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Here’s an interview for you today…

Expectations vs Reality of a PM: Interview with Puppy Tsai

We had the opportunity to speak with Puppy Tsai, who is a PM with CoachArt. She started off her career working with data every day, but she wanted to use this data for action. She spoke with people in her company across all functions and realized that being a PM was most closely aligned with what she wanted in her career. She can dig into complex problems and come up with creative solutions all while using data to support the choices.

Q: What was your expectation of being a PM and how does it compare now that you have experience?

She didn’t have set expectations before she became a PM. In fact, her expectation was that she couldn’t anticipate what the job would be like. Being a PM differs from company to company and can even differ within teams in the same company. No two days would be the same.

She did expect constant learning. She could replicate what she learned from textbooks, podcasts, or recommendations from other PM’s, but theory can only solve so many problems. Permanent solutions need to be experimented with to see what works best.

Q: What experiences have been most helpful to you that have translated into becoming a PM?

Having intimate experience with data was a huge leg up. If you aren’t working with data, you are behind your competitors. Knowing how to efficiently work with data can help make informed decisions. 

General project management skills have been crucial. As a PM you need to work with different people across an organization and coordination needs to happen quickly. 

In one of her previous roles, she was in customer support. This pushed her out of her comfort zone and required her to talk to a variety of people all of the time. She needed to provide solutions to their problems.

Q: What skills are you trying to actively improve?

User research has been top of mind for her. She has been taking online courses to help strengthen this muscle. She is a PM that does everything, so she is leading the charge in reaching out to customers to improve her product. 

Process creation is also a skill she is actively developing. As stated, she is a PM that does it all. This is not scalable, so she needs to figure out how to systemize so others can step in for support.

Q: What makes a successful PM in your mind?

If you don’t have empathy with your users and stakeholders, you won’t make decisions that satisfy people’s needs. You can’t make everyone happy, but as a PM you are responsible for providing a service that your customers find valuable and align with your internal stakeholder’s needs.

Product is never done. You need to keep moving, innovating, and learning from those actions. Being inquisitive is a must for a successful PM.

If you combine an empathetic and inquisitive person, you get superior decisions and create innovative solutions.

Q: What have you learned about your #365DaysofProuct challenge?

Puppy has committed to creating one LinkedIn post about Product for 365 days straight. Her biggest lesson was the ability to feel comfortable with being uncomfortable. It isn’t easy to commit to this challenge, but this has also helped her be a better PM. If she faces a challenge, she doesn’t let her ego block her from trying to solve it. 

Go give Puppy a follow on LinkedIn for great Product content!

End Note

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Have a great day,

Nick