Product Management Essentials

The Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) at PES University conducted the course “Product Management Essentials” over four weeks this summer. The course aimed to introduce Product Management to the students and help them appreciate the strategy and process involved in creating successful products.

The students learned the ingredients for bringing a product from ‘Idea to Launch.’ Also, they dug into why/how some of the much-heralded products from iconic companies failed through case readings, analysis, and active discussions in the class. The final project required the student teams to prepare a PRP (product research plan), MRD (market requirements doc), and finally, a PRD (product requirements doc) using a case study for a hypothetical dual-screen Apple iPhone. Students loved conducting the market analysis, product risk analysis, branding, creating a prototype, and working out the products’ technical details while working as a team under a tight timeline.

The course was enlivened by industry experts joining the students for a fireside chat about their Product Management experiences. In Week 1, we had Prof. Sathya Prasad talk about his product journey at Intel and the factors contributing to ~80% of new products not making it to the market. For Week 2, we had Mr. Harsha Chaturvedi the COO of EOX Vantage who came in with his unique viewpoint on starting with a business mindset while creating a new product. We had Mr. Tarun Krishnamurthy join us in Week 3 to discuss the importance of a “problem solver” mindset for developing new products. He brought the immense expertise gained while working with large MNCs in USA/Singapore and how wearing different hats at his workplace took him a long way as a Product Manager. Finally, we had Mr. Saahil Kamath PES Alum and Co-Founder of Marsview.ai Inc. talk about his successful startup journey and how strategy and tactical skills help a PM. His insights into the different skill sets gave aspiring product managers a practical ew of getting started as a PM. We also got a glimpse into the technical aspects of prototyping and its vital role in testing assumptions early on through a great session by Prof. Rahul Bhaumik from the Design Department. The course consisted of a diverse cohort from CSE, ECE, EEE, Biotech, and BBA.