2022 was marked by a dynamic corporate climate and volatile market conditions. The impact of the pandemic continues as we all become more and more familiar with unpredictability, remote work, and economic uncertainty.  A constantly changing market and increased competition are driving businesses to develop and implement product management solutions to meet increasing challenges and customer needs.

Businesses are rapidly adopting technology to aid in developing customer-centric products that provide more value with increased functionality. Product management is becoming more important as one of the pillars of product design, development, and strategic market placement. To remain ahead of the competition, companies must take advantage of the opportunities that lie ahead in 2023. This article provides a roadmap for product organizations through a comprehensive list of top product management trends for 2023. 

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• More Product Managers with Cross-Functional Skills

As product designs become more customer-centric, businesses will require more product managers with cross-functional skills who can work with dynamic teams across various business departments. These multi-talented product managers can function in any phase of product design and development – from initial concepts to product design, engineering, marketing, and product operations or iterations. 

With the increase in e-commerce and online booking and sales, companies need to keep up with the growing need for agile product development and digital product growth. The increasing role of product managers has created a scarcity of these professionals. Online product management bootcamps are a fast-track way for aspiring product managers to equip themselves with the most in-demand skills in product management, interactive technology, product design concepts, and real-world product management tools. 

• Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning are Here to Stay

Artificial intelligence is gaining traction in all aspects of business, and product management is no exception. Product managers can use AI to transform internal processes, enhance customer experience with the product, and build customer-oriented product designs.

The concept of AI product management (APM) is gaining popularity with each passing day. APM includes the core functionality of both artificial intelligence and machine learning to gather market and customer data, evaluate patterns, and recommend improvements and iterations in product design and functionality. For this purpose, AI product managers should have hands-on experience using AI tools, handling data, and interpreting models.

AI-powered learning management systems (LMS) and customer-facing AI features like chatbots empower product managers to comprehend customer expectations, sense changing market trends, and design products targeted to meet customer needs. The use of AI-powered software and machine learning tools is expected to increase in the coming years. Therefore, product managers need to get themselves acquainted with common tools and learn how to create AI-assisted competitive intelligence programs. 

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• Profound Use of Extended Reality (XR)

In a fast-growing business world, product solutions need to be inventive, forward-looking, and customer-oriented. User interface and experience have become driving factors for designing and engineering customer-centric products. 

Extended reality has been around for the past few years and is here to stay. It uses immersive technology to merge virtual product twins with real-world experience in a small metaverse. XR uses augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR) to use virtual environments for designing and testing products in a simulated reality. XR facilitates product designs for the aerospace industry, medical instruments, vehicle manufacturing and testing, and real-time surgery assistance. The technology continues to mature with the inclusion of cloud-based metaverses available to product managers over the internet. 

• Digital Transformation Becomes a Necessity

Another key trend in 2023 will be digital transformation, as organizations attempt to shift away from a conventional paradigm wherein products are designed, manufactured, and sold in a brick-and-mortar setup. Digital transformation will assist product organizations in adapting to the increasing trend of online buying. While 91% of organizations are already engaged in some form of digitalization, digital transformation will require large investments in IT infrastructure, intelligent product management software, and e-commerce apps, as well as a shift in teamwork from conventional business processes to paperless operations. 

• More Subscription-Based Models

In 2023, we will see a rise in subscription-based service models. From software and cloud-based subscriptions to video games, entertainment, and food packages, subscription-based models have been a huge hit among customers worldwide. Consumers like the affordable cost of monthly use for various products instead of going into year-long contracts. Moreover, businesses can get lucrative benefits through recurring earnings generated by monthly or quarterly payments.

For product managers, customer experience is the priority. In 2023, more product managers will consider incorporating product features that meet consumer expectations and contribute to sustainable income and profitability. However, subscription-based products must provide more value to customers to prevent them from quitting before businesses have gained enough return on investment. Moreover, calculating the accurate lifetime value of customers is crucial to increase ROI. For this purpose, product managers must consistently work for product improvements, iterations, and re-engineering. 

• Cloud-Based Product Roadmaps

As the world shifts from conventional client-server models to cloud computing and remote accessibility, manual product roadmaps are expected to become obsolete. The conventional method of creating product roadmaps in the form of documents has now transformed into an integrated platform for rapid data-sharing. Using cloud-based technology, product managers can share a centralized workspace for designing products, suggesting improvements, tracking progress, and sharing roadmaps. 

The entire product strategy is available over the cloud. Product managers can make changes through authorized access from remote locations. You can provide stakeholders with a live and up-to-date product roadmap through centralized platforms.

• Increased Adoption of Agile Development 

To ensure a great customer experience, product organizations are expected to increase the adoption of agile development instead of traditional waterfall product development cycles. Breaking down the product development processes into sprints will help develop quick iterations and increase the productivity of product managers and teams. Using this methodology, product teams can develop parallel working products and get instant customer feedback to make modifications accordingly. 

Final Thoughts

As technology continues evolving, product design, development, and management techniques are expected to undergo massive changes. Adopting the latest trends and equipping your organization with the latest AI-powered tools will help your business gain greater recognition and design products that meet customer expectations and market demand. We hope the above list will help you prepare for the new challenges 2023 will bring and use technology to build innovative and inspiring products.