Product Management Trends in 2023

Product Management Trends in 2023

Product Management Trends in 2023​ by Ola Ajayi
Product Management Trends in 2023

Product management plays a vital role in the success of companies in the tech industry. Research shows that a fully optimized Product manager could increase company profits by more than 34%. 

A significant trend that led the product management drive in 2022 was product-led growth strategies. These focused on streamlining the product development process and delivery so the product sells itself.  

However, times are changing, consumer needs are evolving, and the competition is more brutal. Research shows a start-up growth rate of 5.3% in 2022, with over 500 thousand in the Us. 

Key Product Management trends to watch in 2023:

As we look ahead to 2023, these trends will continue to shape the tech product management landscape in significant ways

 

AI will Guide the Development of Innovative and Customer-centric Products in 2023

One trend is the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to assist with product development and management. 

This includes using AI to analyze customer data and identify patterns and trends, also using ML to optimize product features and pricing. 

Recent research shows AI adoption grew by four points (13%) in 2022 compared to 2021, and this trend will continue in 2023. This rapid growth also means that consumers have more software options which poses a significant challenge, as research shows about 21% of products fail to meet customer needs, 

Product managers and executives will rely heavily on AI analytics tools to gather and evaluate large volumes of data across customer feedback, focus group surveys, behavioral patterns, and competitor research. Using AI analytics tools and human expertise will help companies make better decisions and guide the development of customer-focused products that meet the market’s and user’s needs. 

 

AI-enabled Features will Lead the Product Development Drive

Aside from the increasing adoption of AI and ML in guiding a data-driven product-led strategy, we will also see an influx of products with distinct AI-enabled features. Ai-enabled features merge Machine learning and AI to create specific solutions for users. Product management success relies heavily on customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction helps boost retention, which improves business growth. With the rise in customer-centricity in product management, AI offers unlimited applications to help product teams deliver seamless and engaging customer experiences.  

For example, UserVoice merge matches technology is an AI-enabled feature that automates customer feedback sorting and analysis. This feature helps Product managers sort customer feedback and identify duplicates faster. 

 

Massive Adoption of Automation Tools to Respond to Remote Work and Tech Layoffs.

Lastly, Hybrid and Remote structures have become the new normal to deliver flexibility and rise to the challenge of great resignation, quiet quitting, and, recently, massive layoffs. 

A Pew Research center report revealed that 60% of workers prefer remote work structures. Another report states that 13% of executives support a fully remote workplace. With the rising recession, many companies are optimizing for productivity and will hire remote staff to cut the cost of running an onsite office. Product teams will be included in this change. 

As remote work and layoffs become widespread, companies will continue to monitor and manage product teams’ productivity across different locations. 

There will be massive adoption and development of automation tools. Product teams will depend heavily on devices to automate lower-level tasks to support the delivery of tech products to market in record time. 

 

The Rise of Product Operations Role

The product management landscape constantly evolves to respond to users’ needs and rapid competition growth. Recently, we have seen rapid adoption of new tools and methodologies like Agile, Kanban, and Jira. 

Tech companies collect extensive data from consumer insights, feedback, market analysis, and more. As they collect more data and manage user feedback, the demands on systems and processes can become overwhelming for one product manager. 

That’s where a product operations manager comes in!

According to a 2022 report by ProductPlan, 32% of companies now have a dedicated product operations manager or team. 

This emerging role supports growing companies and product lines by streamlining processes, workflows, and cross-functional alignment. This frees up the product manager’s time to create unique products. Companies like Adobe, TikTok and Uber have already embraced the role of product operations manager.

A vital responsibility of the product operations manager role is data management. They help the team understand and prioritize data, saving them time and effort. They collect, organize, and analyze internal and external data, such as customer feedback, support tickets, and feature requests. They also analyze data from experiments, product usage, finance, sales, and marketing.

In addition, product ops managers are responsible for product research and process refinement to make the product development team more efficient. They also manage the team’s technology stack.

As a bridge between the product team and the rest of the company, product ops managers may present product changes and share product-specific data that can influence product development.

Overall, the product operations manager role will drive collaboration and data-driven decisions in growing companies in 2023.

How Product Managers, Teams, and Companies can take advantage of these Trends in 2023

As product development has become more complex and competitive, product management has evolved into a more strategic function that plays a crucial role in driving the direction and growth of a company.

Several factors, including the increasing importance of customer-centricity and the need for agile development methodologies, have fueled this shift. This development poses great expectations for product managers, executives, and product teams. 

Product managers must embrace new technology skills to maintain a competitive advantage in 2023. Rather than worry about AI stealing Jobs or the layoff pandemic, Product managers should acquire AI and ML skills to improve their delivery. 

Executives must invest in product teams’ training and adopting AI-enabled tools to facilitate collaboration amongst team members.

The year ahead holds excellent opportunities for the tech industry, which will disrupt the norms and birth innovative solutions. And only forward-thinking, data-driven teams will win the race.