So Richard tell us more….....[ed]
Product Manager – All Categories
What’s Involved?
I have a very diverse role at Mountain Equipment. Best summed up as being pulled in all sorts of directions by all sorts of people – from technologists, designers, sponsored athletes, marketing departments, journalists and factories.
Having spoken with other product managers, there rarely seems to be one Product Manager the same as another, every company seems to have it’s own take on what they should do and what they should be responsible for. Some companies have lots, others have very few, some don’t have any!
For myself being PM means a lot of things. It means developing range briefs and product strategies, it means being aware of the market place, the needs of differing territories throughout Europe and the world and competing brands in each, it means being aware of the mountaineering and outdoor world, its history, the trends and who’s who from sponsored athletes to weekend warriors and it means understanding the needs of our customers, from the retail buyer to the end consumer. Ultimately it means ensuring that our range of products is, to coin that now over used phrase, fit for purpose. That our products meet and indeed surpass the expectations of our customers, that they appeal to the right customers and that they fit with the requirements of our brands strategic direction and are commercially sound.
Then on top of that, it means being responsible for the successful communication of our product strategy to the outside world. That can include everything from writing training manuals for retail staff, writing copy for workbooks and the website, to writing press releases and giving presentations be it to journalists or distributors.
The good and the not so good
The best part about what I now do is that what I do in my work time and spare time is so closely linked. I have the pleasure to meet some great and interesting people on a regular basis and I genuinely get pleasure from seeing people using our kit. It is also singularly the worst part of my job; separating work from spare time can be hard and believe it or not there are times when I like nothing more than ditching nearly everything and getting out into the mountains for the simplicity of it, we can all get a little too wrapped up in gadgets, gizmo’s and gear from time to time. Fell running is great for that since there is hardly any kit involved.
Some of my job can be very hand’s on (the enjoyable part) and some of it can involve hours of analysing and compiling spreadsheets (the very necessary but not so enjoyable part!).
So how did I end up in this role?
Well I have absolutely no qualifications in product design, engineering or manufacturing. In fact the closest hint of a qualification to the field I now work in, is an A-Level in Design & Technology.
I graduated from Leeds University in 1999, with a degree in Broadcasting & Politics and an eye-opening short stint with the BBC in Norwich. I went to work in my local outdoor shop, to earn some spare cash whilst I looked for a proper job and it spiralled out of control from there.
I joined Mountain Equipment in 2004 as a product trainer. After little more than a year working as a Product Trainer I was given my first product development project, a steep learning curve in Glove Development and Design followed (aided by none other than Alpkit’s Nick Smith!) and 6 months after this I became Product Manager. I have learnt a lot on the job, it has not always been easy but having good colleagues makes the world of difference.
Prior to this I had spent some 5 years working for a not so known, other than in the industry, little independent outdoor retailer. One whose former employee’s have gone on to become European sales directors for big North American brands, sales reps and now product managers. Not a bad dynasty.
Those five years in outdoor retail taught me a lot. Living and climbing with my gear obsessed colleagues I did literally live and breathe outdoor life and gear, much to the annoyance of anyone who didn’t actually care. Some knew far more about kit than I did, more than is arguably healthy. And I climbed a lot, not ever to a world-beating standard but in the UK and further afield, trad, sport, Scottish winters and Alpine Summers. Now that I look back, it is clear that this came off the back of a life already spent being obsessively interested in mountains. An obsession I’ve had since my Dad first dragged me out on Sunday afternoon walks in Snowdonia as a child too small to sensibly carry his rucksack, although I tried.
And those, I guess are my formal qualifications. A passionate interest in the outdoors, across a multitude of disciplines from climbing to hill walking from fell running to ski touring, plenty of experience working in outdoor retail and a half decent education.
Other than that, it’s about manoeuvring yourself, since little in life is luck; it is about being in the right place at the right time and having the ability to react. I was fortunate enough to get myself into a position to be noticed and got approached by Mountain Equipment.
In addition to those qualifications there are, I personally believe, some other essential Do’s and Don’ts.
Do:
Voice your opinion
Have a healthy dose of natural cynicism
Have a healthy does of natural scepticism
Have a willingness to be self-critical
Don’t:
Be arrogant, but be proud of what you know and believe
Be elitist – everyone and everything exists for a reason so try and understand why.
Expect to get it all right, all of the time. If you do you’re not trying hard enough.
Would I do anything Differently?
Other than going climbing more, probably not.
