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What does a product specialist/product management do?

Updated January 8, 2025
7 min read

Product specialist/Product management requires good communication, technical, business, research, analysis, interpersonal, marketing, and delegation skills, as well as technical expertise. Those who choose this career path will be expected to define the release process and coordinate activities required to bring a given product to the market, such as bridging gaps between different company functions and aligning all involved teams.

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Product specialist/product management responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real product specialist/product management resumes:

  • Manage and lead global support teams for existing retail ERP package.
  • Manage the full lifecycle of sale: prospecting, selling, and closing via Salesforce.
  • Handle design and specification of administration system requirements to efficiently manage, operate, and support client API configurations and sessions.
  • Develop and launch wellness program solutions that help people make and maintain healthy lifestyle choices through the product lifecycle.
  • Utilize SQL to support data-driven analysis and decision processes to inform project prioritization, assess feature effectiveness, and troubleshoot issues.
  • Demonstrate proficiency in handling forecasting of market demands while simultaneously managing OEM supplier relationships

Product specialist/product management skills and personality traits

We calculated that 12% of Product Specialist/Product Managements are proficient in Lifecycle, Lifecycle Management, and Market Trends. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Creativity.

We break down the percentage of Product Specialist/Product Managements that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Lifecycle, 12%

    Develop and launch wellness program solutions that help people make and maintain healthy lifestyle choices through the product lifecycle.

  • Lifecycle Management, 9%

    Worked with process engineering teams to develop standards and procedures for service delivery, operational support, and lifecycle management.

  • Market Trends, 9%

    Forecast sales for daily business for every category taking into account seasonality, market trends, and competitive promotions.

  • Product Development, 7%

    Analyzed trends in the industry to inform product development and develop strategies for current and future product portfolio.

  • Product Knowledge, 7%

    Resolved policy owner complaints and requests requiring complex calculations or advanced product knowledge.

  • Competitive Analysis, 6%

    Performed competitive analysis of Canadian home security market for private equity company.

"lifecycle," "lifecycle management," and "market trends" are among the most common skills that product specialist/product managements use at work. You can find even more product specialist/product management responsibilities below, including:

Analytical skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a product specialist/product management to have is analytical skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must be able to analyze industry trends to determine the most promising strategies for their organization." Product specialist/product managements often use analytical skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "detailed data mapping to other systems including enterprise resource planning (erp) applications and extensive cleanup activities. "

Communication skills. Many product specialist/product management duties rely on communication skills. "managers must be able to communicate effectively with a broad-based team made up of other managers or staff members during the advertising, promotions, and marketing process," so a product specialist/product management will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways product specialist/product management responsibilities rely on communication skills: "developed proposals for custom telecommunications integrated circuit product development for international and domestic customers based on their systems requirements. "

Creativity. This is an important skill for product specialist/product managements to perform their duties. For an example of how product specialist/product management responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must be able to generate new and imaginative ideas." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a product specialist/product management: "regulate inventory levels to ensure maximum gross margin return on investment".

Interpersonal skills. product specialist/product management responsibilities often require "interpersonal skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "managers must deal with a range of people in different roles, both inside and outside the organization." This resume example shows what product specialist/product managements do with interpersonal skills on a typical day: "utilized interpersonal skills to build strong relationships with other functional areas to assist in timely product development and launch. "

Organizational skills. A commonly-found skill in product specialist/product management job descriptions, "organizational skills" is essential to what product specialist/product managements do. Product specialist/product management responsibilities rely on this skill because "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must manage their time and budget efficiently while directing and motivating staff members." You can also see how product specialist/product management duties rely on organizational skills in this resume example: "co-chaired a multi-organizational team to improve installation and technical support for new cloud technology. "

Most common product specialist/product management skills

Compare different product specialist/product managements

Product specialist/product management vs. Marketing director

Marketing directors are responsible for the overall branding and marketing direction of the company. They are in charge of identifying goals and strategies related to marketing. They create strategies that cater to the target market of the organization's products and services to help with sales. They lead the company's marketing department and create the company's brand promise. They ensure that all marketing collateral is in line with the rest of the marketing campaigns of the organization. They should be updated on all the current trends in the marketing world.

If we compare the average product specialist/product management annual salary with that of a marketing director, we find that marketing directors typically earn a $14,178 higher salary than product specialist/product managements make annually.Even though product specialist/product managements and marketing directors are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require market trends, product development, and competitive analysis in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a product specialist/product management are more likely to require skills like "lifecycle," "lifecycle management," "product knowledge," and "business processes." On the other hand, a job as a marketing director requires skills like "digital marketing," "marketing campaigns," "market research," and "sales strategies." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Marketing directors really shine in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $131,349. Comparatively, product specialist/product managements tend to make the most money in the technology industry with an average salary of $112,974.marketing directors tend to reach similar levels of education than product specialist/product managements. In fact, marketing directors are 3.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.6% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.

Product specialist/product management vs. Business development director

A business development director specializes in crafting plans and strategies to develop the relationship between the brand, clients, and other key characters in the industry. It is their responsibility to examine and understand everything about the brand and figure out which areas require improvement or changes. They must also conduct a thorough marketing analysis and remain updated on the latest trends in the market to identify new opportunities that would improve customer satisfaction. Furthermore, they must also communicate with all clients, even appear on public gatherings to strengthen brand awareness.

Business development director positions earn higher pay than product specialist/product management roles. They earn a $17,056 higher salary than product specialist/product managements per year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Product specialist/product managements and business development directors both require similar skills like "market trends," "product development," and "competitive analysis" to carry out their responsibilities.

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that product specialist/product management responsibilities requires skills like "lifecycle," "lifecycle management," "product knowledge," and "business processes." But a business development director might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "healthcare," "crm," "patients," and "customer relationships."

On average, business development directors earn a higher salary than product specialist/product managements. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, business development directors earn the most pay in the finance industry with an average salary of $124,195. Whereas product specialist/product managements have higher pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $112,974.business development directors earn similar levels of education than product specialist/product managements in general. They're 1.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Product specialist/product management vs. Partner

A business partner is responsible for providing strategies and recommendations on how the business will operate, increasing its revenues while sharing profits. Business partners must have extensive knowledge of how the current market industry works to identify the best decisions for the business. A business partner should also be engaged in suggesting new services and offers that the company might consider for its clients. Business partners must also keep the confidentiality of their partnering business administration at all times.

An average partner eans a lower salary compared to the average salary of product specialist/product managements. The difference in salaries amounts to partners earning a $24,609 lower average salary than product specialist/product managements.Using the responsibilities included on product specialist/product managements and partners resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "product development," "business development," and "erp.rdquo;

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a product specialist/product management is likely to be skilled in "lifecycle," "lifecycle management," "market trends," and "product knowledge," while a typical partner is skilled in "patients," "customer service," "healthcare," and "patient care."

When it comes to education, partners tend to earn similar degree levels compared to product specialist/product managements. In fact, they're 4.5% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 10.9% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Product specialist/product management vs. Business development manager

A business development manager's duties include identifying business opportunities, developing effective models and strategies to improve business performance, searching for potential clients to generate income and attract partnerships. A business development manager must have extensive knowledge of the market trends and adjust strategies as needed to meet the needs of the client. Excellent communication, decision-making, critical thinking, and leadership skills are just some of the key factors that business development managers should possess to communicate and negotiate with the clients.

Business development managers average a higher salary than the annual salary of product specialist/product managements. The difference is about $41 per year.While their salaries may vary, product specialist/product managements and business development managers both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "market trends," "product development," and "competitive analysis. "While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "lifecycle," "lifecycle management," "product knowledge," and "business processes" are skills that commonly show up on product specialist/product management resumes. On the other hand, business development managers use skills like customer service, crm, healthcare, and business relationships on their resumes.In general, business development managers earn the most working in the finance industry, with an average salary of $103,515. The highest-paying industry for a product specialist/product management is the technology industry.business development managers reach similar levels of education compared to product specialist/product managements, in general. The difference is that they're 1.6% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.9% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of product specialist/product management

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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