Conduct Market ResearchĪll successful product managers know their markets inside-out.įor that, they need to conduct heavy market research.Īs an associate product manager, you’ll be responsible for carrying out this crucial task.īy conducting market research, you’ll be able to: Planning and overseeing the development of an entire product (from scratch) is still the primary responsibility of the senior PM.ĭepending on the company, and as discussed earlier, the APM’s job is to support them with new projects – from gathering research to launching products (more on all of this later). This means that, as an APM, you probably won’t get to work on a new product all by yourself. Develop New Features for Existing ProductsĪlways remember that an associate product manager is a beginner-level position. The following list summarizes pretty much everything an associate product manager does: 1. However, there are certain responsibilities and duties that almost every APM has to fulfill. What Does an Associate Product Manager Do?Īs implied earlier, the job description of an associate product manager varies from company to company. Before that, people had to actively seek out opportunities to gain relevant experience on their own.Ĭonsidering that, the modern workforce (especially fresh grads) should consider itself lucky. Practical Learning – APMs get the complete product management experience, helping them develop the necessary skills needed for the job.īesides that, according to Glassdoor, the average base pay for APMs is $96,010 per year.Īssociate product manager jobs didn’t exist until a decade or two ago.However, in comparison, an associate product manager has a much clearer path and a higher probability of succeeding. A Clear Career Path – product marketing managers, as well as project managers, can make a transition towards product management.Here are the two main benefits of becoming an associate product manager: However, if you’re relatively young and just graduated from college, there’s no better way to eventually become a product manager than to apply for an APM position. You don’t necessarily have to be an associate product manager to become a PM. What are the Benefits of Becoming an Associate Product Manager? In addition to the above, they have to support and assist their senior PMs with anything that brings them closer to achieving their product vision. Engaging in product lifecycle management in different stages.Arranging and overseeing scrum meetings to ensure product teams are on track.Developing and implementing product strategies.Conducting market research and gathering product requirements.Usually, it is the senior product managers who oversee the development of new products. To be more specific, in many companies, associate product managers, despite having almost identical JDs as their supervisors, only get to work on developing new features for already-mature products (with input from their seniors). That means an associate product manager does everything a regular product manager does – minus the stress of having complete accountability. There aren’t many differences between the APM and the product manager role, except for the depth of responsibilities. How are APMs Different from Regular Product Managers? In some companies, APMs also get to manage product development teams and oversee their day-to-day tasks.Īdditionally, they spend a lot of time doing rotational work and exploring how different departments operate.

While the specifics of the job description vary from company to company, an APM reports directly to a senior product manager, supports them with on-going projects, and of course, learns from them. Like product managers, they’re responsible for planning and guiding the success of new product development (and are often referred to as the “CEOs of product lines”).

Final Thoughts: Experience Matters the MostĪs the name suggests, the “associate product manager” position is an apprenticeship in product management.

How Do I Become an Associate Product Manager?.

What Does an Associate Product Manager Do?.

Associate product manager jobs