Product manager job description.
Looking to bring in a product manager or take the next step in product leadership? This product manager job description explains responsibilities such as managing roadmaps, working with dev teams, prioritising features, and aligning business goals — plus progression routes and UK salary benchmarks.
What does a product manager do?
A product manager (PM) defines and delivers features or products that solve user problems and drive business outcomes. They sit at the centre of cross-functional teams and are responsible for aligning user needs with technical feasibility and commercial goals.
Their core duties include setting product vision, managing roadmaps, prioritising features, writing requirements, and coordinating with design and engineering. They also analyse feedback and metrics to drive continuous improvement.
In early-stage companies, PMs are often hands-on with delivery and discovery. In enterprise environments, they focus on strategic planning and manage multiple teams, initiatives, or product portfolios.
Key responsibilities of a product manager.
Product managers are responsible for defining and delivering products that meet user and business needs. Their responsibilities include:
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Creating and managing product roadmaps based on user feedback and business goals
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Writing clear product requirements and user stories
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Collaborating with design, engineering, and marketing teams
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Prioritising features based on impact, effort, and value
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Coordinating sprints, releases, and go-to-market plans
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Analysing usage data and user feedback to inform decisions
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Communicating product progress to stakeholders and leadership
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Aligning product strategy with company OKRs or KPIs
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Managing stakeholder expectations and balancing trade-offs
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Leading product discovery and experimentation initiatives
This role blends strategic vision, delivery planning, and cross-team collaboration.
Skills and requirements for a product manager.
Product managers define strategy and guide product delivery. Employers typically look for:
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3–6 years of experience in product or digital delivery roles
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Strong roadmap planning, prioritisation, and user feedback skills
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Experience gathering requirements and writing clear specs
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Familiarity with agile delivery and sprint planning
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Skilled in stakeholder management and cross-functional alignment
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Understanding of UX, technical feasibility, and business goals
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Ability to measure product success using KPIs
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Experience working with design, engineering, and marketing teams
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Confidence presenting roadmaps and product performance
Most product manager own features central to product iteration and strategy.
Average salary for a product manager.
In the UK, the average salary for a product manager typically ranges from £50,000 to £70,000, depending on user needs translation, roadmapping, and stakeholder management.
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Mid-level product managers earn between £50,000 and £60,000
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Senior PMs leading multi-disciplinary teams and revenue-driving features can earn between £61,000 and £70,000
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Salaries increase for roles with P&L ownership or market expansion remit
Top salaries are in SaaS, fintech, and consumer tech environments.
Career progression for a product manager.
A product manager owns the roadmap, delivery, and success of digital products. It’s a versatile role with clear pathways into senior leadership, technical specialisation, or commercial product strategy. A typical path includes:
Product analyst / Associate product manager
Gathers user feedback, supports backlog grooming, and helps manage feature delivery.
Product manager
Owns delivery of product features, manages stakeholder communication, and aligns development with user needs.
Senior product manager
Leads high-impact initiatives, owns KPIs, and mentors junior PMs.
Group product manager / Product lead
Oversees multiple squads or workstreams, drives strategy, and works with design and data teams.
Head of product / Product director
Leads the full product function. Sets vision, manages teams, and aligns product development with business outcomes.
salary guide
Our UK operations salary guide.
Product managers own product delivery, roadmap planning, and cross-functional alignment. Offers should reflect experience in shipping features, prioritisation, and stakeholder management.
Our UK operations salary guide includes salary benchmarks, 2024 comparisons, hiring trends, and projections through to 2026.
FAQS
Product manager FAQs.
They act as connectors — owning problem spaces, setting priorities, and ensuring alignment across engineering, design, and commercial stakeholders. In the UK, strong PMs must navigate both top-down strategy and bottoms-up team dynamics, especially in hybrid and remote environments.
No, but they do need to speak the language of engineers. Most PM roles require understanding APIs, databases, and system limitations — especially in SaaS or platform businesses. Strong PMs can scope feasibility without needing to write code.
A PM owns the “what and why”; a PO focuses on the “how and when.” In some agile teams, the roles overlap. But typically, product managers shape vision and roadmap while product owners manage sprint delivery.
Ask how a candidate handled conflicting priorities or a feature that failed. Strong PMs won’t just talk about backlog grooming — they’ll explain trade-offs, feedback loops, and how they validated their thinking.
Senior PM, lead PM, or group PM. Some move into head of product roles, others into domain-specific leadership like data product or platform product management.
