Product managers can work in any business that makes, sells, or distributes a product. They require a unique set of skills, including familiarity with various digital tools, as they work in many areas.
A product manager can significantly contribute to product innovation when provided with the appropriate product management tools.
Now, product management tools are software applications that help develop and manage products throughout their life cycles. They can be used for these product-related tasks:
prototyping, defining a product roadmap, user journey mapping, customer research, product road mapping, feature prioritization, managing sprints, analyzing product data, process mapping, and managing product releases.
What are the features to look for in product management tools?
Product management is responsible for overseeing a specific product for a company.
A product manager must set up a strategy, create and share plans, make prototypes, help onboard customers, analyze user behavior, and gather customer feedback to guide a product from conception to completion.
A few features every Product Manager must look for in product management tools are
- Easy and simple-to-use Interface
- Scheduling/Tracking
- Project Management
- Resource Management
- Budgeting
- Data Visualizations
- Employee Database
- Support for Third-Party Plugins
- Road Mapping
- Customer Management
- Feedback Management
- Process Reporting
- Expense tracking
5 Product Management tools Every Product Manager must know in 2024
Product management tools are designed to tackle all product-related tasks such as prototyping, defining a product roadmap, user journey mapping, customer research, feature prioritization, analyzing product data, and managing product releases.
They are a set of software designed to help organizations plan a product and track and manage it to achieve defined goals within a given time frame. These tools help share and generate more ideas, improve collaboration and communication within the organization, and reduce product development time.
You can select the required tools depending on your organization’s requirements. Some product management tools can help you do it all under one roof. These software platforms are called all-in-one since they combine a wide range of features that help achieve greater work efficiency.
The global product management software market is projected to reach around 40,803.7 million USD by 2030, expanding at a CAGR of 6.4% from 2022–2030. The market’s growth is attributed to rising product demand, increasing demand for innovative products, need for cloud-based product management software, and the growing trend of digital transformation across enterprises.
Let’s quickly glance through the five best product management tools-
1. ProofHub
With its ease of use and highly customizable user interface, ProofHub is loved by teams and businesses worldwide. It provides features such as Gantt charts, table views, calendar views, Kanban boards, and integrations with tools widely used by development teams worldwide. The tools include FreshBooks, QuickBooks, Google Calendar, iCal, and Outlook.
2. Smartsheet
It is a widely used software platform for automating reporting and work management processes.
Its main features include an easy-to-use client portal, Agile methodology implementation, extensive budget management, Kanban boards, portfolio management, time and expense tracking, customizable workflows, and project templates.
3. Asana
It possesses some fantastic features that help gain control over the development team, irrespective of whether team members work from the comfort of their homes, from the office, or as a hybrid collective.
Some of its features include an extensive backlog as well as resource management. Asana helps record and track client feedback and supports scrum teams, status tracking, and time mapping, among other features. This tool comes with 24-hour customer support.
4. Workfront
Workfront is a work management software that can help track everything from resources to time. It helps record ideas, run brainstorming sessions, and document important project details.
Features include options for version control, organizing and storing various media files and documents, simple drag-and-drop features to easily navigate the interface, project tracking, automated reporting, and calendar management.
5. Airfocus
Airfocus is a modular product management software solution that integrates easily with popular tools such as Asana, Trello, and Jira.
Its main features include road mapping, collaboration, integrations, and templates.
Product management tools are grouped based on product strategy and road mapping, analytics, customer feedback and surveys, design and wireframing, user experience testing, user onboarding, collaboration and productivity, and project and task management.
As no software tool is all-inclusive, one must choose a product management tool that best suits the organization’s needs. With the right tools, one can build products from ideation to launch.
Check out our blog page to help you build your career in product management.
