text: The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them. – Albert Einstein
  The first lesson in turning ideas into market-winning products is this:
  Innovation requires new thinking and new ways of working.
  This course provides you with many concepts and practices to help with both, and aid you in becoming a better innovator.
  What to Expect
  This is an 8-lesson course and you will receive a lesson by email every few days. The material for this course started as a professional workshop, originally designed for organizations to bring them up to speed on the core ideas of product development, management, and innovation. Clients paid thousands of dollars for these workshops. I have selected the essential gems from the training, updated, and reformatted the information into lessons, and am providing it at no cost to you.
  The course covers the creation and life of products people want, need and will buy. This is essential information for people who are:
  Moving into product development or management roles within their organization and need to understand how products are developed and managed.
  Leading a team or organization and need to create a culture of innovation.
  Developing a new career path integrating product development and management concepts.
  Deepening their knowledge and understanding of product innovation.
  The challenging field of product development, management, and innovation is filled with professionals who are at times analytical, creative, and passionate – like you. I’m glad you’re reading this and trust you will find it empowers you to reach your objectives.
  Before learning how to turn ideas into market-winning products, see some of the famous people who already did.
  What’s in a name?
  This course is about what product developers, managers, and innovators do. There are many titles related to this work. One survey found a wide range (from “The Study of Product Team Performance, 2013, by Actuation Consulting):
  Product Manager
  Business Analyst
  Development Manager
  Engineer
  Product Manager
  Product Marketing Manager
  Product Owner
  Program Manager
  Project Manager
  User Experience Professional
  And there were many more identified as “other” in the survey – people whose roles across an organization impact product development.
  Some of the famous business people with prior careers in product development, management, and innovation, include:
  Last 7 Proctor & Gamble CEOs
  Steve Ballmer, CEO Microsoft
  Marissa Mayer, CEO Yahoo
  David Filo, co-founder of Yahoo!
  Scott Cook, founder Intuit
  Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Netscape
  Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon
  Steve Case, co-founder of AOL
  Michael Dell, founder of Dell
  Larry Ellison, co-founder of Oracle
  Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft
  Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple
  Pierre Omidyar, founder of eBay
  Larry Page, co-founder of Google
  David Packard, co-founder of HP
  Fred Smith, founder of FedEx
  Of course, these are just a few of the famous leaders of organizations who were product managers. More important are the millions of people in product management roles today that help their organizations create value for customers and drive success for the organization and themselves.
  Number 4 – Not Shabby
  Everyone knows being #1 is best, but in this case, being #4 is more evidence for the importance of product development, management, and innovation. In the CBS Money Watch article “10 Most Value Corporate Jobs” Product Management and Product Development were identified as the fourth and fifth most important jobs. Only the CEO, Senior Executive, and General Manager ranked higher. From the article…
  Number 4 – Product manager . “I know a lot of you think engineers are responsible for inventing great products that beat the competition. They’re not. As venture capitalist and former Intel exec Bill Davidow wrote in his seminal book ‘Marketing High Technology,’ ‘Marketing must invent complete products and drive them to commanding positions in defensible market segments.’ Product marketers rarely get the credit they deserve.”
  Number 5 – Product developer . “No matter how good marketing is, you can’t have innovative products without innovative product development people. You don’t need a management title to be looked upon with awe if you’re a top product designer. And yes, that idyllic perception is usually deserved.”
  Closing Thoughts
  The late Peter Drucker, widely considered the most influential business thinker yet, shared that “business has only two functions – marketing and innovation.” Innovation is fundamental to business and personal success. With the right knowledge and drive, anyone can reach their highest goals with wild success. Keep learning and you will reach yours.
  The next lesson will arrive by email in a few days and will provide the foundation for product development, management, and innovation.
  Keep innovating,
  –Chad
  The Everyday Innovator™
  P.S. Don’t want to wait for the next lesson? If you are eager to learn more about product development, management, and innovation and how ideas are turned into market-winning products, checkout the companion book on Amazon and be sure to read the numerous 5-star
  – return to lesson index-
  Primary Sidebar
  About Me
  I'm Chad McAllister, the host of The Everyday Innovator™ podcast, author of Turning Ideas into Market-Winning Products, and founder of Product Mastery Now. I am aTop 40 Product Management Influencer and a Top 10 Innovation Blogger.
  I help product managers become Product Masters. I have trained product managers at Microsoft, Kind Snacks, Level 3, Kohler, John Deere, J.D. Power, GHX, FedEx, Cummins, Compassion, Clorox, Cisco, Mastercard, SAIC, Thomson Reuters, Xerox, and many others.
  Product Masters create more successful products, gain influence throughout their organizations, and accelerate their careers. See how, with the Product Mastery Roadmap.
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  HOW WE HELP PRODUCT MANAGERS
  We help product managers become product masters - influential drivers of product strategy - so they can consistently create products customers love without getting overwhelmed putting out fires. Learn about it in the Product Mastery Roadmap.
  FOUNDER
  The primary responsibilities for an organization are product management and innovation. They deliver value to customers. They're also exciting responsibilities for those properly equipped. That is my job - equipping product managers and innovators.