In this Accredian Spotlight interview, we feature Bismoy Das, a Senior Business Analyst with over 13+ years of experience. He is currently associated with TCS. His insatiable quest for knowledge and upskilling led him to enroll in the Global Certificate in Product Management at Accredian.
Question 1: Which program & batch are you part of at Accredian & tell us more about your current work profile?
Bismoy: I am a part of the Global Certificate in Product Management, June 2021 Batch. Currently, I am working at TCS as a Senior Business Analyst.
The work entails an in-depth understanding of business analyst activities in the banking domain. I also am into managing different stakeholders, eliciting the requirement from stakeholders using different techniques like interview and brainstorming.
Question 2: Walk us through your career journey & what got you interested in Product Management?
Bismoy: I started my career as a Developer. Then I gradually moved into a Business Analyst position as I love interacting with customers and understanding their pain points.
I have keen interest in moving to Product Management as some of the roles and reasonability match with a Business Analyst role as it seems to be a natural progression. Finally, in 2021, I decided to take the plunge and join the GCPM program at Accredian, with the intent to enrich my knowledge in the PM field.
Question 3: What all Product Management concepts, frameworks & tools have you mastered in your program at Accredian so far?
Bismoy: I have learnt topics like the importance of a Product Manager, Design thinking, MVP, Agile concepts, UI and UX as well as what are the Engineering concepts a Product Manager must know.
I also got to understand about different PM frameworks like storytelling, the 5 whys, prioritisation.
Moreover, I learnt and practiced pivotal analytical tools used by PM like Hotjar, Google Analytics, Mix panel.
Question 4: What are some of the initial challenges when you got started on your Product Management journey and how did you overcome it?
Bismoy: Being a working professional, time management was one of the huge challenges that I faced but I used to ensure 100% attendance in classes.
I also faced difficulty in understanding various concepts, nevertheless I overcame the challenge by regular practice and referred to the starter kits. My mantra has been to learn PM Concepts, practice and Repeat.
Question 5: Who is your favorite faculty at Accredian and what did you learn from them the most?
Bismoy: Among the faculty, Sai Charan is my favourite. I loved the way he explained the concepts with examples and enhanced my analytical problem-solving skills. He has a unique teaching style and explains all concepts to the very core.
In fact, I am grateful to all the faculty members for making my PM learning journey so enriching and holistic.
Question 6: In your view, what is the goal of product management & how has it evolved in the last few years?
Bismoy: The main goal of Product Management is to create business value with the help of a product.
Product Management has evolved and grown in leaps and bounds in the last few years. The awareness and knowledge about product management fields has grown.
PM has become a major driver for product success in many companies.
Question 7: What are the current trends in Product Management that you are most excited about?
Bismoy: In the 21st century, Data is the new oil. I am more excited about combining the power of Product Management and Data Science and creating huge value toward the success of an organization.
Question 8: Which are some of the Product Management blogs, podcasts, communities & channels that you follow?
Bismoy: I mostly read anything that pops up related to Product Management, but I religiously follow blogs from Medium, Product Talk and SVPG Insights. The multiple YouTube channels that I follow are Product School, Product Gym and The Modern Product Manager.
Question 9: Please tell how your journey has been with Accredian so far and what are the elements that you liked.
Bismoy: Before joining I was a little nervous about Product Management as a new line for me and also Accredian as a choice for this course. Now, I can say that I do not regret choosing Accredian for PM.
What I love about Accredian is that the study material for PM is so well structured and designed properly. The entire course is virtual, so one can take it from their comfort place.
All the lecture videos are uploaded on time, right after the class ends. Support too is very good for there’s a dedicated academic research team at Accredian to address all the queries related to PM.
Really proud to be a part of the Accredian family. Thanks, Academic team of Accredian for your quick help and response.
Question 10: What is your advice to anyone wanting to start a career in Product Management?
Bismoy: My advice would be to learn the fundamentals of Product Management.
Product Management is a transforming industry and is creating a huge economic value.
This is a great career for someone looking to create great products that will make the life of many people simpler and happier.
If one is looking for a great Product management course Accredian GCPM is one of the best in the industry, as it has the most holistic course design and structure. The faculty is very knowledgeable and creative in teaching PM Concepts.
Hope you enjoyed reading this interview. If you want to read more such interesting student stories, check out Accredian Spotlight.
