AI Product Manager: The one to rule all products
Author: Klaus Puchner (Program Manager AI & Team Lead)
Presentation of the role of AI Product Manager
In the third part of our mini-series, we will present the role of an AI Product Manager in our team. For this purpose, we’d like to explain our understanding of product management which shapes the AI Product Manager role. To give an insight into the team’s daily work, a team member will share their personal view on their role in the team.
How does the AI team define Product Management?
We basically see product management as a function that extends over the entire life cycle of an AI product. This function includes the planning, controlling and supervision of the product from its development to its operation and continuous improvement to its managed end-of-life. Product management, as we have defined it, involves both technical and strategic product management. This is important to us as we solve business problems with our (technical) AI products, create new business potentials, and don’t want to develop technical products that do not serve our customers.
Why does the AI team need Product Managers?
According to Gartner, 85% of all AI projects will fail by 2022. One of the reasons given for this is a poor (predictive) performance due to the data base or the algorithms used. At the same time, another reason are the teams which are responsible for the management of these solutions.
ML Solutions face a lot of challenges before deployment.
As already indicated in the previous parts of this mini-series, the high complexity of AI product development is an important factor for this high percentage, according to our experience. In practice, this complexity is caused by the requirements existing during the ongoing development, implementation and maintenance of AI products.
Therefore, it is essential to set up an organisational framework for the development of AI products that meets the agile requirements of the life cycle of AI products. In order to ensure that this framework becomes viable for the team and that AI products can be developed in an agile setting, a leading role is necessary: the AI Product Manager.
What tasks does an AI Product Manager in the AI team have?
Unlike what the name of this role suggests, successful AI product management requires more than just the management component. A Product Manager must be able to manage the AI products they are responsible for (management) as well as to assume leadership for them (leadership).
Adapted from: University of Maryland, John Johnson – Modern Product Leadership Aspects
Together with the Programme Manager and their product team, the Product Manager defines the focus of the AI products within his responsibility. They enable their product team to focus on achieving the goals in the product increments / sprints. They do that by striving to give the product team the possibility to make decisions and obtain resources and information that are necessary to achieve their goals. This way, they act as an enabler for the product team.
The AI Product Manager motivates and inspires their product team through a transparent way of working (e.g. by the active use of the kanban board) and autonomy (by encouraging the product team members to work independently). This way, they manage the product increments of the product team as well as the related sprints (including planning, daily, retro/review) and results and take responsibility for them. Currently, the AI team has two product teams specialising in computer vision and predictive AI.
SCRUM plan format typically used for our AI projects.
The AI Product Manager advocates the AI products they are responsible for towards stakeholders and actively promotes them in the company. Additionally, they are in constant dialogue with stakeholders to identify potential AI use cases. Furthermore, the AI Product Manager constantly screens the market for suitable use cases as well as for the range of features of existing commercial and comparable AI products. On this basis, the AI Product Manager, in cooperation with the product team, develops ideas for new products as well as for the extension of existing AI products.
What does it take to be an AI Product Manager in the AI team?
As an AI Product Manager, you have already gained some experience in managing (agile) projects and ideally in being a product manager as well. Enjoying being the liaison between tech and business world is important for this position. That applies both to converting business requirements into an AI product as well as to communicating complex technical issues to stakeholders in simple terms in order to find solutions.
As permanent communication with stakeholders and the team is a part of the daily work routine, the AI Product Manager needs to have a communicative personality and a positive can-do attitude. What drives them is their interest in new application possibilities for AI and new technologies in order to be able to contribute new ideas and impulses to the discussion with stakeholders and the product team.
How would an AI Product Manager describe their work in the AI team?
This question will be answered by Samuel ‘Sämi' Heger who has already been a member of the AI team for over a year:
“As AI Product Manager, I am not only responsible for ensuring that AI development projects are handled successfully and on time, I also make sure our AI solutions are used and developed further in the long run. It is my task, for example, to lead the plannings, dailies and reviews of the respective product team and to keep track of our stakeholders’ requirements and the numerous tasks and developments regarding the respective AI products.
I especially enjoy collaborating with the product team, but also being in contact with stakeholders from very different departments in our company, which range from logistics to brick-and-mortar stores to e-commerce. Not only do I get to know lots of people, but I also learn a lot about the structures and processes within the company.
Another exciting aspect of my role is to identify AI use cases. This requires a lot of creativity as is it is not always obvious (to stakeholders) what exactly artificial intelligence can be used for in the company. Presenting and promoting AI ideas and solutions in the company is also a task I enjoy a lot.
Artificial intelligence is believed to be the key technology of the 21st century. I find it very exciting to develop AI solutions for one of the world’s biggest furniture retailers independently with the product teams.
Curious?
We still have many aspirations. That’s why we are looking for people to support us with their personalities and skills as well as their courage to learn new things and their motivation to help shape the future with us. We look forward to getting to know you during a personal interview.
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* Die deutsche Version findest du hier.