Product Owner or Product Manager, the difference

A Product Owner runs the backlog inside a scrum team. A Product Manager sets the direction of the product. Isa Cederberg, Head of Marketing and Development at Birds Relations, draws the line in this episode of Datadrivet.

The Product Owner decides what the team builds next, keeps the backlog ordered and makes sure the right work reaches each sprint. The Product Manager works one level up and decides where the product should go before anything reaches a sprint.

Companies often hire for one title and expect the other. Bring in a Product Owner and ask for product strategy, and both the person and the product suffer. Hire a Product Manager and bury them in backlog grooming, and the same happens. Decide which job you need before you fill it.

Listen to the full episode of Datadrivet for Isa’s take on where the two roles differ and where they overlap.