The value of P

In statistics there is p-value, denoting the confidence level associated with an experiment. These days, with a world obsessed with higher and higher values, p-value is the opposite, the lower the better (yes, 0.01 p-value means 99% confidence, while 0.5 means 50% confidence).

On the other hand, there are two “PM” abbreviated roles, the product and the project manager roles.

Both of these roles are tied also to a “P”.

Both of these roles aim to manage some sort of value associated with the “P”

And yet, only one of the roles has something that gets closer to the statistical p-value. Only the project manager has to consider the whole range of the distribution, as only the product manager stays long enough around the “P” he or she manages to experience the extreme regions of the distribution of value. There can be immense value in the outer regions of the value distribution, with the long tail bringing in a lot of value for some products.

There is a saying, “You either die a hero or you live long enough to become the villain.”, and it resonates deeply with my view of the product manager, as the person who both helps a product get up the ground, but also has some sort of moral responsibility to terminate the product in some circumstances. This is something that I believe no project manager ever considers.

One P in two role names, yet two vastly different views on the value aspect, ultimately somehow analog to statistical p-value.

What is the p-value of your product team experiments?