My First Product Job

Guy Barner

Director of Product

First product job

🐣 Joined a company as a PM in 2015

Before becoming a PM

💼 Founder

💻 2 years of exp. in tech companies

🎓 Physics / Maths

The Story

How did you land your first job as a product manager?

After working in Education Technology companies for a few years, I founded my own startup with a couple of friends. We ran for 2.5 years and raised a small amount, but eventually couldn’t break through.

Even though I was CEO at my startup, I found out I love the building side much more that I loved doing business. After we shut down, an investor that I was in touch with reached out saying that one of the companies he’s invested in is looking for a first product manager, and he thought I’d be perfect for. They were early-stage and related to the fields I had expertise in (education and gamification), so it was a great match for both of us.

The challenge

What was the biggest challenge in your first year as a PM?

Working on my own startup, and also in previous positions in non-startup companies, I was used to managing by authority - I knew what I wanted, and my teams would always follow along, or be replaced. During my first months as a PM, I quickly learned that one of the downsides of working with very bright people in a startup environment, is that everyone around you is just as smart as you are. Smart people don’t just do what they tell them to do - they need to understand and agree with you.

To get you team to follow your footsteps: A. You need to explain, convince, and get buy-in for your ideas, even if you’re sure they are absolutely brilliant. B. You need to get them to believe in you personally. The more you have B, the less you’ll need to do A, but that takes time and a lot of work.

Connect with Guy Barner on Linkedin

How Guy Barner Got Into Product Management

Aspiring PM?

Yay! Almost there 🙌