The course of healthcare development across the world has been revolutionized. Today, healthcare is as much about products as it is about people. Products and services such as precision medicine, robotics, telehealth, health insurance, drug development are driving the growth and reach of healthcare.
In this process of creating ‘products’ revolutionizing the healthcare industry, Product Management is playing an important role. Product Managers are responsible for understanding user requirements and therefore development and successful launch of products solving customer pain points.
For instance, as a Health Product Manager working for an insurance product, you will be responsible for:
- Conducting market and user research
- Understanding user pain points
- Analysing the viability of different insurance products and features
- Roadmapping a product
- Pricing the product right
- Working closely with development, designing, marketing, and launch teams
- Tracking product success
To understand more about the role of Product Management in the world of Healthcare, continue reading.
Why Healthcare Needs Product Managers?
1. Validating Market Opportunity
Product Managers play little to no role in product development. In the case of the pharmaceutical industry, it is the sole responsibility of R&D team to develop new drugs. However, no analysis or validation of the market opportunity and user demand can lead to hampered results.
A Product Manager ideally will be responsible for analyzing the target market for a product and eventually developing, pricing, and marketing the product to get robust sales.
Also read: 4 Trends Driving Demand for Product Managers in Automotive Industry
2. Focus on User Convenience
Healthcare Product Managers have been playing a crucial role in identifying the gaps in the healthcare-related needs of people.
For instance, buying health insurance ideally involved an insurance agent coming to your house for document-related formalities, setting up a health check-up, and payments via cheque/cash. However, today buying health insurance is as easy as buying groceries online!
Product Managers are responsible for understanding these user pain points and solving them through products/features.
3. Role of PMs in Healthtech
From smartwatches that give your oxygen saturation levels to digital consultations, innovative Product Managers and brands have come up with disruptive products during this pandemic making the lives of all easier.
You now don’t need an oximeter, a blood pressure monitor, or more to keep a check on your health. Just own a smartwatch, and everything’s on your wrist, literally!
Now, whether the smartwatch should have a circular dial or a rectangle one? How should be its navigation? What should be its battery life? How much should it be priced?
While researchers, engineers, and developers have played a crucial role in developing these products; it is the Product Managers who are responsible for addressing these concerns and building great products.
These were the top three use cases of Product Management in Healthcare. If you’re someone looking to build a career in Product Management and have an interest in the healthcare industry per se or the applications of technology in healthcare, a Product Manager role can be the perfect fit for you!