【翻译】本文由陈菜菜学习并翻译自Marty Cagan的文章《The Best Product Management Model?》，供产品爱好者交流使用。翻译如有所不妥，欢迎指教探讨。

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最好的产品管理模型是什么？

由Marty Cagan 2008年1月4日发布

标签：企业文化，管理，产品管理模型

一个我经常听到的问题是“谷歌赚了大笔钱，我们怎么像它一样做产品管理呢？”或是另一个常见的版本是“苹果创造了奇妙的产品，我们怎么像它一样做产品管理呢？”

你能够理解为什么一些人看到谷歌或苹果就觉得他们应该模仿他们所做的。但是他们可能是在犯一个巨大的错误。

不要误会我的意思。当苹果和谷歌拥有产品管理的不同模式时，我认为他们在做的事，对其公司来说是正确的（至少他们的创始人仍然继续将这种模式深入地引入到产品管理中）。

但我至今还没有向其他公司推荐过谷歌的产品管理模式。而在苹果实现他们模式的情况下，你也不得不克隆乔布斯。

谷歌的产品管理模式是与众不同的，而且我认为它必须是不同的。对于苹果来说也是一样的道理。

对技术型产品经理来说很重要的一系列技能，像评估机会、定义产品原则、产品研发和模型测试，然而，还有很多比技术更能使一个产品在组织中脱颖而出的因素。

正如对一个球队来说，技能确实是特别重要的。如果你不能接到一个球，你很难成为一个守门员。然而，胜利需要比技能更多的东西。它需要一个比赛的计划、一个策略来赢得胜利，需要作为团队成员的良好配合，需要利用机会、适应环境场地。

同样的，建立一个成功的产品管理组织不仅仅需要发展产品经理的技能，更要确保他们知道如何有效地和其他产品团队配合好工作，这是企业中产品发展组织和产品发展过程的重要部分；知道创造企业需要的产品，知道如何在市场中出色地竞争。

当我们谈到企业最好的产品管理模式时，我正在寻找其中的因素，包括：

·产品管理的角色。在许多企业中，产品管理的角色和责任被分解，最好的产品管理模式是当员工拥有能力和渴望去充当这个角色。

·组织的规模。一个始于一个产品导向的创始人的12人创业团队，它的需求不同于一个拥有4000名员工和大量客户的上市公司。

·企业文化。有时这是一个主导因素。例如，如果你有一家公司，公司有一两个能为产品高效决策的人（并且希望持续高效决策），那么你需要一个适应它的产品管理模式，而不要与之起冲突。

苹果、谷歌、微软、易趣和雅虎有不同的产品管理模型，而且我认为他们必须是不同的。每种模式能够继续改进吗？答案是当然的。每种模式能够互相学习吗？答案是绝对的。但是你不会通过将一种模式从一个企业强行加入到另一个企业。

除非一家企业决定改变它的企业文化。我反而认为企业应该专注于将自己的优势融入企业文化和运转中，而且保证选择的产品管理模式能够积极地解决自身的弱势。

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【原文】

The Best Product Management Model?

Posted by Marty Cagan on January 4, 2008

Tags:company culture,management,product management model

One question I get quite frequently is “Google is making boatloads ofmoney, so how can we do product management like Google?” Or another commonvariant is “Apple creates fantastic products. How can we do product managementlike Apple?”

You can understand why some might look at Google or Apple and think theyshould just clone what they do. But odds are they’d be making a big mistake.

Don’t get me wrong. While Apple and Google have very different models ofproduct management, on the whole I’d argue they’re right for their companies(at least as long as their founders continue to stay so deeply involved inproduct).

But I have yet to recommend Google’s model of product management to othercompanies. And in the case of Apple, to implement their model you’d have toclone Steve Jobs.

The product management model for Google is very different, and I argue itneeds to be, and the same is true for Apple.

While there are a set of skills that are important for all tech productmanagers – skills like assessing opportunities, defining product principles,product discovery, and prototype testing – there’s more to succeeding in anorganization than just the skills involved.

It’s much like a sports team. Yes the skills are critically important. Ifyou can’t catch a ball, you won't go far as a receiver. However, winningrequires more than skills. It requires having a game plan or strategy forwinning, working well as a member of a team, adapting to your opponent, theplaying field, and the conditions.

Similarly, building a successful product management organization requiresnot only developing the skills of your product managers, but making sure theyknow how to work effectively with the rest of the product team, as a key partof your company’s overall product development organization and productdevelopment process, and knowing how to create the type of products yourcompany requires, and knowing how to compete successfully in the markets youplay in.

When I talk with a company about the “best” product management model forthem, I’m looking at several factors, including:

- The Type of Product. It matters whether you’re producing a consumerinternet service, a consumer electronics device, enterprise software, or asmall business services. There are unique challenges of each and the modelshould suit the needs.

- The Product Development Process. For example, if the product developmentteam is using Scrum there are very specific demands on the product managers anddesigners. Understanding the product development process is essential. Everyprocess has limitations and the “best” product management model willproactively attack these limitations.

- The Role of Product Management. In many companies the roles andresponsibilities are sliced up differently and the “best” product managementmodel is one where the staff has the ability and the desire to serve the rolethat’s needed. This also applies to the other key related roles such asinteraction designers and engineers, founders and executives.

- The Size of the Organization. A 12-person venture-funded startup with avery involved product-oriented founder, has very different needs than a4000-employee public company with a large base of existing customers.

- The Company Culture. Sometimes this is in fact the dominant factor. For example,if you have a company where one or two people effectively make all the productdecisions that matter (and want to continue doing so), then you want a productmanagement model that facilitates this, rather than fights it.

Apple, Google, Microsoft, eBay, and Yahoo all have different productmanagement models, and I argue they should. Could each be improved? Certainly.Could you learn things from each of them? Absolutely. But you won’t improve bytrying to force-fit a model from one company into another.

Unless a company has made the decision that they want to try to changetheir culture, I instead typically focus on getting the company to embrace thestrengths of their culture or process, and make sure the product managementmodel they select is proactive in addressing the weaknesses.