Although Product Owners and Project Managers may have overlapping strengths and skills, these positions have significant differences. At a high level, a Product Owners (PO), typically operate in an agile environment, acting as the voice of the customer, developing the product vision, writing Product Backlog Items, and assisting in building the initial Product Backlog and maintaining it.
Project Manager (PM), on the other hand, ensures project elements, including the scope, schedule, budgets, risk, and more, usually functioning in a traditional project management capacity.
Before we zoom in on both roles and their differences, it may be useful to briefly provide some context about the behavior and environment in which they operate. I want to do that using the Iron triangle.
The iron triangle is actually a very simple top-level presentation of key elements for successful project planning. Scope, time, and price/resources.
Traditional Project Management
In traditional project management, scope (or features) is viewed as being fixed and unchangeable at the start of a project. Time and cost are then adjusted to come up with an adequate plan. The problem is that scope frequently changes during the life of a project, which has an effect on both time and cost. As a result, all three constraints become variable as the project progresses. Very often, this results in cost overruns and late deliveries. Eventually, the market requirements may or may not be met. Stakeholders often feel unhappy with higher costs and delays.
Agile
Agile takes a different approach by turning the triple constraints upside down. It sets the time (iterations) and cost as fixed and adjusts scope to focus on the highest priorities. It functions with the expectation that scope is the variable that evolves over time. Therefore, the goal is to deliver the client’s most important requirements within the budgeted cost and time. Agile allows for new requirements or re-prioritization as the project moves forward.
The Differences between a Product Owner & Project Manager
The differences between a product owner and a project manager are important in the context of software development and project management. Here are some core differences:
Responsibilities
Product Owner: The product owner is responsible for maximizing the value of the product being developed. They represent the interests of the customer or end user, determine the features and priorities of the product backlog, and work closely with the development team to ensure that the product meets customer needs.
Project Manager: The project manager is responsible for the overall management of the project. This includes planning, budgeting, resource management, communication, risk management and coordinating different teams and stakeholders to ensure that the project is completed on time, on budget and within established quality standards.
Focus
Product Owner: The product owner’s focus is on understanding and prioritizing customer needs, defining product features, and ensuring product quality.
Project Manager: The project manager focuses on managing project requirements, scheduling, resources, and coordinating all aspects of the project to achieve the project objectives.
Relation To The Team
Product Owner: The product owner is an integral part of the development team and works closely with them to realize the product vision.
Project Manager: The project manager also works with the team, but usually has a broader focus, also communicating and coordinating with other stakeholders outside the development team.
Scope Of Control
Product Owner: The product owner has control over the product backlog and prioritization of tasks within the development team, but generally does not have direct control over budgets or resources.
Project Manager: The project manager has more control over budgets, resources and overall project planning.
In many agile development environments, product owners and project managers work closely together, but their roles are clearly defined with different focus areas and responsibilities.
