The product workers: Looking for a job in difficult times

This episode of the Produktwerker podcast is about looking for a job as a product owner or product manager in the current difficult economic times. Tim Klein and Dominique Winter shed light on the current challenges and give valuable tips on how product people can better position themselves to find a new job.

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Enormous economic pressure

A main reason for the difficult situation of many product owners is the economic pressure that companies are currently exposed to. Job cuts in agile teams and the reduction of external consulting and freelance contracts are among the most common scenarios. Sectors such as the automotive industry or energy-intensive industries such as steel are particularly badly affected. In many companies, the focus is increasingly being placed on on-site work – instead of primarily remote work. This limits the flexibility of the job search to a local radius.

But even beyond these external factors, many product owners face one thing: clearly communicating their own role and their value contribution. Product owners are often perceived as merely “backlog pushers” if they fail to make their actual responsibility for the product and thus their influence on the business result visible. It currently seems particularly important to concretely present one's own contribution to avoiding bad investments or increasing product quality – for example through key figures or success stories.

Sharpen your own profile

In addition, Tim and Dominique assess how to sharpen their own positioning. It's about representing clear expertise – be it in product discovery, delivery or other key topics in product development.

By the way, building a well-maintained LinkedIn profile is essential for this; as well as networking within the community. Events like Product Lean Coffee or other exchange formats offer opportunities to show off, learn from others and discover potential job opportunities.

Another tip: dare to think outside the box! The differences between the roles of a product owner and a product manager are fluid in many companies. But job descriptions to the left and right of this should also be taken into consideration at the moment. Those who broaden their search usually have a better chance of finding a suitable position.

Use network

Finally, Tim and Dominique appeal to the community and their network to offer active support – be it by sharing job offers or through direct placement. Such connections can make all the difference, especially in difficult times.

Finally, they encourage you to remain optimistic despite all the challenges and also to take smaller steps backwards in purchasing in order to try to get through this economic dry spell. Because one thing is clear: the current situation will not last, and good preparation is the key to future opportunities when looking for a job as a product owner and product manager.

Further links

Notes on the recommendations mentioned:

Links to older relevant episodes:

The current edition of the podcast is also available on the Produktwerker blog: “Looking for a job as a product owner or product manager in difficult times”.

(mdo)