: www.echometerapp.com.

Regardless of whether you’re a Product Owner or Product Manager: The customer should be your favorite point of contact, as customer needs are your innovation driver.

– Christian Heidemeyer, Psychologist & Scrum Master

To summarize, product managers and product owners have different but complementary roles in agile product development. While the product owner ensures the implementation of customer requirements at a tactical level, the product manager acts at a strategic level by shaping the long-term vision of the product a little more. At the same time, it should be kept in mind that these are theoretical distinctions and are often not found in practice.

Finally, one more note: If you would like to try out how it feels to further develop your team with our tool: You can start an agile retrospective without logging in, in the following, in this case the “Keep, Stop, Start” workshop. 

Alternatively, simply forward our website to the responsible colleagues: www.echometerapp.com.