{"id":607,"date":"2022-08-01T13:30:29","date_gmt":"2022-08-01T13:30:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/plaky.com\/blog\/?p=607"},"modified":"2023-12-21T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-12-21T00:00:00","slug":"project-management-vs-product-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/plaky.com\/blog\/project-management-vs-product-management\/","title":{"rendered":"Project Management vs. Product Management: Why the Differences Matter"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Project management and product management are two terms that often get confused due to sounding similar and using the same acronym (PM).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, they are profoundly different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If they\u2019re working on the same thing, a project manager and a product manager will go about it in completely different ways, following different success metrics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, we\u2019ll explain the differences between project management and product management, along with some differences that can only be explained at the level of project and product managers.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Project<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Project management vs. product management \u2014 key takeaways<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Project management<\/strong><\/th>Product management<\/strong><\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Time-limited<\/td>Ongoing process<\/td><\/tr>
The goal is to complete the final deliverable<\/td>The goal is to make a profitable solution for the customers\u2019 problems<\/td><\/tr>
Success is measured by finishing the project on time and on budget<\/td>Success is measured using KPIs<\/td><\/tr>
The project manager carries out the vision<\/td>The product manager creates the vision<\/td><\/tr>
The project manager communicates with stakeholders and the project team<\/a><\/td>The product manager communicates with stakeholders, engineers, and customers<\/td><\/tr>
The project manager has direct authority over the project and its team<\/td>The product manager doesn\u2019t have any direct authority \u2014 nobody reports to them<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What are the differences between project management and product management?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The key difference between project management and product management lies in their goals<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goal of project management is to complete the final deliverable<\/strong> within time and budget. If the project is to create a streaming service, then the project management side of things is tasked with making sure it functions (the menu navigation is smooth, the videos don\u2019t stutter, the suggestion algorithm functions properly, etc.). Project management does not concern itself with the streaming service\u2019s profitability or content library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goal of product management is to fix the customers\u2019 problems<\/strong> by guiding product development<\/a> in a way that improves user value. Among other things, product management advocates for new features, creates the product roadmap, handles marketing, and sets the subscription price. Its responsibility is to keep the service profitable by addressing customer needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In short, the product manager creates a vision, while the project manager makes it happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the key difference, but it\u2019s not the only one, so let\u2019s check some other notable differences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\ud83d\udca1 Plaky Pro Tip<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Project management gets confused with a lot of other types of management with product management being only one of them. To learn more about this, read the following articles:<\/p>\n\n\n\n