What are the best product job titles for you and your team? I reviewed 70+ product job titles searched for by candidates (and employers!) to find the best titles for you to choose from. This is the latest chapter in Ongig’s series called Job Titles: The Definitive Guide.
In this article, you’ll find:
- Product Development vs Product Management — How product development fits in with product management
- Product Design vs Product Development — The difference between product design and product development
- Product Management Job Title Hierarchy — The standard org chart for product department positions with examples from each of the major 6 product job levels. I include examples of top employers and what they call their titles.
- The Top 20 Most Searched-For Product Titles — A column chart of the top 20 product management positions that candidates search for on Google.
- 10 Product Job Titles and Descriptions — A list of the top 10 product job titles and descriptions that employers request.
- Creative Product Job Titles — A few funny job titles we found for product professionals.
Product Development vs Product Management
Product Development and Product Management are not exactly the same, but they are very closely related when it comes to the product team structure. Product requirements are written by the Product Management team who then works directly with the Product Development team to set the priorities and vision for a product.
In smaller companies, the Product Management team and the Product Development team may be one and the same. Oftentimes, a Product Management job description even includes the requirement of a Product Development background or skillset.
Product Design vs Product Development
Product Design and Product Development are also connected, but they are not synonymous. Product Development includes the complete life cycle of a product, from start to finish, while Product Design is just a piece of the Product Development puzzle. Product Design is when an actual product design is created.
For this blog, we decided to focus on job titles with “product” in them. This includes product management positions, product development job titles, and product design titles. Let’s have a look at an org chart showing a typical product team structure.
Product Management Job Title Hierarchy
Below is a Product Management hierarchy chart with top seniority listed at the top, down to entry-level jobs at the bottom:
- Chief Product Officer (CPO) – Head of Product Management, Head of Product
- VP Product Management – Vice President of Product Development, VP of Product Design, VP Product
- Director of Product Management – Product Design Director, Director of Product Development, Product Design and Development Director
- Product Manager – Lead Product Manager, Senior Product Development Manager, Group Product Manager, Product Design Manager
- Individual Contributors – Product Owner, Product Engineer, Product Specialist, Product Management Analyst, Product Design Engineer, Product Development Coordinator, Product Design Consultant, Product Development Technician
- Entry Level – Product Assistant, Junior Product Manager, Product Management Intern, Junior Product Designer
Here’s a longer list of titles by each row of the pyramid with little more texture on each:
Job Titles for Product Management Leaders
Top product management leaders use various titles for their leaders interchangeably, but companies like Instacart and Uber use both Chief Product Officer and Head of Product in their product team structure.
Below are the top 5 titles I found candidates and employers using for Product Management leaders.
- Chief Product Officer (CPO) (Paypal, LendingTree)
- Head of Product (Instacart)
- Head of Product Management (Uber)
- Head of Product Design (Samsara)
- Head of Product Development (JPMorgan Chase)
VP of Product Management Titles
Here are the top titles I found candidates and employers using for Product Management Vice President titles:
- VP Product Management (Clorox)
- VP Product (Rev)
- VP of Product Management (Origin)
- Vice President of Product Development (Oracle)
- Vice President Product Development (AMEX)
- Vice President Product Design (Uber)
- VP Product Design (Stitch Fix)
- Vice President Product (GE Digital)
- Vice President of Product (Etsy)
- VP of Product Design (Datadog)
- Vice President of Product Design (Yelp)
Director of Product Management Titles
Here are the most used Product Management director titles:
- Director Product Management (Groupon)
- Product Director (ThriveHive)
- Director of Product Management (TripAdvisor)
- Senior Director Product Management (Twilio)
- Product Design Director (Slack)
- Director of Product Design (Pandora)
- Product Management Director (Disney Parks)
- Director Product (Netflix)
- Director of Product Development (Intuit)
- Senior Director of Product Management (Dropbox)
- Product Management Leader (Wells Fargo)
- Sr. Director of Product Design (realtor.com)
- Senior Director of Product Design (Oracle)
- Product Design and Development Director (Apple)
Product Manager Titles
There are numerous Product Manager alternative titles to use. Here are the top job titles I found candidates and employers using:
- Product Manager (YouTube)
- Associate Product Manager (Workday)
- Senior Product Manager (Walmart)
- Product Development Manager (Robinhood)
- Group Product Manager (Linkedin)
- Product Design Manager (HPE)
- Lead Product Manager (Course Hero)
- Senior Product Development Manager (Cisco)
- Product Operations Manager (Amazon)
Individual Contributor Product Management Titles
When you get to the individual contributor level of Product Management positions, there is more granularity. Here are the top 25 I found candidates and employers using:
- Product Owner (SanDisk)
- Product Designer (Microsoft)
- Product Engineer (Intercom)
- Product Specialist (Adobe)
- Product Analyst (Postmates)
- Product Design Engineer (Square)
- Product Coordinator (Williams-Sonoma)
- Product Rep (Kimberly-Clark)
- Product Consultant (Linkedin)
- Product Representative (Estée Lauder)
- Senior Product Designer (Medallia)
- Product Management Specialist (Google)
- Product Management Analyst (Apple)
- Product Development Consultant (Nationwide)
- Product Design Consultant (Uber)
- Product Design Lead (Square)
- Product Lead (Lyft)
- Product Design Strategist (Ford Motor Company)
- Product Development Coordinator (Restoration Hardware)
- Product Development Technician (Chevron)
- Product Management Lead (Facebook)
- Product Design Specialist (TikTok)
- Product Strategist (Ford Motor Company)
- Product Technician (The Gap)
- Product Generalist (Cobalt)
Entry Level Product Management Job Titles
Here are the top 8 entry level Product Management titles I found candidates and employers using:
- Junior Product Manager (Lyft)
- Junior Product Designer (Levi Straus & Co.)
- APM (Google)
- Product Management Intern (Visa)
- Product Design Intern (RingCentral)
- Product Assistant (Nike)
- Product Trainee (OPPO)
- Product Design Apprentice (Bloc)
Top Product Management Job Titles (Candidates)
Below is a list of the top 20 Product Management job titles based on Google queries we found on ahrefs.
Product Manager is the top searched-for job by candidates and employers. What is the role of a Product Manager? A Product manager sets the vision and the strategy for a product. As one of the most popular product job titles, Product Manager, is used by top companies like Google, Intercom, YouTube, Snapchat, Twitter, Airbnb, Facebook, and GoDaddy…just to name a few. Most entry level Product Development jobs report directly to a Product Manager.
Top 10 Product Management Job Titles and Descriptions (Employers)
Below are the top 10 product job titles employers request on Google, according to ahrefs.
I’ve included a brief description for each as well as the # of job title searches per month by employers.
Product Manager
A Product Manager guides the success of a product and manages the product team. A Product Manager is responsible for the success of a product and providing guidance for its improvement when needed. A Product Manager works with senior management to identify product strategies and goals.
# of job title searches per month: 4,100
Product Owner
A Product Owner works with the product development team to ensure product developers and designers are on track. A Product Owner also acts as a liaison between developers and the Product Manager to provide status updates. Some companies use the Product Manager and Product Owner job titles interchangeably.
# of job title searches per month: 700
Product Engineer
A Product Engineer is responsible for designing products and managing the manufacturing process for those products. A Product Engineer works with manufacturers to monitor the production of products in various industries. The duties of a Product Engineer include:
- coordinating with the product development team
- finalizing product design ideas
- testing prototypes to identify flaws
# of job title searches per month: 350; Product Designer: 300; Product Design Engineer: 60
Product Specialist
A Product Specialist assists in the management of the product life cycle. Daily duties of a Product Specialist include:
- marketing and promoting
- technical development
- product training
- competitive analysis
# of job title searches per month: 250
Product Analyst
A Product Analyst works with companies to analyze trends and identify products with high ROI and profitability. A Product Analyst conducts market research, focus groups, and customer surveys to help choose products that are considered in-demand.
# of job title searches per month: 200
Chief Product Officer
A Chief Product Officer, or CPO, leads the product team. A Chief Product Officer is responsible for creating a product strategy and the execution of product-related tasks. A Chief Product Officer manages the vision for:
- product development
- product design
- product management
- product vision
# of job title searches per month: 200; CPO: 60; Head of Product: 100
Product Development Manager
A Product Development Manager coordinates the development piece of the product creation process. A Product Development Manager is responsible for identifying technical, design, or production roadblocks and working with the development team to correct them. A product Development Manager also works with other teams within an organization to ensure the success of products.
# of job title searches per month: 200
Associate Product Manager
Associate Product Manager (APM) is an entry level product development role. The duties of an Associate Product Manager include:
- prioritizing product tasks
- updating the project team
- managing production deadlines
- updating the product team
# of job title searches per month: 200; APM: 10
Director of Product Management
A Director of Product Management works directly with senior management to identify product goals and strategies. A Director of Product Management researches market trends and competitors to identify best practices and new product ideas, as well as getting executive buy-in.
# of job title searches per month: 150; Director of Product Development: 80
VP Product Management
A VP of Product Management sometimes known as a Vice President of Product is a high-level executive on the product team. A VP of Product Management provides support across product design and development teams. A VP of Product Management is also responsible for:
- creating product budgets
- aligning product decisions with objectives
- speaking on behalf of products at public appearances
- forecasting for future production projects
# of job title searches per month: 60
Funny Product Job Titles
Below are a few funny and creative product job titles we’ve found.
- Sous Chef (Product Development Technician)…Method
- Chief Ego Operator (Any executive)
- Product Generalist (Generalist)…Many startups
Want more funny job titles? Check out our 100+ Creative & Funny Job Titles [by Department & Position]
Other Resources on Product Job Titles
In addition to the sources cited above, special thanks to these experts on Product Management job titles:
- LISAA School of Design’s article on Product Design vs Product Development
- Lauren Lessard’s article on What Is the Difference Between Product Management, Product Marketing, Product Development and Program Management?
- Aha!’s blog on What is the role of a product manager?
- ProductPlan’s article on What is a Product Owner?
- Indeed’s article on What Is a Product Engineer? Skills, Requirements and Salary
- Helen Aker’s blog on What Does a Product Specialist Do?
- Anne Kinsey’s article on Product Analyst Duties
- Dottie Schrock’s blog on What does a Chief Product Officer do?
- Salary.com’s article on Product Development Manager
- Dana Solomon’s article on What is the Product Manager Career Path?
Why I wrote this?
My team and I share this research on product job titles to help you optimize your own titles. This supports our mission to transform job descriptions. Check out Ongig.com to see how our software transforms your job titles and job descriptions.
