In these early months of a new year, it’s natural for everyone’s minds to be thinking about the future and their careers.

And it’s often the reason why I get a lot of calls this time of year from Product Managers (individual contributors) who want to be on my radar for searches that could move them into a leadership capacity.

What is also interesting to note is the increase of candidates from smaller markets, mainly Kitchener, who are the ones making these inquiries.

If this sounds like you and you are looking for some practical advice to move from a Product Manager role into a leadership role, you’ve come to the place.

Many candidates assume the way to do this is to get hired into a leadership role. But I’m going to begin by telling you something you already know: crossing the chasm into a leadership role is difficult to do.

Most employers you apply to will assume that if you’re ready for a promotion, your current employer would have promoted you. After all, your current employer knows you and your work and is invested/benefitting from your intellectual capital — so if they aren’t promoting you, there must be a reason.

When it comes to leveraging a Recruiter to help you find that new advancement opportunity, it’s even more unlikely to happen. Why? Because search firms are engaged (paid) to do outbound work; sourcing and engaging with individuals in the market who are already doing the job their client needs to be done.

To compound this scenario, in smaller markets like Kitchener, there simply aren’t enough leadership roles for all of the great candidates who are open to interviewing.

We are also in an opportunistic candidate’s market which has driven up salaries and birthed the next-gen of dream chasers of unicorn valuations. So as an individual contributor competing with people already at a Director or VP level, you are facing stiff competition.

This may not be the advice you want to hear, but it might be the advice you need to hear. It’s time to book a meeting with your boss to have an honest discussion. It’s also a time for you to be open and vulnerable to receive feedback that may require you to take action.

The first step is making sure your employer is aware of your ambitions. If they’re thinking about succession planning or expanding the team, they need to know you’re thinking about those things as well.

The most important outcome of this meeting is to get their feedback. This is not a meeting to go into with a list of demands, or an or else frame of mind. Instead, approach the meeting as a professional growth exercise, after all, as a Product Manager, is it not part of your role to get user feedback?

To help you better prepare for this meeting, here are some questions to help steer a more positive and fruitful discussion.

1. Would they consider you for the next role up if it were available? Why or why not?

2. What are the growth areas that you should focus on this month, this quarter, and this year, to become a stronger leadership candidate?

3. What could you be doing in your current role that would help to prepare you for leadership?

4. What will you need to accomplish for them to see you as ready for that next level of responsibility?

Once you have your boss’s feedback, the hard work begins. Show them that you take their feedback seriously and are committed to improving. Be the best employee that you can be in your role, and work on the growth areas your boss has identified.

This will be hard, and you’ll most likely be stretched. However, it won’t be nearly as difficult as it is to move into a new organization where you need to learn the product and processes while you’re also trying to be a first-time people manager.

“Proving yourself in a new level role, with a new product, and a new team is a much steeper hill to climb.”

Having this feedback meeting and putting in the work will help you to gain new respect from your employer, and validate to the market that you are promotable. This attention and effort will help you when it comes time to make the next move in your career.

Product leadership roles are some of the most critical roles for a tech company, whether a startup or Fortune500. Even organizations like the infamous FAANG companies show no signs of stopping their recruitment of the world’s top product talent.

But we also know that there are simply fewer leadership roles than individual contributor roles. Not everyone who (a) is ready to be a leader or (b) wants to be a leader will have those opportunities available to them for many reasons. Crossing the chasm requires hard work and a persistent attitude, but it is possible.

Ask yourself why you want to be a leader? If it’s compensation-related, climbing a ladder is not necessary to be paid more or to be considered a valued employee. I have personally placed VPs of Product who earn $170–200K yet met individual contributor Product Managers who earn base salaries between $170-$220K. Figure out where and how you want to scale your career and lean into your strengths.

Want to grow your product network? Join our Product Management community on LinkedIn! Connect with other product professionals and gain valuable career insights from our product community.

In these early months of a new year, it’s natural for everyone’s minds to be thinking about the future and their careers.

And it’s often the reason why I get a lot of calls this time of year from Product Managers (individual contributors) who want to be on my radar for searches that could move them into a leadership capacity.

What is also interesting to note is the increase of candidates from smaller markets, mainly Kitchener, who are the ones making these inquiries.

If this sounds like you and you are looking for some practical advice to move from a Product Manager role into a leadership role, you’ve come to the place.

Many candidates assume the way to do this is to get hired into a leadership role. But I’m going to begin by telling you something you already know: crossing the chasm into a leadership role is difficult to do.

Most employers you apply to will assume that if you’re ready for a promotion, your current employer would have promoted you. After all, your current employer knows you and your work and is invested/benefitting from your intellectual capital — so if they aren’t promoting you, there must be a reason.

When it comes to leveraging a Recruiter to help you find that new advancement opportunity, it’s even more unlikely to happen. Why? Because search firms are engaged (paid) to do outbound work; sourcing and engaging with individuals in the market who are already doing the job their client needs to be done.

To compound this scenario, in smaller markets like Kitchener, there simply aren’t enough leadership roles for all of the great candidates who are open to interviewing.

We are also in an opportunistic candidate’s market which has driven up salaries and birthed the next-gen of dream chasers of unicorn valuations. So as an individual contributor competing with people already at a Director or VP level, you are facing stiff competition.

This may not be the advice you want to hear, but it might be the advice you need to hear. It’s time to book a meeting with your boss to have an honest discussion. It’s also a time for you to be open and vulnerable to receive feedback that may require you to take action.

The first step is making sure your employer is aware of your ambitions. If they’re thinking about succession planning or expanding the team, they need to know you’re thinking about those things as well.

The most important outcome of this meeting is to get their feedback. This is not a meeting to go into with a list of demands, or an or else frame of mind. Instead, approach the meeting as a professional growth exercise, after all, as a Product Manager, is it not part of your role to get user feedback?

To help you better prepare for this meeting, here are some questions to help steer a more positive and fruitful discussion.

1. Would they consider you for the next role up if it were available? Why or why not?

2. What are the growth areas that you should focus on this month, this quarter, and this year, to become a stronger leadership candidate?

3. What could you be doing in your current role that would help to prepare you for leadership?

4. What will you need to accomplish for them to see you as ready for that next level of responsibility?

Once you have your boss’s feedback, the hard work begins. Show them that you take their feedback seriously and are committed to improving. Be the best employee that you can be in your role, and work on the growth areas your boss has identified.

This will be hard, and you’ll most likely be stretched. However, it won’t be nearly as difficult as it is to move into a new organization where you need to learn the product and processes while you’re also trying to be a first-time people manager.

“Proving yourself in a new level role, with a new product, and a new team is a much steeper hill to climb.”

Having this feedback meeting and putting in the work will help you to gain new respect from your employer, and validate to the market that you are promotable. This attention and effort will help you when it comes time to make the next move in your career.

Product leadership roles are some of the most critical roles for a tech company, whether a startup or Fortune500. Even organizations like the infamous FAANG companies show no signs of stopping their recruitment of the world’s top product talent.

But we also know that there are simply fewer leadership roles than individual contributor roles. Not everyone who (a) is ready to be a leader or (b) wants to be a leader will have those opportunities available to them for many reasons. Crossing the chasm requires hard work and a persistent attitude, but it is possible.

Ask yourself why you want to be a leader? If it’s compensation-related, climbing a ladder is not necessary to be paid more or to be considered a valued employee. I have personally placed VPs of Product who earn $170–200K yet met individual contributor Product Managers who earn base salaries between $170-$220K. Figure out where and how you want to scale your career and lean into your strengths.

Want to grow your product network? Join our Product Management community on LinkedIn! Connect with other product professionals and gain valuable career insights from our product community.