Decoding The Differences Between Product Management Certification And An MBA Degree 

Introduction 

A Master in Business Administration is one of the most sought-after post-graduation degree courses across the globe. Aspirants from a wide variety of educational backgrounds often tend to pursue an MBA degree either before they begin their professional career or after obtaining several years of experience. An MBA is immensely popular as it enhances one’s credibility as a skilled professional and exponentially increases the quality and quantity of job opportunities. 

Product Managers, on the other hand, come from a variety of backgrounds, including engineering, marketing, project management etc. The Product Management role requires diverse skills and knowledge, which is often very difficult to obtain sitting in a classroom without the proper guidance. Most successful Product Managers often combine their educational knowledge and the experiences drawn from their careers to successfully build their reputation in the Product Management domain. 

What does a traditional MBA degree offer to students? 

A traditional MBA program mainly focuses on building the aspirants’ business development and marketing skills. Apart from that, they also provide knowledge in finance and economics. But you don’t get to experience any kind of real-world challenges that arise when you work as an MBA in any company, i.e., mostly no importance is given to project-based training in such programs.  

Traditional MBA programs tend to focus more on bookish knowledge rather than developing true skills that could make the aspirants stand out from the crowd. Recent curriculum-based education trends show that it has far moved from reality, and there is no connection between the classroom and real-world scenarios. 

Most MBA Programs fail to incorporate qualities in students such as leadership skills, developing responsibilities towards the business, etc. Finding well-trained, experienced teaching faculty in business schools that are not among the top 10 is a difficult job in itself. Another downside to such full-time MBA programs is that you are completely tied to the program and cannot work on any other project that might upskill you.  

Most of the traditional MBA programs aren’t available in remote parts of the country, so you need to move to some other part to pursue the course, manage your living expenses, and pay tuition fees with absolutely no income within the duration of the course. 

What is Product Management Certification, and how is it different from an MBA? 

Product Managers are in high demand across different industries and sectors. A  Product Manager is a person who identifies the consumer demand and the broader company objectives that a product or feature will satisfy expresses what success for a product looks like and organizes a team to make that vision a reality. Product Management is all about keeping an eye on consumer needs, defining the product life cycle, and leading the product team to develop user-friendly products. 

This field has gained significant importance in the past few years. Product Management is a branch adopted by many companies to supervise the development of a product up to its eventual launch in the market. Product Management certification will help you to work in the following areas: 

• Product Development 
• Product Planning 
• Product Forecasting 
• Product Launch 
• Product Marketing 

The role of MBA graduates in a company is localized to functional areas, including marketing and sales, finance, operations, and human resources, thus making it an inward-facing role. A Product Manager has to go through a set of processes ranging from generating ideas for the product to an actual product launch, making it more of an outward-facing role.  

Having an MBA degree doesn’t make you an expert in economics or finance. Besides bookish knowledge, you also need real-world experiences to become a good Product Manager. 

While as an MBA, you get to train in an educational environment, the role of Product Manager helps you to get exposure to real-world problems and combine them with your knowledge to get the best out of your job. 

Getting a traditional MBA degree doesn’t make you suddenly a different person that’s now qualified to do something you couldn’t do before. Product Management lets you upskill yourself and helps you find better career opportunities than a traditional MBA degree would offer. 

Why opt for Product Management Certification? 

Pursuing a Product Management program can significantly help you accelerate your career opportunities. Product Managers form the core of any product development team in a company. They are responsible for defining the company’s vision and strategies regarding the product. According to a recent report by Product Plan, interest in the field of Product Management has nearly doubled in recent years and is still growing.  

A recent report from Naukri.com reveals that while the field of Product Management is continuously expanding and expects to have 22 million job opportunities globally, the number of Product Managers in India settles down to a mere ₹20,000. Since there aren’t many highly-skilled professionals available in the market, companies do not mind paying high salaries to Product Managers making this field more lucrative. 

Though the relationship between passion and money has always been a subject of debate, according to the same report, the average salary of a Product Manager increases much more with an increase in experience when compared to other fields.  

According to Jobted, the average salary for a Product Manager is around 246% higher than the national average salary in India. This makes a Product Manager a reputed and well-paid post in any company.  

 It is safe to say that professionals should most definitely try to build a career in this booming sector as Product Management will continue to spread its roots in the business world, covering geographical and calendarial distances with great speed. 

What Are the Advantages of Getting an MBA in Product Management in India? 

A Product Management MBA is an MBA degree with a specialization in Product Management. This degree is popular as the demand for Product Managers grows. 

Although you currently don’t need an MBA to land a job as a Product Manager, having done MBA can help you in various ways – 

• MBA in Product Management covers all the aspects of core business areas that are required to succeed as a Product Manager.  
• A specialized MBA degree in Product Management gives you an edge over other entry-level candidates who just have a bachelor’s degree in technical fields. 
• An MBA program can help you to build a strong network with business leaders, students, and teaching faculty. 

Alternatives to MBA in Product Management in India 

• Get a certificate in Product Management through professional Product Management training programs provided by certified platforms like Jigsaw academy. 
• Try to get a paid Product Management internship to gain some field experience. 

Pros of Product Management certification Program 

Through the 6-month training program in Product Management tailored by experts from IIM Indore in collaboration with UNext Jigsaw, you get to learn about different aspects and stages of Product Management. Having a certificate in Product Management certified by IIM Indore experts itself gives you an advantage over other students who either have a bachelor’s degree or a traditional MBA degree. 

Some highlights of the program: 

1. The PG Program in Product Management gives a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for students who wish to learn through a collective approach to Product Management. 
2. This Product Management certification program is further improved by post-class exercises, HBR (Harvard Business Reviews) case studies, and the BYOP (Bring Your Own Product) feature. 
3. A major differentiator of this program from the other Product Management courses in India is that it provides you with an Executive Education Alumni status of IIM Indore. It allows you to access IIM Indore’s vast alumni network by providing learners lifetime access to all the IIM alumni benefits once they pay a certain amount (it is an additional fee to be paid apart from the program fee).  
4. You get to learn about Product Management in depth from top-notch educators from all over India. You get a better understanding of the different stages involved in Product Management. 
5. Instead of just learning through books, you get to master the various phases of Product Development through project-based training covered in the program. 
6. The syllabus design & delivery follows the 5i Framework (Initiative, Interaction, Independent, Incentive, and Improvement), making it one of the best Product Management courses available in the country. 
7. The course is completely online, making it easily accessible from any part of the county, and you can get upskilled without having to sacrifice family time or a full-time job.

Conclusion 

Students and management professionals who aim at better career opportunities or those looking to switch into roles of Product Managers, the future awaits you with endless possibilities. Proper training and mentorship can help you do wonders in the field and can be availed through UNext Jigsaw’s online training program. To emerge as future CEOs or product leaders, individuals must first improve their skills through online Product Management course in India. UNext Jigsaw’s collaboration with IIM Indore, one of the top-rated and globally approved business schools in India.