Which customer? I have 100,000+
The success of agile approaches depends on how close you are to your customer. This is an indisputable fact. So, if you’re an independent software vendor (ISV) that is producing commercial software products (like me at Pacific Edge Software), then how do I get my customer "on the team?" It’s likely not possible or practical and this is where effective Product Management kicks in. The Product Manager (PM) is the proxy for the customer on an agile team in an ISV or for that matter any company building products for customers that they are at least once removed from. Being on an agile team will change how a product manager elaborates and drives their product to market. And I've had some interesting challenges on retooling classically schooled PMs (some of them didn't make required adjustments and didn't survive the organizational change). While the roles and responsibilities are the same, the behavior patterns must change. The PM is integrated into the development tea...