The Hidden Truth About Product Management

Why your years of experience mean more (and less) than you think

I watched a talented designer with six years of experience get rejected from a Product Manager role at Google last month. The feedback? “Lacks sufficient PM experience.” Two weeks later, a Series A startup hired someone with zero PM experience for the exact same title.

This isn’t an anomaly. It’s the new reality of product management hiring, and if you don’t understand the rules of this game, you’re setting yourself up for frustration.

The truth is, experience requirements in product management aren’t just arbitrary numbers on job descriptions. They’re symptoms of deeper structural differences between how companies operate, take risks, and define success. Let me break down what’s really happening beneath the surface.

The Company Size Paradox

Here’s what most people don’t realize: the same job title can mean completely different things depending on where you work. Take “Product Manager” as an example.

At a Series A company, a Product Manager might be wearing five different hats. They’re conducting user interviews in the morning, writing PRDs in the afternoon, and debugging analytics dashboards before dinner. The role is scrappy, undefined, and often perfect for someone making a career transition.

“In early-stage companies, we’re not hiring for experience. We’re hiring for potential and the ability to figure…