MBA in Product Management

An MBA from a reputed institution is one of the best investments you can make in a lifetime. It allows you to expand your skill set, knowledge base, and career opportunities, ensuring you are prepared for the highest paying jobs in today's job market.

But, the question is, which program should you choose to enroll in? An MBA program worldwide needs you to be exceptional; that's someone who can deliver academic work at an entirely different level, with the top schools enrolling only a fraction of candidates from the unique performer's pool.

Product management is a comparatively new and ever-evolving field, and thus not many B-School across the world have a separate MBA program for it. However, given the current scenario of high demand for product managers, more and more B-schools are now offering MBA degrees with specializations or concentrations in product management.

Here is a snapshot of the article:

What is Product Management?

Product management involves a lot more than just creating products and brands; the main aim is to guarantee the success and longevity of the products.

Product management demands team-building ability and excellent leadership skills as the role itself require perfect coordination with the various teams. In addition, a product manager must try and master the art of influence without authority because so many interfaces are needed, with sales, advertising, finance, R&D, operations, the supply chain, and executive management.

The title role plays an important part in perfecting the central marketing strategy, which can be reflected in the mere fact that expert brand managers often become CEOs. Moreover, Product and brand management degree holders, apart from their usual roles, are also seen as resourceful assets in communication consulting and advertising. Therefore, a curriculum like MBA in product management prepares any candidate for key positions that determine the success of a product.

What is an MBA in Product Management?

An MBA in product management is a degree course offered by several B-Schools with a concentration or specialization in product management. Therefore, the curriculum for MBA in product management is designed in such a way as to familiarize students with the various roles in the life cycle of a product.

The multiple stages of the processes involved vary depending on the product type.

• The first step is always ideation; you are responsible for gathering innovative ideas for the product.

• The second step is evaluation. Again, these ideas need to be evaluated, touching upon various aspects like – practicality, differentiability, what differentiates them from the current ones already in the market and what the USP of this product would be.

• Other parts covered include targeted customers, product demand & supply, how the new product would perform in the competitive market, and the estimation of the revenue-generating potential.

As an MBA in Product management grad, you are expected to manage marketing, sales and advertising, strategy, and positioning, acquire insights from customer feedback, address issues raised against the product, and improve user experience.

While it's true that all MBA programs provide you with business fundamentals, an MBA in Product management offers a program specialized in all aspects from product ideation to brand creation. In the paragraphs below, we will discuss all the top favorite MBA programs for Product Managers.

Product Managers after MBA

After your MBA, as a product manager, your role is multidisciplinary, involving talking to customers, developing the next feature to delight customers, digging into the analytics, increasing revenue via conversion optimization, giving specs to engineers, devising ways to increase user retention, and coordinating with all sections of the organization to try and bring technology to life.

In many ways, it can be conferred that product managers are the heart of a technology business, making the role of product managers high in demand. Moreover, Glassdoor has ranked product manager 3rd in the list of the best-suited jobs in America for 2021, with more than 14,000 job openings.

MBA in Product Management vs. Masters/Diploma in Product Management

To understand the difference between MBA in Product Management and a Master's in Product Management, let us take an example of the M.S. program offered by CMU, Tepper School of Business.

First of all, let us understand the requirements for the program candidates must have an undergraduate degree in computer engineering, software engineering, or Computer Science.
The program is designed to train computer engineers to become product managers in tech organizations in a one-year M.S. program.
The program is fabricated such that the C.S. department (Computer Interaction Institute–CMU) imparts technical skills, and Tepper Business School imparts management skills.
In addition, the program offers internship and capstone projects to enable students to get practical skills for the industry. However, an MBA in Product Management majorly focuses on creating global leaders' management, leadership, and networking skills.

Now, let's talk reality! If you want to be a product manager in a certain technical field or in a certain role you're interested in, and that's the major purpose you wish for your M.S., it might behoove you to do that. On the other hand, however, suppose you want to focus or move towards business management. In that case, an MBA is a better fit since Product management demands team-building ability, excellent leadership skills, and must master the art of influence which are some cornerstones of an MBA program.

If you ask me, I believe that MBA would definitely add more value to your profile as Product Management is more of a business/management than a technical role. Hence an MBA would provide exposure to multiple functional aspects of business which is essential for a Product Manager to perform. However, ultimately it comes down to what you want for yourself!

In any case, if you think you need more in-depth information about choosing an M.S. program or an MBA, feel free to comment down your queries or hop on a 1:1 call with our team of experts so that we can perform a SWOT analysis to understand suits you the most by understanding:

• What are the benefits and features that come along with each of the programs?

• What is the overlap between the two?

• What would prove to be more beneficial for you regarding your educational background and work experience?

MBA in Product Management: Eligibility & Requirements

MBA in Product Management is a specialization course in MBA offered by several top B-Schools with the same eligibility criteria as an MBA program. The following requirements are necessary to be eligible for MBA in Product Management

• One must have at least a bachelor's degree (in any discipline).

• Work experience ranging between 2 – 10 years.

• Degree Certificate, Transcripts

• Application Form

• Detailed CV

• Proficiency in English

• Good GMAT and GRE scores

• Minimum two Letters of Reference (LORs)

MBA in Product Management: Curriculum

MBA in Product Management is designed for students seeking Product Management careers in startups or larger technology firms. The course deals with the science behind Product Management in a leadership role. The course is appropriate for students with no product management experience to entry-level product management experience.

The MBA in Product Management curriculum is built around the perspective of a product manager or executive inside an organization leading the development and vision of a software product. The curriculum covers product lifecycles, including starting new products and expanding existing products.

The skills learned in the curriculum will apply to a wide range of product management cases, agnostic of industry. Some of the topics covered in the curriculum include

• Setting product strategies and visions,

• Understanding customer needs,

• Experimenting to validate ideas,

• Working with developers and designers, and

• Developing Minimum Viable Products.

Best MBA programs for Product Management

An MBA in Product Management curriculum with a specialization in product management help students familiarize themselves with various roles in a product's lifecycle.

For example, the course helps you understand about managing marketing strategy and positioning, advertising and sales, new product development, digital marketing, pricing strategy, etc. The following table mentions top MBA programs offering product management specialization.

Sl.no	Business Schools
1.	NYU, Stern School of Business
2.	Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business
3.	MIT, Sloan School of Business
4.	UC Berkeley, Haas School of Business
5.	UCLA, Anderson School of Management
6.	Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management
7.	UT Austin, McCombs School of Business
8.	Harvard Business School
9.	Michigan Ross
10.	Stanford GSB

Click here to know more about the MBA in Product Management programs in detail!

NYU, Stern School of Business

Other than their full-time MBA program, NYU Stern offers a specialization in Product Management, with courses from Data-Driven Decision Making to Design and Innovation. With each student allowed to opt for up to three specializations, Product Management is quite a famous option.

• Product management at Stern involves several courses such as

• Brand Strategy,

• Consumer behavior,

• New product development,

• Digital marketing,

• Luxury/hi-tech-product marketing, and

• Pricing strategy.

One of the significant highlights of the program is that one can easily blend courses from 26 other specializations, such as Management of Technology and Operations or FinTech, to focus on your Product Management MBA further.

2. CMU-Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business

At Tepper School of Business, MBA in Product Management focuses on strategies for product design, innovative and evolving marketing plans for new products, identifying opportunities for introducing new products and services into the market, and evaluating new products with a Technology Strategy and Product Management track.

The MBA Track of "Management of Innovation and Product Development" provides students with marketing insights, an understanding of the management of cutting-edge technologies, and the process of innovation. Moreover, the program serves as a foundation for a hardware and software industry - Product Management role. The product and brand management curriculum offers students an opportunity to apply for positions from product assistant to a group product manager or marketing V.P.

The MBA in Product Management program inscribes dual focus on leadership development and, strategic analytics both important foundations for the Product Manager role. Case studies, class lectures, and coursework help students understand the challenges that product managers face in their roles. The full-time MBA in product Management course completes a corporate-sponsored project with sponsors applying for more than 15 patents based on the projects developed as part of the course, which helps boost the students' innovation.

3. MIT, Sloan School of Business

MIT, Sloan offers two tracks for MBA in Product Management

• One for Entrepreneurship & Innovation and

• One for Enterprise Management.

The two-track structure is designed for students to gain valuable insights into product management from various aspects of firm size. The availability of a dual-track enables a student to earn an MBA alongside an M.Sc (Master of Science) degree in their Leaders for Global Operations program. This program helps students get a six-month internship with a partner organization to equip them with experience in engineering, management, and leadership.

Sloan's MBA in Product Management students can opt for the Enterprise management MBA track to choose Innovation/Product Management as a career path. The program would help you with valuable insights and professional training on effectively managing the product line. Moreover, you'll get familiar with all the duties and responsibilities a product manager plays in an organization, including strategy building, innovation, roadmap, and leading cross-functional teams from a product's originality through its launch.

4. UC Berkeley, Haas School of Business

Along with several applied innovation electives available, managing the New Product Development Process is one of the famous courses offered for MBA students. The program includes

• Product Management,

• Product Design, and

• Lean Launchpad,

All of which are coupled with a core curriculum focused on data-driven decisions and leadership.

The MBA in Product Management course follows various delivery techniques, including student research, applied projects, case studies, guest speakers, and reading to effectively cover each phase involved and build the required skill set necessary for successful product development.

The MBA in product management program fulfills all the basic elements needed for a successful Product Management career. The program combines traditional academic courses and experiential learning from the applied innovation courses. Moreover, official website data suggests that a heck of a lot of full-time MBA grads choose marketing stream to become brand managers and product managers.

5. UCLA, Anderson School of Management

UCLA Anderson School of Management offers a specialization in Technology Leadership, including courses such as Technology Management, New Product Development, and Innovation. In addition, the UCLA Anderson MBA in Product Management consists of both product management and closely related brand management as a part of its marketing courses.

Product management is all about developing new products, whereas; Brand management is about managing new brand strategies and making important decisions related to branding. The marketing course involves in-depth technical expertise to the foundational curriculum, with the program entirely dedicated to global viewpoints sustained throughout the curriculum.

To know more about UCLA Anderson School of Management, click here

6. Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management

Kellogg School of Management, includes a huge breadth of courses in their Technology Management pathway, including Product Marketing Management, Product Management, and Business Operations/Strategy. The program follows a cross-disciplinary approach to generic teaching, recognizing organizational problems & solving while fitting perfectly with the role of the Product Manager.

Moreover, there are numerous options for several courses for those interested in product management, tech marketing, and startups, including some commonly recommended courses like customer analytics, digital marketing analytics, technology for analytics, and others that one might consider.

To know more about Kellogg School of Management: click here

7. UT Austin, McCombs School of Business

McCombs School of Business offers a one-year immersion program highly focused on the intersection of business, innovation, and technology. The course itself is not truly an MBA; it is an M.S. in Technology Commercialization. However, the business school provides a concentration in brand and product management. Moreover, its tight focus on product entrepreneurship deserves a place on our list. The MBA in Product Management curriculum includes courses in

• Market analysis,

• Brand management,

• Strategic marketing,

• Consumer behavior/strategy,

• Marketing communications,

• Product development, and

• Corporate governance.

McCombs also provides experiential opportunities that help enrich the classroom curriculum. In addition to it, the Center for Customer Insight and Marketing Solutions is a forum created for students and marketing faculty interaction and industry representatives. The MBA in product Management program offers a flexible schedule for working adults and, more specifically, addresses how to engage in new technologies and turn them into practical products.

8. Harvard Business School

Harvard Business School is undoubtedly one of the top premier institutes globally, known for its diversity, holistic application process, and experienced teachers. HBS is the oldest University in the United States and undoubtedly the most prestigious one. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Harvard comes under the famous top H-W-S trio ranking as top 3 in the USA as well as its an M7 business school which is a group of top-notch B-schools in the United States of America, known for quality education, reputation, academic brilliance, and high pay scale opportunities.

At HBS, product management is part of their FIELD course (Field Immersion Experiences for Leadership Development). The FIELD method involves learning by thinking, innovating, doing, and reflecting.

The course is a project-based one targeting those candidates with no prior work experience in product management and those who wish to take a plunge into the core curriculum of product development with a startup or a big tech company. Students are allowed to work in groups of 2-3 under an experienced mentor and present five end-products at the end of the term during the course term. The projects given to work on would either be startup ideas or any application in the development phase by the HBS's I.T. staff.

To know more about Harvard Business School, click here

JOB OPPORTUNITIES AND PLACEMENTS

As mentioned above, Glassdoor has ranked product manager 3rd in the list of top five best-suited jobs in America for 2021; with more than 14,000 job openings, there is an increasing trend in the hike of median salaries along with high job satisfaction.

Moreover, with the increase in digital financial services led by banks and the service sector, the demand for product managers has increased in eCommerce.

Product Manager average salary range tends to depend a lot on the location, industry, and company. Here's in the below table; let us look at some of the typical salaries for product managers as per various locations around the globe.

Location	Salary Range (Approx.)
London	$52,000 – $170,000
San Francisco (USA)	$100,000 – $250,000
New York (USA)	$90,000 – $200,000
Toronto (Canada)	$70,000 – $112,000
France.	$60,000 – $95,000

Source: www.hired.com

RECRUITERS

When it comes to which companies seem to hire the most product managers, it's clear that some of the top MNCs and leading technology companies take the front row. Let us look at some top-tier companies hiring product managers:

UBER
Microsoft
Amazon:
Apple
Google
Facebook
Uline
Zillow
SAP
Adobe
LinkedIn

Product managers at Microsoft, Slack, Uber, and Google are considered some of the best places to work as product managers earning average salaries over $200,000 a year.

Average Salary Package

According to Glassdoor, a U.S. job portal analyzed 40,713 wages, and the average base pay was put out for a product manager at approximately $108,992.

Moreover, globally, the average base pay for a product manager is $110,916 per year.

The below graph depicts the average base pay for different popular destinations, with the United States of America holding the highest average base pay of $108,992.

The title role plays an important part in perfecting the central marketing strategy, which is reflected. The title role plays an important part in perfecting the major marketing strategy, which can be reflected in the mere fact that expert brand managers often become CEOs.

Moreover, Product and brand management degree holders, apart from their usual roles, are also seen as resourceful assets in communication consulting and advertising. Therefore, a curriculum in product management prepares any candidate for key positions that determine the success of a product.

With that, we can conclude that post-MBA, product managers need to develop strategic thinking and have a great vision as the success of any product, and the future circling the business depends ultimately, to a great extent, on their role in the decision-making process. Furthermore, due to the very own nature of the job, product or brand management is often recognized as the most special function of management across all industries.

When pursuing an MBA in Product Management, there are certain things you need to consider while looking at your options. You need to understand each aspect of the program, scholarship, and admission process can be pretty hectic for a person new to this field in any case.

If you need more in-depth information about any particular aspect of the application process, interviews, and course structure, feel free to hop on a 1:1 call with our team of experts. We at MBAandBeyond follow a stepwise procedure to ensure maximum efficiency, quality, and interaction to make sure we make every minute worth it! We at MBA and beyond are determined to guide you through your entire application process, ensuring the best offers from top Business schools. Happy learning 🙂

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is a product management MBA?

A product management MBA is an MBA degree course offered by several B-Schools with a concentration or specialization in product management. The program is molded to prepare one to handle the multidisciplinary roles of a product manager, which is one of the most sought out jobs post-MBA.

2. Does MBA help for product management?

An MBA in product management provides you with a competitive advantage over any other entry-level job candidates or candidates simply with limited professional experience.

3. Do I need an MBA to get into product management?

To be honest, Product management is a comparatively new field among other MBA specializations. Hence, the employers are not as selective in their hiring processes, which implies that an MBA is not the only way to land a job as a product manager. Work experience in the product management field can amount to the same value as earning an MBA

4. Which MBA college is best for product management?

Each MBA specialization in product management offered by a different school is unique in its way. Therefore, it's totally up to you to choose the one that best suits your needs overall and describes your post-MBA goals.

5. How can I become a product manager?

• An MBA in product management

• Work experience in the product management field

• Earn a certificate in product management – become a certified product manager.

• Take a Professional product management training program.

• Through a paid internship in product management