Most people complain about hiring. It can be one of the most energy-draining activities. Over the years I've worked with excellent managers who've helped me refine a simple yet effective hiring system which I think is a great starting point for any company looking to hire excellent Product Managers.
Steps for hiring excellent Product Managers
- Clear, inspiring job description that shows your company culture, clarifies explicitly the roles of the job and the area in which they'll be working, and ultimately inspires the candidate to submit an application.
- Screen for the specific experience you're looking for, and the essential qualities of a Product Manager
- Set up initial 30-minute calls where you determine basics like ability to communicate, confidence, and generally an energy that resonates with you and your team. In this call it's critical to make sure both your goals and the candidates goals are aligned. You should also identify what are the key things they need from their next role, so that you can remember to address each thing if you make it to offer stage.
- Test for their technical ability. Product Managers should have a basic technical understanding. Here's how to test for it. You can do this on the initial call, or set it up as a separate thing.
- Organise a Product Challenge. If I could, I'd have this as the first step. It cuts right to the bone and makes finding exceptional Product Managers easier. Here's how to create a great Product challenge.
