Nabeel MirzaSenior Director Strategic Programme Management| AfinitiDublin, Ireland
Consider a scenario in which a software product is to be deployed in a foreign country with a different spoken language.
The best case answer will be to have a bit of both (language and product knowledge). However if you have to lean more towards one, then what do you consider more important, whether it will be a PM with a local language proficiency or a PM who has command over the product to be deployed? Saving Changes...
Senior Projects Manager | Field & Marten AssociatesNew Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
I fully agree with Kiron ... I think language is cruicial in such situations Saving Changes...
Ian MihaliProject Manager | NewCon Pro ServicesMulvane, Ks, United States
I would think that this would have to depend on what this software program is designed to do. If extensive interaction with the local market then a local PM would be of more benefit in the long run, provided that he is afforded extensive knowledge and training on the product. After all, training someone local would have to be the goal. Saving Changes...
Based on the described situation, I would suggest foreign language should be a priority.
As long as the individual has got some software deployment / relevant industry experience, it should be much easier for them to learn the specific software product, rather than learning a new language and becoming fluent in it within a short period of time.
The above is based on the assumption that customers can not communicate in English or other language your organisation's employees are fluent in. Saving Changes...
Nabeel MirzaSenior Director Strategic Programme Management| AfinitiDublin, Ireland
Thank you for the responses. Kiron, I was referring to the Project Manager and to further elaborate let's take an example of deploying his/her own company's developed product (but the PM not being Product Manager in particular)...
Keeping the great comments that are received, let's consider a software PM in general as well. Saving Changes...
Nabeel MirzaSenior Director Strategic Programme Management| AfinitiDublin, Ireland
Thank you all for your responses, let me share my personal experience as well.
I have been working in EU region for project implementation and have deployed projects in countries like Germany, France, Italy, Hungary and Portugal. Based on the client's geographical location sometimes it was easier to communicate with their resources in English and at other times we have used an interpreter (from our office or a client's resource good in English).
To me, good product knowledge made things easier as we then figured out ways to better communicate the tasks/requirements to client as and when necessary. Like in one of the bigger sessions we had parallel slides in local language for people to understand better, even while I was presenting in English. It was challenging (and a bit of fun) in pointing to the right spots on the local language slide which was being projected to the audience. One of the extreme scenario was when I couldn't understand a single word of local language and the client's resource had similar issues with English but we managed to solve the issue even by pointing to the monitor (this cannot always be the case though).
As I mentioned in the beginning of the discussion that a bit both (language and product knowledge) will be the best case scenario but if we had to choose one due to time restriction etc. then having product knowledge tend to be more fruitful in our case. Saving Changes...
Jorge Enrique DelgadoInstructor, Program Coordinator| University of PittsburghPa, United States
Context is very important. Countries where colonization was English might not represent a challenge language-wide. However, there are more non-speaking people in the ground levels around the world or even at the management level/government working for a project. Expertise on the product/service is a must. However, sometimes and depending on how sophisticated a product is, finding matching interpreters is not easy. I will also connect language to culture. I remember an experience of a US company trying to sell TV channels' programming in Latin America. The company didn't understand that doing business in some regions requires more than having a good product, probably a good customer service, and a good price. Their sales never went up. In summary, language + culture-knowledge and product knowledge are equally important. Saving Changes...
Stéphane ParentSelf Employed / Semi-retired| Leader MakerPrince Edward Island, Canada
Why is product knowledge so crucial for a project manager? I managed many projects successfully with little to no knowledge of the product. Of course, I had a product manager or product owner working alongside with me to cover that angle. I believe a lack of product knowledge can be beneficial for project managers. It allows them to ask the "stupid questions", play devil's advocate and get people to make less presumptions.
As a fluently bilingual person, with a conversational proficiency in a third language, I can vouch that language is of tremendous importance. It is not just about communicating effectively. It is about understanding and experiencing the culture attached to the language. How can you build trust if you have to go through an interpreter? Saving Changes...
Nabeel MirzaSenior Director Strategic Programme Management| AfinitiDublin, Ireland
Well Stephane, haven't you yourselves mentioned the importance of product knowledge whether you owned it yourselves or through another person (product manager/owner)...
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1 reply by Stéphane Parent
Aug 15, 2019 9:12 PM
Stéphane Parent
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If I had to choose between a product manager/owner and speaking the native language, I would always choose the native language.
Saving Changes...
Stéphane ParentSelf Employed / Semi-retired| Leader MakerPrince Edward Island, Canada
Aug 15, 2019 4:13 PM
Replying to Nabeel Mirza
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Well Stephane, haven't you yourselves mentioned the importance of product knowledge whether you owned it yourselves or through another person (product manager/owner)...
If I had to choose between a product manager/owner and speaking the native language, I would always choose the native language. Saving Changes...
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