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Learn how to choose the best product management certification and select a certification that fits your needs. Plus, we share a template you can use to ask your employer to sponsor your professional development.
Learning never ends for product managers. Product managers are constantly learning about their customers, markets, and competitors so you can build products your customers want. You should stay on top of industry trends and monitor evolving product management methodologies and tools to help you stay efficient and effective. You need to maintain and develop your product management skills to keep delivering value to your company and your customers every year.
Whether you’re a seasoned product manager or a complete newbie, choosing the right product management certification can help you build your skills and advance your career. We’ll help you choose the best product management certification for you.
Ready to start your professional development journey? Read on or jump to any section in this guide:
- Is a product management certification worth it?
- What is the best product management certification?
- What to look for in a product management certification
- How to choose the right certification for you
- How to ask your employer to sponsor your professional development
Is a product management certification worth it?
No matter where you are in your career, a product management certification can help you achieve your career goals. Professionals transitioning to product from other fields like project management, product development, or marketing can quickly learn product management best practices and apply their skills to a new field. Recent graduates can learn fundamental principles and bolster their resumes. Current product managers can refresh on key concepts that may have changed since their last training.
Courses and certifications are meant to supplement hands-on experience. However, applying what you learn in a certification to your job can help you improve your team’s efficiency and your effectiveness as a product manager.
Some benefits of certifications for product managers include:
- Learn Fundamental Principles: All product managers should know fundamental product strategy, product management methodologies, product positioning, and the differences between product management and product marketing.
- Develop Key Skills: Certification courses can help you hone the skills you’ll use in your product management job. Tasks like competitive research, product roadmapping, and feature prioritization are essential for any product manager. In an interactive class setting (even in online courses), you can learn directly from an expert instructor or connect with other product leaders for personalized support and recommendations.
- Expose Yourself to New and Changing Perspectives: Methodologies and best practices evolve. What you learn in a course or certification may change in just a few short years. Completing and updating certifications ensures that you are trained in the latest methodologies.
- Pursue Professional Development: When you take live (in-person or online) certification courses, you can connect with other professionals in real time. You may also gain access to a peer networking group like Pragmatic’s Alumni Community so you can connect with past attendees and share insights after your course ends.
What is the best product management certification?
A product manager can take many approaches and paths in their career. It’s hard to find two product managers with the same daily responsibilities or career goals. When you choose a product management certification, you should consider your learning objectives, the course curriculum, instructors, industry reputation, cost, and learning formats.
You might also find certification paths tailored to product management methodologies like Scrum, Agile, or SAFe. Some certifications may have a proprietary approach (such as our Pragmatic Framework) that you can apply to any product management methodology.
- Product management certifications offered by universities. Many colleges and universities offer professional certifications through continuing education programs. Some are specific to product management, and some may be more general to product or business. These courses are often offered online and may be live or asynchronous. These might take a long time to complete, but you will receive a certification from a recognized institution.
Examples: Cornell, Purdue, Kellogg School of Management, Stanford - Product management certifications offered by online learning platforms. Many online platforms offer courses and certification programs that are often online and self-paced. These courses might be free or low-cost, making them more accessible to new product professionals. However, these courses may lack the quality and comprehensive depth of certifications from training institutes.
Examples: Coursera, Udemy, Skillshare - Product Management Certifications offered by industry-recognized training institutions. Training institutions offer the most comprehensive product management certifications. Ideally, these certifications should provide students with resources and templates (such as persona development, product roadmapping, or feature prioritization guides) they can use when they return to work. Courses may be in-person, live online, or asynchronous. Students attend immersive, expert-led courses and collaborate with other product professionals on real-world examples.
Example: Pragmatic Institute
What to look for in a product management certification
You want to choose a product management certification that is aligned with your career goals and covers relevant skills for your job. Beyond that, it’s essential to select an engaging, challenging certification that you’ll enjoy attending!
If you’re comparing product management certifications, here are some questions you can ask to find an option that’s right for you:
- Do the courses cover product management fundamentals?
- Does the material cover methodologies or philosophies my company uses?
- Who will lead the class? Are the instructors experts in product management? How much experience do they have? What industries have they worked in?
- Does an accredited or industry-recognized institution offer it? How much experience does the company have?
- When you return to work, will you leave with resources, templates, and guides you can use?
- Will you apply your course knowledge with discussions, examples, and projects?
- Does the format work for you? Do you learn best in in-person, live online, or asynchronous settings?
- How much time do you need to spend on your certification?
- Are there opportunities to network with other product professionals after the certification ends?
- Can you continue professional development when you complete the certification? Can you take other courses or certifications to expand your knowledge?
How to choose the right certification for you
When choosing a product management certification, consider your experience level, career goals, and budget.
Level of experience
Choose a product management certification that is appropriate for your experience in the field. If you’re brand new, you might choose a certification that covers fundamental concepts and principles. If you have product experience, you may look for certifications offering tools and templates to help you complete critical tasks more efficiently. Or you might seek a certification that offers guidance for working cross-functionally with development and design teams.
Career goals
When evaluating your career goals, compare where you are now with where you want to be. What skills do you need to get these? Are you new to the field or aspiring to become a product manager? If you already have experience in product management, are you looking to sharpen your current knowledge? Or do you want to develop your product leadership skills? You should choose a certification that can help you achieve those goals.
Format
The format you select for your training can strongly impact your experience getting a certification. In-person, virtual live, and virtual asynchronous training all benefit students, depending on their unique needs and circumstances. Pragmatic Institute instructor Amy Graham, who boasts over 20 years of product development expertise, shares that both in-person and virtual formats have their benefits. “In-person trainings allow you to network with both the instructor and other peers in class from the product world. The in-person format may also provide you with an environment to have more focus from the day to day.” On the other hand, “Virtual trainings can be more cost-effective and help you manage the demands of your work; however, some find it difficult to focus when the demands of daily work creep in. Ultimately, pick the training and certification format that best fits your needs.”
Budget
Beyond your learning objectives, it’s essential to pick a certification that aligns with your budget. You may choose a lower-cost introductory certification if you’re new to the field. You can also test the waters by completing a single product course (like the Foundations course, which is a prerequisite for all Pragmatic Institute Certifications). However, experienced product professionals who want to go beyond the basics may need to invest in a comprehensive certification program.
How to ask your employer to sponsor your professional development
Comprehensive product management certifications from reputable training institutions often have competitive prices. If cost is a barrier, remember that companies often have professional development funds to help employees improve their skills.
You can use the template below to request support from your company. Be sure to show that you’ve researched and selected the best certification for your needs. You should also demonstrate how these skills will help you support company goals.
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Hi [Manager Name],
I hope this email finds you well. I am writing to request your support in attending Pragmatic Institute’s Product Management Certification.
This certification teaches product management fundamentals and advanced skills that I can immediately implement to support our company goals:
- Skill A will support Company Objective X
- Skill B will support Company Objective Y
- Skill C will support Company Objective Z
I’m grateful to be part of a company that encourages continuing education and professional development. Is this something I could pursue with support from our department?
The cost is [amount]. Certification courses are held [in-person / live online / asynchronously] on [dates].
Please let me know if you have any questions. I would be happy to discuss this opportunity with you in more detail.
I appreciate your consideration. Best,
[Name]
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Once you’ve found a professional certification that fits your needs and aligns with your career goals, set aside the time to learn. You can block your calendar to attend the class live or study uninterrupted. Take notes on the material and reflect on how you can share your learnings with your team. Going “back to class” and being a student again can inspire action. Embrace what you learn and get excited about the next steps in your career!
