519: Product verification, most important of the 19 activities of product management – with Nishant Parikh

How product managers can adapt core responsibilities across different organizations and contexts Watch on YouTube TLDR Through his research and practical experience at MasterCard, Nishant Parikh identified 19 key activities that define the role of software product managers. He emphasizes that these activities vary based on context (large vs. small organizations, B2B vs. B2C, Agile vs. Waterfall). The discussion reveals how product management has evolved since 1931 and highlights the importance of clear role definition to prevent job frustration. The core focus of these activities is on thorough market research, continuous customer engagement, and strategic product development. Key Topics: * Market research as the foundation of product success * Evolution from problem space to solution identification Product positioning and vision development * Differences between product manager and product owner roles * Flexible vs. fixed roadmapping approaches * Continuous customer engagement throughout product lifecycle * Financial analysis and business case development * Impact of organizational size on PM responsibilities * Role of AI tools in modernizing product management * Importance of cross-functional collaboration Introduction In this episode, I’m interviewing Nishant Parikh, Director of Product Management at MasterCard. We explored the 19 essential activities that define successful software product management today. Drawing from his 20+ years of technology experience and extensive research, Nishant shared insights about how these activities vary across different organizational contexts – from startups to enterprises, B2B to B2C, and Agile to Waterfall environments. He emphasized the importance of role clarity and how the lack of it often leads to frustrated product managers leaving their positions. In this article, I’ll share the key takeaways from our discussion, including why market research should be your foundation, how customer engagement has evolved to become a continuous process, and the ways AI is reshaping traditional product management activities. Why study the 19 key activities of software product managers? Nishant’s motivation came from his personal experience navigating different product management roles over six years. Each position required vastly different responsibilities: In his first PM role, he focused on high-level solution development and feature writing His next position emphasized go-to-market activities At a small MasterCard acquisition company, he had to handle everything from product development to writing stories and epics Currently at MasterCard’s foundry team, his focus is on innovation and ideation This variety of experiences left him confused about the core responsibilities of a product manager. This confusion motivated him to pursue research to better understand: What a product manager’s key responsibilities should be How the discipline has evolved since its inception in 1931 Why many PMs leave their jobs due to lack of role clarity How to address the overlapping responsibilities between product managers, product leaders, and innovators He noted that while large organizations might have 100 defined activities for product managers, it’s impossible for one person to handle them all. This led him to research and identify 19 core activities specific to product management, with clear separation from product marketing, sales, and go-to-market functions. Consolidating insights from different bodies of knowledge Nishant identified three main bodies of knowledge in product management, each with distinct limitations: PDMA (Product Development and Management Association) ISPMA (International Software Product Managemen...