What are the pros & cons of AI for product managers?

If you're a product manager, you very well know how much analysis and planning is required to successfully launch a product. There’s never enough time to do a detailed analysis of customer feedback, market trends, or survey reports.

But what if there is a solution to all this?

What if you can launch a product where every decision such as feature development, pricing, and customer engagement, is informed by real-time data and predictive insights?

No more relying on gut instinct or endless spreadsheets.

AI is changing the game for product managers, turning product management into a smarter, faster, and more strategic process.

But how exactly does AI fit into the world of product managers? And what are its advantages and pitfalls?

Sam and Jess are both product managers at the same company. Both have similar workloads, which includes handling customer feedback and planning product improvements. But they approach their work differently.

Sam

• Relies on traditional methods, spending hours reading customer reviews, analyzing data, and preparing reports

• Always in a rush to meet deadlines, usually has no time left for planning or collaborating

• Spends 20+ hours on repetitive tasks, leaving no time for personal life

Jess

• Uses AI tools such as ChatGPT and Unwrap.ai to summarize customer feedback, analyze data, and prepare reports

• Uses Gemini (Bard) to identify industry trends and collaborate with teams, saving an additional 16 hours a month

• Leaves work early& enjoys family time

You can see how AI is helping Jess work smarter and faster while Sam is drowning in work day by day. 😥

If you're a product manager, you can use specific AI tools to streamline your everyday tasks. AI can help make workflows easier.

How AI Can Help

• Faster customer data analysis: quickly analyzes customer feedback, social media trends, and competitor data

• Task automation: automates routine tasks like scheduling and reporting

• Early problem detection: predicts potential issues before they escalate.

• Dynamic pricing: adjusts prices in real time based on demand and competition

• Improved customer satisfaction: personalizes the customer experience by understanding behavior

• 24/7 customer support: chatbots provide immediate responses to common customer queries, eliminating the need for customers to wait for support team availability

Some of the best AI tools that you can use in product management include:

• Motion

• ProductBoard

• Pendo

• Zeda.IO

While AI can significantly influence how product managers create and develop products, it also has some drawbacks, such as biased data and a potential lack of creativity.

Challenges of Using AI

• Lack of creativity and human touch: AI tools may hinder unique product development

• Potential biases: training data may contain gender and other biases

• High implementation costs: developing, integrating, and maintaining AI tools can be expensive.

• Security and privacy risks: AI handles vast data, which can be misused if not managed properly

• Errors and inaccuracies: AI models may rely on outdated or unreliable information

As a product manager, you must consider certain key factors for effectively integrating AI in your role and your team.

• Identify the tasks that AI can automate or improve

• Choose the right AI tools that can integrate well with your workflows

• Do a cost-benefit analysis to ensure integration of AI is worth the effort

• Train your team on effective use of AI and make them feel supported

• Ensure that the data generated is free from biases and accurate

• Regularly review the performance of the AI tools and upgrade as required

AI is making product management easier and smarter. It's a vast topic that requires delving deep into its functionality and benefits.

To further understand how AI for product managers can help you, here are some additional resources: