We surveyed 6,978 product managers to better understand the work environment and required skills of a typical product manager. Here are the results.

How much intelligence is required as a product manager?

Low

High

Working as a product manager typically doesn’t require the use of high levels of intelligence in daily tasks.

Can I learn to become a product manager?

Intrinsic Talent

Acquired Talent

A career as a product manager typically depends predominantly on qualities you can gain through experience, with a small aspect of skills you are born with.

Is it easy to get a job as a product manager?

Easy

Hard

It’s typically difficult to find a job as a product manager.

Info

Do product managers work full-time or part-time?

96% of product managers work in full-time roles while 4% work part-time.

Is being a product manager stressful?

Low

High

Stress is very commonplace for product managers, contributing negatively towards career satisfaction.

Is being organized important as a product manager?

Low

High

Organization is considered a very important trait for product managers, and is critical to success in the field.

How competitive is the workplace for product managers?

Low

High

Product managers tend to see lots of competition in the workplace, with desire to get ahead of co-workers being common.

Does being a product manager require frequent time pressure to complete tasks?

Low

High

Product managers will see frequent time pressure on the job, likely contributing to an occasionally stressful work environment.

Are product managers allowed to express themselves creatively?

Low

High

Product managers are afforded a certain level of ability to express themselves creatively, compared to other careers.

Do product managers have control over the direction of their work?

Low

High

Product managers have high flexibility in the direction of their work, allowing them a lot of freedom in how they accomplish their goals.

Is being a product manager physically demanding?

Low

High

Work as a product managers is rarely physically demanding, making it a suitable option for those unable to perform physically strenuous tasks.

Are product managers exposed to a wide variety of work?

Low

High

The workload of a product manager changes frequently, with their day-to-day rarely being the same.

Does being a product manager require attention to detail?

Low

High

As in many careers, attention to detail is quite helpful for product managers.

Does being a good product manager require compassion and empathy?

Low

High

Being compassionate and empathetic is considered helpful to those looking to pursue careers as product managers.