Top 6 AI Product Management Skills for Success in 2024

Last updated by Nahush Gowda on Sep 02, 2024 at 12:05 PM | Reading time: 6 minutes

What Does an AI Product Manager Do?

One might wonder, “Isn’t it just product manager, but with AI?”. However, an AI product manager goes beyond the traditional product manager and must have the technical acumen to understand the intricacies of AI.

The value of AI Product Manager skills comes in two places: one where companies are using AI to develop their products efficiently and use it in their operations; and second where companies are building AI-based products for the market.

Regardless, these are the essential AI product manager skills that one must have.

Also read: 8 Ways AI Is Changing the Workplace

1. Fundamentals of AI and ML

Having the knowledge of the fundamentals of AI and ML is an integral part of AI product manager skills. This involves more than just surface-level knowledge. An AI product manager must understand key concepts like model training, model deployment, data science, and Natural Language Processing (NLP).

Understanding NLP is especially important when creating an AI product that is user-facing like chatbots, virtual assistants, or generative AI tools. Proficiency in these core areas allows the AI product manager to effectively bridge the gap between technical and non-technical teams.

For instance, an AI Product Manager at a healthcare startup might need to evaluate the performance of a machine learning model designed to predict patient readmission rates. They would need to understand the model's accuracy metrics, potential biases in the training data, and how it integrates with existing hospital systems.

2. AI Product Manager Skills in Navigating the AI Ethics

The use and adoption of AI came too quickly for governing bodies to properly set standards and rules around its usage. However, governments and industries are moving towards setting certain standards regarding the usage of AI.
Recent controversies with Adobe and Anthropic with regard to using others’ data for training AI models have shed light on AI ethics.

This is why AI product manager skills in understanding and navigating AI ethics are so crucial.
This focus on ethics is not only important for public trust but to complying with the regulatory requirements, which can be very complex to deal with.

3. The AI Product Manager Skills in Product Lifecycle Management

This is the non-technical side of AI product managers which deals more with the “business side” of product development and management. Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) is crucial to any product business, and even more so when it concerns AI products.

AI-based products often call for continuous re-iteration, updates, and retraining to stay efficient and relevant. This generally means that an AI Product Manager should be able to assess and manage the lifecycle of a product from its inception to creation and updation.

AI product manager is expected to anticipate problems like model deterioration, and the need to always collect new data. AI product managers must also have the vision to manage the scalability of AI solutions.

4. Programming is Also an Important Part of AI Product Manager Skills

While AI Product Managers aren't typically writing code themselves (that’s the job of software engineers, duh!), having programming skills is a valuable asset. Key AI Product Manager skills in this area include:

Python: The lingua franca of AI and machine learning.
R: Useful for statistical analysis and data visualization
SQL: Essential for working with databases and big data
Cloud Infrastructure: Familiarity with platforms like AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure
Big Data Processing Tools: Knowledge of tools like Hadoop or Spark

These skills enable AI Product Managers to better communicate with development teams, understand technical limitations and possibilities, and make more informed decisions about AI product development.

5. AI Product Manager Skills in Leading Teams

One of the most critical AI Product Manager skills is the ability to lead and coordinate diverse teams. AI projects often involve data scientists, software engineers, UX designers, and business stakeholders. These are some of the important soft skills that an AI product manager must have.

Communication: Translating technical concepts for non-technical stakeholders and business requirements for technical teams.
Collaboration: Creating an environment where diverse teams can work together effectively.
Managing expectations: Balancing the possibilities of AI with practical constraints and timelines.
Conflict resolution: When multiple, cross-functional teams are involved in a project, there are bound to be conflicts. AI product managers must be able to resolve the conflicts and get to amicable resolutions.

Team leadership is an important AI product manager skill

Apart from these crucial leadership skills, an AI product manager must have soft skills like emotional intelligence, flexibility and adaptability, interpersonal skills, time management, and prioritization.

6. Project Management Skills

The foundational pillar of project management is equally essential to AI product manager skills. They must be proficient in methodologies like Agile and Scrum, which are particularly well-suited to the iterative nature of AI development. Managing sprints, tracking progress, and adjusting priorities based on real-time data are all part of the job.

Moreover, AI product managers need to be adept at risk management. This includes identifying potential risks in AI deployment, such as technical failures, security vulnerabilities, and compliance issues. By taking a proactive approach to risk assessment and mitigation, AI product managers can ensure that their projects stay on track and deliver value.

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FAQs: Essential AI Product Manager Skills

Q1. What are the key AI Product Manager skills required in 2024?

Essential skills for AI product managers include understanding AI/ML fundamentals, AI ethics, product lifecycle management, programming, team leadership, and project management. Mastering these skills is crucial for excelling in AI-driven roles.

Q2. Why is knowledge of AI/ML fundamentals important for AI Product Managers?

A deep understanding of AI/ML fundamentals is crucial for AI Product Managers to effectively communicate with technical teams and ensure successful product integration.

Q3. Do AI Product Managers need programming skills?

Yes, programming is an essential part of AI Product Manager skills, enabling better decision-making and communication with technical teams. Knowledge of languages like Python and cloud infrastructure is particularly useful.

Q4. What non-technical skills are important for AI Product Managers?

Leadership and project management are crucial non-technical AI Product Manager skills. These skills help in managing cross-functional teams and ensuring the timely delivery of AI projects.

Q5. How does project management fit into AI Product Manager skills?

Project management, including Agile and Scrum methodologies, is essential for overseeing AI projects. It ensures that AI Product Managers can effectively manage risks and deliver products that meet business goals.

Related reads:

AUTHOR

Nahush Gowda

AI Product Management

AI Product Manager

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Top 6 AI Product Management Skills for Success in 2024

Contents

Nahush Gowda

Attend our Free Webinar on How to Nail Your Next Technical Interview

How to Nail your next Technical Interview

Worried About Failing Tech Interviews?

Tools to Enhance Full Stack Development with AI

The Future of Data Science: Emerging Trends and Opportunities

Data-Driven Decision Making: Your Roadmap to Business Success

The Business Impact of Machine Learning: Real-world Case Studies

What is OpenAI? Everything You Need to Know

Mock Interviews for Generative AI: Essential Practice to Land Top AI Roles

Top Python Scripting Interview Questions and Answers You Should Practice

Complex SQL Interview Questions for Interview Preparation

Zoox Software Engineer Interview Questions to Crack Your Tech Interview

Rubrik Interview Questions for Software Engineers

Top Advanced SQL Interview Questions and Answers

Twilio Interview Questions

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