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In general, the product manager is expected to become competent on the domain. This is, of course, different for every product. Media products are different from developer products, which are different from advertising‐technology products. Fortunately, in most cases, there is a wealth of easily accessible knowledge just an internet search away.

However, with certain products in very specialized domains (such as taxation, surgical devices, and regulatory compliance), there will usually be an in‐house resource available to all of the product managers who is an acknowledged expert on the domain. These people are sometimes called subject matter experts or domain experts, and this person is another important relationship for the product manager to establish. The PM is not expected to become as knowledgeable about the domain as these experts, but she does need to learn enough to engage and collaborate effectively.

In terms of broader tech industry knowledge, there are many industry analysts that provide analysis and insights.¹

Key to industry knowledge is identifying which industry trends are expected to be relevant to the PM's product. The first step is to identify the trends, and then there may be some education needed to understand what the trend or technology enables and what the capabilities and limitations may be.

Also included in industry knowledge is competitive analysis. Product marketing is a good resource to get started here, but the product manager will need to have a deeper understanding of the offerings, vision, and strategy of each of the major players in the landscape.

When I coach product managers on competitive analysis, I like to ask the PM to evaluate the top three to five players in the space and to write up a narrative comparing and contrasting the strengths and weaknesses of each player—highlighting opportunities.