1. Software Product Management Association Origination and Mission
Product Managers ensure that products achieve specific objectives in an ever changing market and competitive landscape.
SPdMA’s mission is to enable Software Product Managers to build collaborative relationships in order to exchange information for the promotion, evolution, and leverage of product management in the pursuit of creating killer software products.
Software Product Management Association Origination and Mission
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March 31, 2009

2. Inspiration
In 2008 participation in IxDA and an employer sponsored Center of Excellence inspired Beja Springer to ask “can Software Product Managers do even better at identifying and directing killer products with this kind of support of our own?”
IxDA (Interaction Design Association) is an organization that provides discussion and insights into the best practices for Interaction Design. Additionally, they build face-to-face relationships, foster a vibrant community, and empower practitioners to evangelize Interaction Design. Their local groups are self-organized and member-driven.
A Center of Excellence’s mission is to make its members “excellent” in a particular role. One pilot center included committees on defining and testing excellence, training, role mission/value, information sharing, and community building.
Thus, the creation of the Software Product Management Association in March 2009 in NYC.
Software Product Management Association (NYC) on Meetup
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3. Why a Software Product Management Association?
Fundamentally we believe that face-to-face meetings are better at exchanging rich ideas and fostering collaborative relationships in comparison to online-only conversations. Additionally, we want to eliminate barriers, such as high membership fees and exclusive membership, in order to encourage participants with different levels of experience and different backgrounds related to the ideation, roll-out, and management of software products. We believe that the number of people and amount of innovation involved in software products could support a group focused specifically on Software Product Management. This will make it easier to keep the topics relevant and understandable to all participants. We are 100% focused on our members and community – we don’t sell anything, we’re not a business. This is to minimize the association’s bias and also keep ourselves open to all ideas, including “disruptive” ones. We will encourage collaboration with for-profit enterprises. Finally, though the NYC group is young we’re already naming it part of an “Association” in order to visualize its future connection with other groups around the country, and hopefully the world. The realized future will evolve through the growth, imagination, and participation of its members.
Software Product Management Association (NYC) on Meetup
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4. Sample Event Topics Product Managers+
Value proposition of Product Management
Interpersonal skills and attitudes
Definition of “excellence”
Career paths and job trends
Hiring and managing Product Managers
Research & Financials
Managing the feasibility study phase
Market research
Financial statements and projections
Pricing and licensing
Technical feasibility
Product Management
New product development (NPD) process
Making a product pitch
Product vision statements and roadmaps
Prioritizing features and using backlogs
Business domain knowledge – what’s relevant, what’s not
Working with Business Intelligence - designing meaningful metrics to generate ideas and evaluate your product
Off-shoring product management
Certification – Does it matter? What’s recommended and why?
Software Design
Effective techniques, teams, and processes
Requirements tools
Workshops on storyboards, personas, scenarios, business rules, etc.
Working with UI Designers and Business Analysts
Software Development
Agile – what it is and how it affects Product Managers
Emerging software technologies
Off-shoring development and how it affects product management
Software Product Management Association (NYC) on Meetup
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5. Software Product Management Association
Vision: The largest community of Software Product Managers that meet face-to-face.
Mission: To enable Software Product Managers to build collaborative relationships in order to exchange information for the promotion, evolution, and leverage of product management in the pursuit of creating killer software products.
Strategy – focus on our local group first:
(1) pilot the community in NYC
(2) grow and evolve the NYC group – be Member-driven and Member-focused
(3) form a steering committee in NYC
(4) connect with non-NYC product managers and groups
(5) update the name, vision, mission, and strategy of the association (or merge with another)
Tactics:
(1) leverage existing resources and tools
(2) keep costs to a minimum (non-profit)
Norms:
(1) the community is free to join (though events may charge a nominal fee for expenses)
(2) open to everyone interested, including non-Product Managers
(3) open to all ideas
(4) self-organized, member-driven, and open to volunteers!
(5) members can give non-expert but well researched or real-world presentations
(6) “experts”, like consultants and for-profit businesses, may present for members’ education and benefit
Software Product Management Association (NYC) on Meetup
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6. Sample Committees Marketing and Messaging Member Events
Language on the NYC Meetup group (home page, welcome messages, etc.)
Association messaging, logo, and site
Member Events
Basic process and operations for speaking events
Finding and preparing speakers
Running events
Membership (Local)
Sites to post (advertise) the local group, like LinkedIn and Craigslist
Spreading the word to other Software Product Managers
Member feedback
Member Resources
Recommended links, books, clubs, associations, and conferences
Association Development
Reach out to other Product Management groups and associations
Meet with IxDA to gain tips on committees and the association
Early learning on becoming a non-profit
Financials
Donations, sponsorships, and event fees
Budgets
Software Product Management Association (NYC) on Meetup
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