For many people who are looking to get into product management without previous experience, certifications are often seen as the best and easiest way of bridging that gap and presenting a better case to potential employers. So how crucial are certifications like Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) and Product School? Are they mandatory in order to land a product manager role?
In short, the answer is no. You absolutely DO NOT need to have product manager certifications to get a product manager job. There are plenty of PMs working in companies all over the world right now who don't even have a single certification to their name.
When it comes to certifications, they will always help you and never hurt you BUT they will never be the deciding reason you get an interview or an offer. A company is never going to give you an interview or the job purely off the fact you have a certificate. It might help your case during the company's decision making process but if you don't have a tailored resume or any relevant experience, it won't matter how many certifications you possess.
What companies look for the most when finding candidates to interview for a product manager role is actual relevant experience whether it be through professional experience or academic/personal projects. Therefore if you don't have any kind of relevant experience already, that should be your primary focus. Once you do, then it is critical that your resume sells your relevant experience through a product management lens. Only at this point, if you have the time, energy and money to go and complete these different certifications and courses, then by all means go ahead. As stated before, having certifications will never hurt you.
If you are interested in learning how to have the best product management resume or want to break into product management, please schedule a free call via the Contact page. We would love to chat and see how we can help.
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