Do You Need A Product Leadership Coach? 5 Signs

Did you know? The first product managers were working almost a century ago. The concept of product management was first noted in the words of consumer goods giant P&G’s President, Neil H. McElroy. He called for “brand men” who will focus on managing products, packaging, distribution, etc., eventually morph into product managers. Over the years, the role has expanded, with digitalization adding another layer of complexity. Modern-day product managers are mystics who manage multiple stakeholders and handle packages of data like pros before walking into another meeting to fight for their vision. But the pros need a supporter, too, deservedly so! That’s where a product leadership coach comes in.

What’s a Product Leadership Coach?

A product leadership coach is someone you can trust. They help product leaders grow in their careers. In personalized coaching sessions, they help product leaders see areas for improvement, set clear goals, and create plans for success.
Unlike mentors who share what they’ve done in the past or trainers who teach skills, a product leadership coach focuses on helping you understand yourself better and grow into a strong leader. Ken Norton, a prolific former product manager at Google, reflects on the role of a coach for PMs in his essay –

“A great coach can partner with you on what matters most: your values, your vision for the future, your purpose, what you truly want, the perspective you take, how you make choices, what authentic leadership means to you, overcoming imposter syndrome, and finding meaning in your career and your life. Connecting to this is like a north star for how you live your life and guide your career, the same way a strong vision can guide a team to winning products. You wouldn’t start building a product without a vision, so why not have one for yourself? I wish I’d tapped into coaching much earlier.”

These coaches are great at making a safe space where you can honestly talk about your strengths and weaknesses. They use different coaching techniques to help product leaders become better at decision-making, communicate well, and manage relationships with other team members. A product leadership coach encourages self-reflection to fuel your journey toward professional goals. It leads to better product strategy, stronger team dynamics, and a healthier product culture. Read more about coaching: Essential Guide to Effective Leadership Coaching

How Does a Product Leadership Coach Impact You?

Coaching has a big effect on product leaders and managers. It gives them important skills and new perspectives that help them succeed in their jobs. When you have regular coaching sessions, you learn more about your leadership style. You learn your strengths and what you can improve on. This self-awareness ensures that you lead with more confidence. Coaching also helps product leaders ensure that their teams are focused on the company’s main goals. This means that their product strategy and actions are important for the organization’s success. With the right support to think strategically, a product leadership coach enables you to build a clear vision and move toward execution. The good effects of coaching go beyond personal growth. They also improve your team dynamics and product management practices. As you enhance leadership skills, you create a space where feedback and open communication are valued. It leads to better teamwork, new ideas, and improved team performance.

Do You Need a Product Leadership Coach?

As a product leader, it’s important to recognize the need for help. It is important for growth in both your personal life and your career. Product management is an exciting job, but it has its difficulties. It often requires you to deal with unclear situations, guide teams during tough times, and make key decisions that can greatly affect outcomes. So, what does help look like? Product leadership training takes many forms. Primarily, you can choose from three modes:

• Product coaching helps unlock your potential. It provides guidance and support to improve skills and performance.
• Mentoring is when a more experienced person shares their knowledge to help someone less experienced.
• Training teaches specific skills or knowledge through courses. The goal is to make sure you have what they need for a certain job.

Each method has its own value. The right choice depends on your needs and objectives as a product leader or manager. Coaching is especially helpful for tackling leadership challenges, improving skills, making better decisions, and handling complex work situations. But when should you start thinking of a product leadership coach? There are a few signs:

Sign 1: You are Struggling to Align Your Team with Company Vision

Aligning your product team with the company’s vision is very important. It gives everyone a purpose and helps them work towards the same goals. Without this alignment, teams often face confusion. They may not know what to do, leading to disengagement, mixed priorities, and a feeling of not owning the results. If you keep explaining the company vision or struggle to link your team’s daily tasks to the larger goals, you might need help from a product leadership coach. A coach can help you share the vision better, turn it into clear goals for your team, and create a way to measure progress and celebrate achievements. With a coach, you can connect the big picture with daily tasks. This will help your product team feel united and motivated. When everyone works together, they can put their best effort into reaching shared goals and help the organization succeed. You might like: What are Leadership Vision Statements? 10+ Examples to Help Build Yours

Sign 2: You Face Difficulty in Stakeholder Management

Managing stakeholders is very important. It helps you get support, secure resources, and deal with complex work situations. It means making strong relationships, understanding different views, and handling conflicting priorities. But, managing stakeholders can be tricky. It often needs good communication, negotiation, and influence skills. If you find yourself often in conflicts with stakeholders, or if you struggle to agree on product strategy, it may mean you need to improve your stakeholder management. A product leadership coach can help you learn how to identify and prioritize stakeholders. They will teach you how to understand what motivates them and how to communicate in a way that connects with their views. Also, a coach can help build your confidence and skills for handling tough conversations. They will show you how to address objections in a positive way and create an agreement around your product vision. Their support can turn stakeholder management from a challenge into a strength. This helps create a teamwork atmosphere where different perspectives lead to product success.

Sign 3: You Have Challenges in Prioritizing and Decision-Making

Effective product management relies on prioritizing and making decisions. It means sometimes you must make tough choices, even when you don’t have all the information and time is short. While using analytical skills and data is important, having a clear way to prioritize tasks, weigh trade-offs, and guide the product in the right direction is also key. If you often question your choices or feel stuck because of too much analysis, it may be time to improve how you make decisions. Also, if you feel stressed by many competing tasks or can’t clearly explain your product roadmap, you might need to work on your prioritization skills. A product leadership coach can help you build a strong system for prioritization and decision-making. They can assist you in setting clear standards for evaluating opportunities, creating ways to collect and analyze important information, and forming a plan to make quick and smart choices. With their help, you can boost your confidence, allowing you to lead your product effectively and make tough calls firmly. How strong are your prioritization skills? Take a free prioritization skill assessment!

Sign 4: You Are Feeling Stuck in Your Career Progression

Career growth in product management often means handling bigger responsibilities, leading larger teams, and shaping product strategy at a higher level. This change needs more than just technical skills; you also need strong leadership skills, good communication, and the ability to deal with complex team dynamics. If you feel stuck in your career or not ready for leadership roles, it might mean you need to improve your leadership skills. A product leadership coach can be a great help on your career path. They can assist you in figuring out your career goals, understanding your strengths, and areas where you can grow. They can help you develop a solid plan to reach your goals. They also support building key leadership qualities like communication, delegation, conflict resolution, and team motivation, which are important for senior product roles.

Sign 5: You Have Inconsistent Product Performance and Team Morale

Inconsistent product performance, missed deadlines, and low team morale can show that a product team is facing problems. Many factors may cause these problems. Often, these issues come from unclear communication, not being aligned on priorities, or lacking a clear product vision. It’s important to tackle these problems early to create a better work environment. If you see a drop in product performance, like missed milestones or lower product quality, it could mean the team is not working at its best. Low team morale, a lack of interest, or team members feeling disengaged can also point out hidden problems that need fixing. A product leadership coach can help you find the main reasons for poor product performance and low team morale. They can assist you in creating clear communication methods, building a supportive team, and aligning everyone around a common product vision.

You Need a Product Leadership Coach. What Are the Next Steps?

Cool. You know you need a product leadership coach. What’s next?

#1 Clarify your goals and expectations

Starting your coaching journey means knowing what you want and being active in the process. First, think about your goals for coaching. Do you want to improve your leadership skills, improve how your team works together, or handle a career change? When you start with clarity regarding goals, you and your coach can make a coaching plan that fits your needs. When you check out possible coaches, think about their style and how it fits with how you learn. Some coaches give clear guidance and steps to follow. Others ask questions to help you discover things on your own. Read about qualities of a good coach and make an informed choice. Read more about the journey of finding a coach: How to find the executive coach you need?

#2 Remain consistent and engaged with your coach

Also, prepare for coaching sessions by thinking about your past experiences, challenges, and what you want for the future. Bring real examples of times when you struggled or areas where you want to grow. Think of questions to ask you coach. The more open you are about your situation, the better your coach can help you devise effective strategies. Lastly, keep an open mind during coaching. Be willing to try new ideas and question what you already believe. Coaching often means looking at things in new ways, trying different methods, and stepping beyond what feels safe. With this attitude of growth, you can learn a lot and reach your full leadership potential.

#3 Reflect and evaluate constantly

Check your progress with your coach regularly. Look at how well your strategies are working and find areas you can change. This ongoing review helps keep your coaching plan relevant as your needs and goals change. Be open to changing your approach, trying new techniques, and adjusting your goals based on what you learn during coaching. Coaching is not a straight path; it requires you to change and adapt over time. By using data to measure success and being ready to adjust your plans, you can ensure that your coaching helps you grow as a product leader.

What if product leadership coaching feels like a mis-match?

Fret not! Product leadership coaching is a helpful avenue for many. However, it may not match the needs of every product leader, especially given our time and budget constraints. More ways of product leadership training can solve the common challenges in such setups:

• the coach does not provide regular inputs outside of coaching sessions
• your schedule does not permit you to take long coaching sessions
• your organization does not sponsor product leadership development
• you don’t want to share your concerns with anyone
• you don’t feel comfortable with coaching one-on-one

And so on. Merlin, Risely’s built-in AI coach, helps overcome these challenges by offering hyper-personalized coaching at the point of need.

• Are you wondering how to talk to that colleague the next morning? Ask Merlin right now, even if it’s 3 AM.
• Not feeling great enough to type out your woes? Use the voice mode in 40+ languages.
• Unsure why a situation is stuck? Tell Merlin and analyze together.

Start a new chapter of your career now, ask Merlin. It’s free.

Wrapping Up

In conclusion, noticing when you need a product leadership coach can help your career and team’s performance. A coach can help you deal with issues like aligning the team with the company’s vision, managing stakeholders, making decisions, moving forward in your career, and boosting team morale. Working with a product leadership coach means setting clear goals, making a coaching schedule, including your team, putting strategies in place, and checking on success. If you’re looking for a reliable coach, consider their experience, skills, and how well they match your needs.