Products Vs. Projects

In the world of technology, the terms product and project are often confused, but there is a big difference between the two. Products are long-term, evergreen entities (in the form of goods or services). They are developed and improved upon, and are usually part of the software or services a company sells.

Projects have a specific end goal and are not meant to be ongoing. In other words, products are about accomplishing a result. This may be the vision or mission of the product itself. It might also be driving metrics and key performance indicators that signal things are going well with the project. A successful project manager will be able to manage resources to meet these objectives.

Product management focuses on understanding customer needs and addressing them in the market. Product managers identify market opportunities and create business cases for new product ideas. They then design solutions, based on those ideas, that bring value to customers.