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Job outlook for business development/product managers in the United States
Business development/product manager job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected business development/product manager job growth rate is 10% from 2018-2028.
About 33,700 new jobs for business development/product managers are projected over the next decade.
Business development/product manager salaries have increased 8% for business development/product managers in the last 5 years.
There are over 65,188 business development/product managers currently employed in the United States.
There are 195,881 active business development/product manager job openings in the US.
The average business development/product manager salary is $101,877.
Are business development/product manager jobs in demand?
Business development/product manager job and salary trends over time
Business development/product manager jobs over time
Business development/product manager job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 65,188 | 0.02% |
| 2020 | 62,961 | 0.02% |
| 2019 | 61,766 | 0.02% |
| 2018 | 56,581 | 0.02% |
| 2017 | 52,279 | 0.02% |
Average business development/product manager salary over time
Business development/product manager salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $101,877 | $48.98 | +3.9% |
| 2025 | $98,065 | $47.15 | +1.9% |
| 2024 | $96,231 | $46.26 | +1.6% |
| 2023 | $94,755 | $45.56 | +0.8% |
| 2022 | $94,002 | $45.19 | +1.9% |
Business development/product manager jobs by state
Most common states for business development/product managers
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 454 | 65% |
| 2 | Nebraska | 1,920,076 | 782 | 41% |
| 3 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 430 | 41% |
| 4 | Alaska | 739,795 | 292 | 39% |
| 5 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 313 | 36% |
| 6 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 1,086 | 35% |
| 7 | Kansas | 2,913,123 | 1,002 | 34% |
| 8 | Wisconsin | 5,795,483 | 1,882 | 32% |
| 9 | Iowa | 3,145,711 | 1,008 | 32% |
| 10 | New Mexico | 2,088,070 | 675 | 32% |
| 11 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 234 | 31% |
| 12 | Arkansas | 3,004,279 | 890 | 30% |
| 13 | Missouri | 6,113,532 | 1,771 | 29% |
| 14 | Indiana | 6,666,818 | 1,816 | 27% |
| 15 | Ohio | 11,658,609 | 3,087 | 26% |
| 16 | Michigan | 9,962,311 | 2,545 | 26% |
| 17 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 1,798 | 26% |
| 18 | Nevada | 2,998,039 | 770 | 26% |
| 19 | Georgia | 10,429,379 | 2,652 | 25% |
| 20 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 1,879 | 25% |
Most common cities for business development/product managers
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kalamazoo | 1 | 1% | $87,680 |
| 2 | Birmingham | 1 | 0% | $72,509 |
| 3 | Denver | 1 | 0% | $84,913 |
| 4 | Los Angeles | 1 | 0% | $113,781 |
| 5 | Minneapolis | 1 | 0% | $74,045 |
Business Development/Product Manager job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of business development/product manager experts
Drexel University
North Dakota State University
Wayne State University
University of Scranton
University of Saint Mary
The Pennsylvania State University
Creighton University
Miami University
Wisconsin School of Business, University of Wisconsin-Madison
The University of West Florida
Christopher Newport University
Indiana University Southeast
Indiana University
Hawaii Pacific University
Parfait Kouassi PhD.
Associate Teaching ProfessorDrexel University
Bilingual, Multilingual, And Multicultural Education
What will help Business Development/Product Managers increase their earning potential?
Parfait Kouassi PhD.: My advice would be to embrace these valuable competencies as a competitive edge. Research shows that individuals with multilingual and multicultural backgrounds possess enhanced cognitive abilities, including improved working memory and mental flexibility for solving problems in innovative ways. They should actively seek out opportunities that allow them to leverage these unique strengths and pursue their passions while making meaningful contributions to their chosen field.
Ahmad Asady
Assistant Professor of Management Faculty Scholar, Challey Institute for Global Innovation and GrowthNorth Dakota State University
Marketing
What general advice would you give to a Business Development/Product Manager?
Ahmad Asady: The role of a Marketing professional is as rewarding as it is demanding. On one hand, it offers the chance to unleash creativity, see the direct impact of your work, and enjoy a variety of experiences across different projects and industries. On the other hand, it comes with its fair share of challenges, such as the pressure to perform under tight deadlines and budgets, the constant need to stay ahead in a fast-evolving field, and the stress of quantifying the effectiveness of marketing campaigns. Despite these challenges, the role remains appealing for those drawn to a career that demands both strategic thinking and creative innovation, underscored by the powerful tool of persuasion to shape consumer behavior and drive business success.
Attila Yaprak Ph.D.
Professor of Marketing and International Business, Director, Doctoral ProgramsWayne State University
Mike Ilitch School of Business
What skills will help Business Development/Product Managers earn the most?
Attila Yaprak Ph.D.: Portfolio of the above three with different weights depending on context.
Abhijit Roy
Professor of MarketingUniversity of Scranton
School of Management
What soft skills should all Business Development/Product Managers possess?
Abhijit Roy: These are very important, yet harder to quantify skills, not only for marketing professionals but for business graduates in general. They include the ability to make sound decisions under pressure, having a high emotional intelligence quotient (EQ) as embodied by having empathy towards coworkers and subordinates, delegating appropriately, mentoring, communicating, time management, maintaining positivity despite setbacks and adapting to unforeseen challenges, being flexible, being persuasive and assertive at appropriate moments, yet being collaborative, seeking feedback, and the ability to negotiate and resolve conflicts when needed, amongst others.
Soft skills are typically more instrumental in enabling candidates to fit into an organization's culture and be strong candidates for promotion. Most marketing jobs involve candidates representing their brand initiatives and building strong client relationships, so interpersonal, and other soft skills are often valued more than hard skills. The strongest case for having excellent soft skills is that they are more easily transferable across various jobs and industries.
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Director of Graduate and Undergraduate Programs, Coordinator of All-University Honors ProgramUniversity of Saint Mary
Division of Business and Information Technologies (DBiT)
What hard/technical skills are most important for Business Development/Product Managers?
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.: Familiarity with software-basic windows packages, particularly MS Word and Excel. Candidates should not be afraid of quantitative data analysis. Analytics are necessary to figuring out what your business is doing and how it can grow. Also, familiarity with whatever social media platforms are used in that industry can be very important.
What skills will help Business Development/Product Managers earn the most?
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.: One consideration is, does the position pay commission? If so, the soft skills listed above are extremely important because the more you apply those skills, the more likely you are to grow your business.
When a manager is not on commission, there's little correlation between skills and pay while doing the job. The employer will hire you at a given salary level, and it is your job to negotiate to the best position. Once they have chosen you-that's the moment when you have the most leverage. You will never get a raise that is as substantial as what you might be able to ask for upon hire. After that, most raises are not going to be tied mechanically to performance and skills. Your next chance at a raise will be when you move or are promoted to a new position. Thus, those soft skills can affect your ability to negotiate.
I will repeat a previous theme: education and experience are probably more important than skills in terms of making more money. An employer can't really tell what your skills are from your resume. Just because you say you have a skill doesn't mean that you really do. They can reasonably guess that somebody with a degree is responsible enough to have accomplished something big. Somebody who makes it through a graduate program is probably very good at what they know. And somebody who has been in the industry and/or in a similar job is more likely to be able to walk in with little orientation and know what they are doing. Employers take risks on employees and hope that they can deliver. Thus, with more education and more experience, you are able to apply for higher-level jobs, which usually come with higher salaries.
What skills stand out on Business Development/Product Manager resumes?
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.: Resumes are hard. It is very difficult to predict what any employer is looking for on any resume. The "skills" section of a resume is probably not the first thing most employers are looking at. The first consideration is probably education. Those with a bachelor's degree will be sorted first in fields-such as those who have business degrees, or particularly sales and marketing majors. Those with MBAs will be placed on the top. Those who have MBAs and marketing concentrations will likely be valued the most. The second consideration would probably be experience. Someone with several years of experience in business development or sales and marketing will be moved to the top. Someone with a bachelor's degree who has a lot of experience might beat out a fresh MBA. However, MBA plus experience beats almost everything. Someone with an MBA going for an entry-level position with little experience needed will likely beat out all bachelor challengers. For new graduates, getting some kind of internship in sales and marketing can differentiate them from those who do not.
Most hiring managers will probably assume that somebody who has sales and marketing education and/or experience probably has the skills necessary to do the job. An interviewer may probe on specific skills. I'll comment more specifically on other kinds of skills below, but it's also fair to say that a candidate's soft skills should shine in the interview. Simply saying that you have certain skills on a resume doesn't mean that you actually have them.
I think that the best thing a candidate can do is to research the company they hope to work for and tailor their resume to that employer. What does the business do? What kinds of things do you think that development manager is going to do in that particular industry? How do your skills as a candidate match what you guess they're looking for? The more you customize your resume, the better chances you have of resonating with the company. Employers are impressed when you already know something about the job and the industry.
What soft skills should all Business Development/Product Managers possess?
Dr. Mark Harvey Ph.D.: First, critical and creative thinking. Employers value problem solvers. A Business Development Managers' problem usually is finding growth opportunities. Candidates need to learn to take the initiative to figure out how to solve problems like those.
Second, writing. The best employees know how to communicate in writing. More and more communication occurs through email and other forms of social media and apps, and as such, this skill is absolutely critical. You don't need to be a creative writing genius, but you do need to know how to write in a professional tone, present your ideas in an organized way, get to the point, and avoid errors. There is a direct line between a student's ability to write an academic essay with a clear thesis and an employee's ability to write a good email or proposal. If you can't do those things, then you risk embarrassment and possibly limited options for promotion.
Third, speaking. The American business world discriminates against introverts-sometimes at their own peril. Everyone needs to know how to give a quality speech, but more importantly, you need to sound confident and assertive in a board room during meetings. You need to be confident in front of clients. Fake it if you have to. The way you present yourself is absolutely critical.
Fourth, social skills. You need to be friendly. Get to know co-workers and clients. Find out what they like and show an interest. Find common ground. Your undergraduate degree hopefully exposed you to a wide diversity of topics you may have thought were irrelevant at some point. Now is the time to remember that stuff and use it to connect with people. Nearly everything you learned will have some application someday. It will help you connect with others. In addition, put away your cell phone when you are at work or on social occasions. To some people, a preoccupation with a cell phone communicates a lack of interest in the person you are with. It can alienate bosses, co-workers, and clients.
James Wilkerson Ph.D.
Business Program Coordinator, Project and Supply Chain Management Program CoordinatorThe Pennsylvania State University
Business Department
What skills stand out on Business Development/Product Manager resumes?
James Wilkerson Ph.D.: Skills, experience, knowledge, and abilities that matter especially strongly include target market analysis (including market research skills and knowledge), product/service positioning within competitive field, project work or coordination with sales staff, major client relationship management, and enough general business and industry knowledge to be able to relate business development to operational/production realities.
What soft skills should all Business Development/Product Managers possess?
James Wilkerson Ph.D.: Verbal skills (both speaking and writing), negotiation skills, unfailing honesty, ability to empathize with clients' wants, and teamwork skills suitable for working collaboratively with sales and operations staff.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Business Development/Product Managers?
James Wilkerson Ph.D.: Spreadsheet (Excel) skills (including graph production from data), basic statistical knowledge, and online information search skills.
What skills will help Business Development/Product Managers earn the most?
James Wilkerson Ph.D.: Skill at rapidly learning market trends, relating business development to product development, and persuading major prospective clients when brought in to help with closing sales. Bottom line: the business development manager must be on the cutting edge of new market conditions and new business opportunities to help the firm organically grow its sales, especially in new markets or product/service lines.
Natalie Gerhart Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Business Intelligence & AnalyticsCreighton University
Department of Business Intelligence & Analytics
What certifications/licenses/courses can have the biggest impact for Business Development/Product Managers?
Natalie Gerhart Ph.D.: For BIA students, like all students, having the ability to be adaptable and grow your skills is important. Technology is rapidly changing and will continue to change over the course of most student's careers. It is important for students to demonstrate their adaptability through multiple tools, as well as their inquisitive nature that drives life-long learning. A machine learning course is a must as well as exposure to open source tools such as Python or R. Also we are seeing an uptick in demand for visualization skills (i.e. Tableau). While I haven't seen an overwhelming benefit of certifications for our students, there are certainly several available that never hurt. Google and AWS certifications are popular.
Currently, all business students need to have a basic understanding of analytics. That no longer means simply statistics, but how to use statistics to derive understanding and business insights. Further, all business students need to have an understanding of the strategic nature of technology in a business. Simply having technology is not enough.
What's a day at work look like for a Business Development/Product Manager?
Patrick Lindsay: Sales is a good job out of college. Regardless of the company, the industry, the marketplace or geography, being in the customer interface is not only the best and quickest way to learn about a business but also to learn about business. They are exposed to the impact from and on all stakeholders. They learn about what a value proposition really is and the importance of Trust. They observe and learn the importance of relationships. And they grasp the importance of why over what and how. Finally, sales experience and success is almost universally transferable. Once a grad has a year to three developing competencies, skills and confidence, they can pursue virtually any other product or service in almost any company. They can pursue a next job in sales but also other areas like marketing, customer service, human resources, training, recruiting, et cetera. Employers are not emphasizing industry knowledge or experience like they once did. And many companies, from small local the largest global companies in their industries, insist their new college hires begin in sales (aka account management, business development, client acquisition).
Now, with the proper training (could be a major/minor but doesn't have to be if the graduate has developed a particular skill set) there are many available jobs for graduates that are technology-related. These are "good job" from a compensation and stability perspective. And any position with a global tech firm is a golden ticket.
What technical skills for a Business Development/Product Manager stand out to employers?
Patrick Lindsay: Most all employers expect full competency in creatively using technology for communications. By that I don't mean mobile devices or social media usgae. I mean a widespread working knowledge of technology tools (apps, software, etc). Employers are seeking those candidates who can convey thoughts, ideas, responses in a multi-faceted way. Basic competency in written correspondence is no longer enough. Employers want to see daily business communication not only contain demonstration of good writing (grammar, syntax, formatting) but also being able to create embedded images, video, and relevant web links to better communicate. And not just for a big fancy client presentation, but consistently in regular communication. Further, they want words supported by data; support words with numerical evidence. As such, advanced excel skills and real experience in data sources and extraction stand out to employers.
Similarly, they expect professional virtual audio-visual communication. It is not enough to just be on the Zoom call. The expectation is to be prepared, to be engaged, to be aware of the audio and video angles and backgrounds. To demonstrate active listening as well as enthusiastic, energetic, even animated talking. Body language and facial expression are even more enhanced in virtual communications.
If there was a positive outcome from being thrust into an academic world that was all virtual, it was the need to learn new technical skills, not only for classwork, but also for social interaction. This will not only be appreciated by employers, but for many, expected.
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Business Development/Product Managers?
Patrick Lindsay: Absolutely, the pandemic will have an enduring impact on these upcoming graduates. Uncertainty is always part of the job search journey/process for future graduates. Uncertainty is now major Anxiety number one for them.
First, the recruiting process drastically changed and opportunities diminished in the past twelve months. Of course the process had to become virtual. But there has been more than a fifty percent reduction in the number of companies participating in career fairs. Further, those companies are anticipating a reduction in the number of available positions, or have said they will have none at all this year. Some only participated to keep their relationships alive with the universities.
Second, companies cannot commit to the full scope of work for new hires, nor the location... because they still don't know. Starting positions will still be virtual WFH. What does that mean for a college graduate? Move back home with parents? Some companies are anticipating a return this summer to office or other work sites that are bricks and mortar locations. Still others say they will stay virtual. Either way, few will commit to where a new graduate will be located. The common position is "We will see where our needs are when the time comes". Rarely have graduates not known the location of their first job.
Third, where millennials were the driving faction for flexible work environs and work from home, in less than one year, many upcoming Gen Z graduates have changed their perspective and are seeking opportunities to commute to work and interact with people in a live daily routine. They do not want to continue living in a virtual world. It took less than ten months to change a cultural movement. This will be a growing field of study for behavioral psychologists, sociologists and anthropologists.
Fourth, many grads are open to a wider bandwidth of positions and industries (other than those seeking a "professional" career in certification trades: accountancy, engineering, architecture, etc.) than they would have been one year ago. The uncertainty of supply always impacts the demand. Likewise, their career criteria and priorities seem to have changed, but in very inconsistent ways.
What's a good job out of college for Business Development/Product Managers?
Patrick Lindsay: Sales is a good job out of college. Regardless of the company, the industry, the marketplace or geography, being in the customer interface is not only the best and quickest way to learn about a business but also to learn about business. They are exposed to the impact from and on all stakeholders. They learn about what a value proposition really is and the importance of Trust. They observe and learn the importance of relationships. And they grasp the importance of why over what and how. Finally, sales experience and success is almost universally transferable. Once a grad has a year to three developing competencies, skills and confidence, they can pursue virtually any other product or service in almost any company. They can pursue a next job in sales but also other areas like marketing, customer service, human resources, training, recruiting, et cetera. Employers are not emphasizing industry knowledge or experience like they once did. And many companies, from small local the largest global companies in their industries, insist their new college hires begin in sales (aka account management, business development, client acquisition).
Now, with the proper training (could be a major/minor but doesn't have to be if the graduate has developed a particular skill set) there are many available jobs for graduates that are technology-related. These are "good job" from a compensation and stability perspective. And any position with a global tech firm is a golden ticket.
Sachin Tuli
Director, International Business MajorWisconsin School of Business, University of Wisconsin-Madison
International Business
What's a day at work look like for a Business Development/Product Manager?
Sachin Tuli: The pandemic accelerated ongoing shifts with work-from-anywhere and use of remote meeting technologies. With mass adoption at all levels, these trends are likely to persist to some degree across fields and industries. There will likely be less travel for a number of years, but concurrently we may see more cross-team and cross-national collaboration and coordination. From an international business perspective, firms do plan to continue their globalization efforts and we know that graduates themselves increasingly seek potential global opportunities and mobility when choosing which organizations to work for.
How have salaries changed over time for Business Development/Product Managers?
Sachin Tuli: Our undergraduate international business program serves as a second major that is coupled with another business major; marketing, finance, and management are most common majors combined with international business. Initial career placement is driven by these first majors, with students using the knowledge and skills gained through the international business curriculum throughout their careers but often leveraging the major directly as they command more responsibility within their organizations. The Wisconsin School of Business continues to place our students competitively with starting salaries having kept pace with industry and peer schools; specific salary information by major can be found here:apps.wsb.wisc.edu
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Business Development/Product Managers?
Sachin Tuli: Certainly there will be impact on graduates as there will be impact on society as a whole - but which impact? If economic, we serve students from a variety of national backgrounds, so depending on where our students go after graduation their local economy recoveries could diverge from the global average and that could effect both the job market and salaries. For instance, China is forecasted to continue recovering due to its proactive lock downs and ability to serve foreign markets through this past year. In the U.S., where the majority of our students stay, a strong vaccine program, safety net supports and stimulus will help ensure a recovery at large and likely a post-Covid bump. Though the recovery will be uneven, our students primarily head to medium and large firms that will be well poised to hire, or which may have experienced growth through the pandemic. There will be other impacts on personal finances, health and mental health, among others, that should also be considered. The pandemic has laid bare the inequities in society, and firms are pledging to help address these issues through various actions, such as diversity and inclusion initiatives, and proactive internal training and education.
Eric Bostwick Ph.D.
Professor of AccountingThe University of West Florida
Department of Accounting and Finance
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Business Development/Product Managers?
Eric Bostwick Ph.D.: In a word, yes. The adjustments that both individuals and businesses have made during this time have shifted our expectations for life and work. For a generation of students who were already tech-natives, the shift to more technology-enabled interactions has reinforced the "click-to-do" mentality. And for non-tech-natives, the roll-out of intuitive, easy-to-use apps has overcome much of their resistance to these types of interactions. These shifts have affected everything from business meetings to family reunions and from buying lunch to meeting with your doctor. However, graduates will need to grow beyond being technology consumers. They must be able to effectively use technology to deliver a company's value proposition, especially in service-oriented fields such as accounting, finance, law, medicine, and consulting.
Todd Lee Goen
Instructor & Internship DirectorChristopher Newport University
Department of Communication
What's a good job out of college for Business Development/Product Managers?
Todd Lee Goen: Pandemic or no pandemic, the best job out of college is one that sets you on the path to achieve your ultimate career goal(s). Reflect on where you want to be in five or ten years or even twenty-five years. Then consider positions that will set you on the path to achieve that goal. Very few people land their dream job upon graduation - dream jobs are typically those we're not qualified to do without some additional work experience and training. A good job is one that will help you achieve your goal(s) - just don't frame it that way in the interview.
Good jobs pay a livable salary for the location, offer benefits (health insurance and retirement at minimum), and provide professional development opportunities (these can take a variety of forms). Too often, college grads overlook professional development. If an employer isn't willing to invest in you, there's no guarantee you will succeed in the job. Good employers understand they need qualified employees who continually develop their skills and abilities, and good employers will make sure employees have the resources they need to succeed.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Business Development/Product Manager job market given the pandemic?
Todd Lee Goen: The pandemic is demonstrating that employees can be productive working remotely and with flexible schedules, so we're likely to see more flexible and remote positions emerge in the job market. This will be industry/company/position specific, but these options give employers access to a larger applicant pool (which means a more talented workforce) and allows them to reduce overhead costs of maintaining physical office space.
Relatedly, hiring processes will become more technology-driven. In-person interviews (especially if there are multiple rounds) will be significantly less likely and more organizations will opt for pre-recorded interviews. This started pre-pandemic, but the pandemic will accelerate it. The good news is that as the technology improves the application process should become more efficient and streamlined (e.g., applying with LinkedIn profiles has the potential to become more of a norm).
The job market in recession-proof industries will remain strong, but wages will likely stagnate and may even decrease. Many recession-proof jobs are connected to state and local governments. The pandemic and its associated recession brought decreased tax revenues and increased demands for public expenditures, and state and local governments won't have the funds to support wage growth for the next few years. The job market in recession-intolerant industries will fluctuate for several years and will only stabilize once the economy begins to recover.
One of the key take-aways from the pandemic is that public health systems are inadequate. One possible outcome is that in the next few years there will be a greater number of jobs in the public health sector. Whether or not this happens will largely depend on the length and severity of the current recession as well as funding allocations of governments post-pandemic. Given the US federal government ceded much of the responsibility for responding to the pandemic, expect many of these positions to be with state and local governments. Also, expect many of these will be community/public engagement type positions that focus on communication and relationship building.
What technical skills for a Business Development/Product Manager stand out to employers?
Todd Lee Goen: Technical skills are often industry and/or position specific. Applicants should highlight any technical skills related to the position advertisement and those that add value to the position/organization. Most importantly, requirements for technical skills change with time and technological advances. This means employers value workers capable of adapting to change and continually improving and acquiring new technical skills. Thus, it's usually more important to demonstrate you are capable of learning and developing technical skills than it is to have a specific skill set upon hire (although this is not true for some positions/industries).
That said, technical skills related to online presentations, virtual meetings, virtual networking, remote working and the like are hot commodities right now. While most organizations were in the process of adopting many of these technologies and ways of doing business pre-pandemic, the pandemic accelerated the process. Organizations are making it work, but they often don't know best practices or the most efficient means of working in the largely virtual, pandemic environment. Post-pandemic, many of the remote/virtual changes the pandemic brought will stay in some form. Technical skills that support this type of workplace will make applicants stand out to many employers because they need/want to do virtual/remote business better.
What Business Development/Product Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Uric Dufrene: First, I would not recommend a gap year. One of the skills that is critically important, regardless of the time period, is adaptability. Learning how to adapt to the circumstances around you is a skill that is valued in the workplace, regardless of the year. This is a key part of problem solving. Solving problems with the conditions and resources on hand will prepare you for a lifelong success in any field. As a graduate develops a reputation for problem solving, they emerge as a "go to" employee and will be seen by others as a leader, in their department or company.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Business Development/Product Manager job market given the pandemic?
Davide , Ph.D. Bolchini Ph.D.: In the prospering User Experience (UX) economy, I see more and more "remote" UX internships offered to our students and "remote" UX full-time job opportunities offered to our graduates. Both graduates and employers are more comfortable establishing remote working collaborations, which are becoming now the norm more than before, due to the disruption in the traditional office-bound workspace that COVID brought to the marketplace.
What skills stand out on Business Development/Product Manager resumes?
Davide , Ph.D. Bolchini Ph.D.: In my experience, our most successful MS HCI graduates (https://soic.iupui.edu/hcc/graduate/hci/masters/) take the time to put together a compelling online portfolio that showcases their project experience and skill set in action, as applied to specific research opportunities they had with faculty or projects they worked on during their UX internships in the industry. The personal brand of UX junior professional can be greatly enriched when the portfolio includes not only what the student has done, but why and what was the design rationale behind the process and the results, what was the larger context and goal of the project (especially in large collaborative projects), and what was the specific role and contribution of the student. The discussion about the portfolio of a candidate has become a key ingredient of the interview for UX jobs, besides other important activities such as UX design exercises or remote assignments.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Business Development/Product Managers to find work opportunities?
Davide , Ph.D. Bolchini Ph.D.: With the many remote work opportunities for our MS HCI graduates, physical location is less relevant than before, and flexibility becomes key. UX job opportunities are plenty in the Midwest, as well as on the East and West Coast, and the roles and competitiveness of these positions vary greatly based on the nature of the organization and the industry ecosystem.
What Business Development/Product Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Matthew Lopresti: Captains of industry are often asked about the traits they look for in new hires. Critical thinking is always a must, as well as excellent written and oral communication skills.
These are the core competencies of the discipline of philosophy. Top-notch communication abilities begin with a depth of ability to understand nuanced, complex details, and then turn around and clearly communicate these complex ideas in easily digestible bits of information. It is no coincidence that students who graduate with philosophy degrees repeatedly dominate graduate and law-school entrance exams like the GRE and LSAT; they are often the sharpest thinkers with the quickest minds
