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(Re-post) I Went For An MBA Because I Hate Coding

binary-code(This was originally posted in February 2013, updated here)


Ask any software engineer turned MBA student why he is in business school in India, and you will probably hear about his dislike of software development. This is especially true when the student is in his 20's and studying in a full time MBA program. He has seen the typical roles in Indian IT and is looking for something more.

So here's a reality check for all young MBAs out there looking for well paying jobs. The best paying jobs, which occasionally include product management roles, require a significant amount of technical knowledge and close interaction with software developers. And this includes knowledge of software development, business domain as well as familiarity with software engineering processes and technologies.
This knowledge is not important for doing code reviews or software QA, but for truly understanding the efforts required to build a product feature. It is also useful in rapid prototyping of features, building or validating UX designs, reviewing system architecture and so on. 
If a top-notch software engineer is rated a 9 or 10 in his knowledge of Java and SQL, you should reach at least a 5 (on a scale of 1 to 10) in those technologies. Otherwise you risk being shut out of design discussions and your UX and design contributions may be ignored.

You can become a product manager in India without software development expertise, only if you have significant post-MBA experience and strong domain knowledge. Otherwise, treat your programming books with respect and they will help you earn the programmer's respect.

Resume Variants You Need as a Technology Product Manager


Most interview preparation sites will say that you need to customize your résumé for every job application. This is correct because if your customized resume does not contain keywords a recruiter is searching for, you are unlikely to get shortlisted for an interview. However, what they often neglect to mention is the need for multiple resume templates for applying to product management roles in India. This is even more important once you gain some years of experience in product management.

[In large firms, your résumé is typically scanned by a recruiter, shortlisted by an HR manager, forwarded to the hiring manager and then scanned by the interview panel. It may also be scrutinized by a background checking team after you accept the job offer]

You should remember some points while creating a resume template for each category. Remember, the template is the master list of all work related activities, you need to trim it and customize it for every job application.:

Offshore Enterprise Product Management

  • Highlight cross-functional, program management and engineering work experience
  • Show details of customer and account team engagement or work as a Business Analyst
  • Add keywords that match the technologies advertised (security, virtualization, networking etc.)
  • Based on the job description, you may want to highlight work done within Asia-Pacific for sales support, RFP response and so on

Offshore Consumer Product Management

  • Show patents, innovations, work on new product design etc.
  • Show experience in UX design, product release etc.
  • Also mention if you have conducted customer interviews, done customer data analysis or have worked with web analytics

Market Facing Enterprise Product Management

  • Show financial skills (you can decide what flavor you wish to add)
  • Show pricing, sales support and marketing experience
  • Add points to show that you are tech. savvy (but you need not show engineering experience)

Market Facing Consumer Product Management

  • Show brand names you have worked with
  • Show impact on profitability, sales, customer acquisition or other relevant metrics
  • Add details of your MBA projects, data analysis skills and interpersonal skills
  • Add details of team management if done earlier
Your résumé is the key to your success in the technology industry in India.The reviewer must grasp the essentials in a single glance to retain his interest. 

And remember, there is no such thing as a catch-all resume that can be used for applying to any product management role.

10 Reasons why "MBA preferred" appears in Product Manager recruitment ads

This is a very old post from my previous blog, reposted as it is still relevant.

10. The recruitment team wants to shortlist candidates from thousands of applicants for an entry-level role, and MBA/PMP is chosen as a criterion. This is fairly common in large firms.

9. The Product Manager is actually required to have business modeling/statistical analysis or product pricing/marketing skills. This is very rarely needed in India, for both offshore roles and for Indian market facing roles.

8. The "MBA preferred" lets the recruitment team decline internal applicants who want to move out of an engineering role into product management.

7. The head of product management/hiring manager has an MBA

6. This product management role reports to the local sales head, and it is actually a category/brand management role for India/Asia-Pacific. Such roles are quite prevalent in hardware/mobile firms.

5. The role requires the product manager to work with vendors/clients/account teams etc. based in India, and a person with an MBA might have an edge in relationship building and management, as per the hiring manager.

4. The ad wants applicants with a full-time MBA from a top business school, but the recruitment team was not sure if they would actually get many applicants. This is often the case with senior level positions.

3. The PM head wants a "business oriented" product manager, even though the role is actually completely engineering facing, and requires strong domain knowledge. This often happens in offshore R&D centers, and often leads to a bad hire.

2. The "MBA preferred" can be interpreted as a code for highly paid candidates to apply for the job.

1. (My favorite) The ad was copied from a standard template and it contained the words "MBA preferred" in the original ad.