Product development and product management are probably two terms that are used quite interchangeably across business environments and industries.
Sometimes this interchangeability can also be seen in official business documents and sometimes if you make this mistake then you are getting fired from your job.
But what is the difference between product development and product management and do they mean the same thing ultimately or are they completely different?
What is the core difference between them in business environments and what are the most important stages of product development and product management?
Don’t worry!
We are going to answer all your questions regarding product development and product management in this blog.
The product development industry is huge and is expected to reach an almost 4% growth each year with nearly half a million employees joining the industry each year.
If you think this is big then you need to look at the product management industry.
The global product management industry has an annual growth rate of about 7% which is bigger than the product development industry. In addition to that the product management market is already at over $20 billion by 2024.
So, we can conclude that there is a clear difference between the industries and how they operate. We can also assume that product management is much bigger than product development while it is definitely true that they are related, we need to understand what they actually mean.
That is exactly what we are going to do right now so let us understand what is product management and product development.
What Is Product Development?
Product development is exactly what it sounds like because it is the process of conceptualization of a product, designing it and then moving on to making the product and finally the product.
Product development is a very complex process that consists of everything from supporting infrastructure to professionals in the form of software developers as well as engineers and designers, QA testers and the like.
Product development is a very systematic process that is carried on through multiple steps and procedures.
Important Stages of Product Development
Conceptualization
The first and some would argue the most important stage of the entire process of product development is the conceptualization of the product.
This is when in need in the market is understood through market research and target users are defined and then the vision of a product is created.
This is a very early stage and this is where designers and engineers all come together to brainstorm ideas.
Design
After the initial stage of conceptualization is completed, we move to the design stage where the designer takes over and puts together the wireframe of the product and also brings together ideas about how the product is going to look and function.
If it is a digital product then this is the stage where the UI/UX is planned and also all the structure elements are planned.
Prototyping
Creating a prototype is when a very early model of the product is created that is almost functional and that goes to show that the product can work as a concept.
This prototype is nowhere near the final product and it is nowhere complete however it is a good form to help people understand the feasibility of the product.
Creating a prototype also has an important purpose and it is also to generate investments and raise capital for the project.
Testing and Validation
Once everyone is happy with the prototype then begins the process of testing and validation when numerous tests are carried out in order to find out bugs and issues with the product.
This is a very important process because you cannot have a product go into production or development if there are issues with it because then those issues will get transferred to the final product which you do not want.
This is also where external testers are brought in and their feedback is recorded and utilised. We usually call them beta testers.
Development
We finally come to the development stage of the product and this is where the actual physical development of the product begins.
This can be coding for a digital product or this can be mechanics for a physical product.
This is the stage of product development where everyone from the design team to the engineering team as well as the marketing team comes together to see how the product is taking shape. This will be important later on.
Production
And finally, we come to the stage of production. This stage is usually absent for digital products because the development leads to the final product which then can be launched on different platforms are sold as software or subscription services.
The production process is usually reserved for physical products that need manufacturing and you can think of products like smartphones and tablets and anything else that has to go through manufacturing.
What Is Product Management?
Product management is much more complicated because product management also involves product development and it actually involves the entire life cycle of the product.
This means that product management is going to involve product conceptualization as well as product development and product manufacturing and deployment.
While product management does not really involve the aspect of product development but it surrounds the entire process of product development from product conceptualization to product deployment.
This means the product management team is also involved in the product development process and helps the development team with multiple inputs regarding the market and also guides them towards different objectives that the product needs to fulfil.
This is where we come to the product management team that involves everyone from administrators to team leaders and even engineers but they are different from the product development team.
The purpose of the product management team is to act as quality control and simply help the development team with information and objectives.
Important Objectives of Product Management
Establishing Product Vision
Every product has an identity to maintain which means that when you are planning on launching a product in the market you need to establish a vision for the product and a clear strategy of the product.
For example, if we look at a product like the Apple Air Pods, the vision for that product is that it is the newest medium of enjoying music on your iPhone and it is the successor to the Ear Pods.
Creating a product vision is not just important for marketing purposes but it is also important for your internal team of product designers and developers so that they can create a product according to that vision.
That is exactly what a product management team does, they give every product an identity that it has to fulfil.
Defining Market Compatibility
The product development team is just there to create the product and they might need market data but they are ultimately in place to create a working product.
They might need data regarding the market and they might need other specifics so that they can create a product according to that.
The product management team ensures that data is collected and that data reaches the product development team. Yes, the product management team is responsible for ensuring market compatibility.
This is the team responsible for understanding a gap in the market and finding a possible solution to that gap while also keeping multiple factors in mind such as market trends as well as competitor products and their pricing etc.
Ensuring Customer Satisfaction
The product management team is also responsible for noticing customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction in the form of customer feedback.
The development team is always busy doing their job and it is therefore the responsibility of the product management team to ensure that the product development team is getting the right feedback sent to them from the customers.
That is why they can be directly attributed to customer satisfaction and user experience simply because they make sure the right problems reach the right team for the right kind of solution. They act as a bridge between the users and the development team.
Departmental Collaboration
Product development is a very complicated process that requires the collaboration of multiple teams whether it is the sales team, marketing or even the content team with the development team.
You also get the administrative teams and this is a complex patchwork of collaboration between technical and non-technical teams.
There is a lot of information going back and forth between these teams and it is very important to make sure that fluidity is maintained between every one of them so that they all move towards achieving product goals in a timely manner.
This responsibility falls on the shoulders of the product management team because they ensure cross-functional collaboration between multiple departments such as engineering and design as well as customer support.
Product Lifecycle Management
Let us help you understand this with an example. Let’s say you buy the iPhone 15 today and it is brand new. This is not the last phone the company launches and it will probably launch an iPhone 16 someday and it will continue to do so.
It means that your phone might come with the latest software out of the box but it might become outdated someday and not stay the newest model with the latest software.
If you still keep on getting updates regarding new features and bug fixes even after your phone is not the newest model of a company, you can thank the product management team.
The product management team is responsible for the entire lifecycle of the product this means that they are responsible for ensuring that the product launch takes place and they are also responsible for post-product launch support.
Here is the thing you need to understand about the product development team, they are a very highly focused team and they simply cannot focus on anything other than the product they are developing. They cannot keep track of older products and they are not supposed to. The product development team is simply there to develop a product.
That is why the product management team is there to take care of the rest.
Product Launch and Post-Launch
A product launch whether physical or digital is a very complicated process that involves multiple steps and a lot of tracking when it comes to several key performance indicators (KPIs).
The success of a product depends a lot on how it is launched and this means coordination with not only the development team but also the marketing team and it also means keeping in mind customer satisfaction and adoption as well as revenue and much more.
This entire sequence of keeping important data in mind while managing multiple departments is done by the product management team when it comes to product launch and post-launch sequences.
Risk Mitigation
Finally, the product management team also has to keep in mind all the risks involved in the entire process of product development and product launch as well as product support and mitigate them.
Since they are the ones who are responsible for the entire life cycle of the product, they are also responsible for keeping market conditions in mind and always staying alert for market changes.
The product management team also has to deal with complaints regarding technical issues and they also need to collaborate with the right department in order to solve those issues.
In addition to that they must also guide the marketing team with the right technical details and be responsible for that.
In addition to that they must also keep the finances of the product in mind which means they need to keep the investments in mind and the expenditures as well as the profits.
We hope this blog has been helpful for you to understand what is product development as well as what is product management and the relationship between them.
Product management is responsible for the entire life cycle of the product and development is just a small part of it.
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