This was a presentation about what it’s like to work as a Product Manager in the valley and about knowing the difference between being a PM at a 4000 employee company vs. 300. Hearsay's Product Manager, Meghbartma Gautam, answered the audience's questions in this exclusive Q&A session. He discussed what it’s like to work in a dynamic PM role and what it takes to get your foot in the door.

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7. Megh Gautam
Tonight’s Speaker

8. You’re here
So, is there a map or something?

9. What will we cover?
- Intros
- 4 things that have helped me in my PM life
- 4 counterintuitive skills that help more than most
- AMA

11. So how did you get here?
- New grad
- Technology -> PM
- Sales -> PM

12. Navigating your PM Career is relatively hard

13. Applying principles to your career
- Test and iterate
- Record, learn and move on
- There is no “right” or “wrong”
- Other people will not make the decision for you
- There are varying degrees of fit
- It’s never you, it’s them
- Don’t do stupid things
- Don’t lie, don’t steal

14. Test and Iterate
- Keep a log
- Situational awareness matters more than you think
- Passion is not a buzzword
- Take time apart for yourself

15. Your PM experience will not be binary
- You will succeed and you will fail
- Failures should sting
- If you don’t feel like you are failing, you should move on
- It is the only way you will learn

17. Fit is everything
- Options are useless
- Optimize for learning a new domain, a new business
- Learn how to code in 10 weeks, but really don’t
- Culture is how many times you want to punch someone in the face
- Evaluate this every Quarter!

18. Don’t burn bridges
- Let’s talk about the stupid things I have done
- It’s not worth it
- Don’t do it

19. Cool story bro
- So many ways to get things wrong, a few to get them right
- Philosophically, enjoy the journey
- Practically speaking….

20. “So you’re a PM, that is a Project Manager yes?”

21. “So you’re a PM, that is a Project Manager yes?”
- Learn what a Gantt chart is
- Scoping and Planning are essential skills
- Estimation is a magical journey, try to be “good enough”
- Track and systematize the mundane

22. Work towards obsolescence

23. - Your current job will not be where you achieve growth
- Document what you do
- Make the ask - use data
- Find adjacencies
Work towards obsolescence

24. Pause and reflect

25. - Your speed is not a metric of success
- Value your time, do not work incessantly
- Make the ask - use data
- Find adjacencies
Pause and reflect

26. Think about your growth

27. Think about your growth
- Feature growth
- Business growth
- Organizational span of control
- People Management

28. Open Mic + Thank you

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