Product Analyst Vs. Product Manager: Learn The Difference

Updated 30 September 2022

Product managers and product analysts are two significant pillars of any customer-centric business. Many companies hire professionals with the necessary skills for developing products that fill the needs of customers. Candidates interested in becoming product analysts or product managers can benefit from understanding the fundamental differences between them. In this article, we discuss some basic differences between a product analyst vs. a product manager and explain the daily job duties of these professionals.

Product analyst vs. product manager definitions

Before comparing the difference between a product analyst vs. a product manager, it is helpful to review the definition of each role. A product analyst investigates the objective market sections and cooperates with product managers to ensure the products offer something valuable to the customers. They are responsible for dissecting market information, collecting data via customer polls and launching strategies for effective marketing of products. Many companies involve product analysts to determine advancement costs, research costs, improvement expenses, assembling and promoting costs. Product analysts can also help clients understand how and when to bring the product into the market.

A product manager is a professional who directs the product life cycle and manages a product development team. They have a series of responsibilities including assigning tasks to team members, assisting the team with focusing on what makes the biggest difference and sending the final products to market quickly and under the financial plan. The product manager can be an organisational role. They are also responsible for leading the marketing of the product which involves forecasting and profit analysis.

Differences between a product analyst and a product manager

Here are some basic differences between a product analyst vs. a product manager:

Responsibilities

Here are some job duties of a product analyst:

Product analytics: Product analysts are responsible for estimating and observing the performance of products and updating product-related customer, market and other information to their seniors.
Product administration: As a member of the development and marketing team, the product analyst can also be responsible for the development and proposal of overall product strategies, innovation and presentation of marketplace outcome projections.
Initiative: A product analyst can initiate and drive the development of a product from its beginning till its deployment in the market. They also hold the responsibility of motivating their teammates to perform better.
Pricing and development: Products analysts also monitor the market to decide the price point of the product.

Here are some common responsibilities of a product manager:

Market data research: Product managers study the market data and find the requirements of customers. They develop strategies to fulfil those requirements.
Competition: Product managers find the best market competitors of products, study the market accordingly and devise a plan to remove all the defects and make the product the market leader.
Objectives and campaigns: They also create marketing objectives and campaigns for the growth of the organisation.
Harmony: Product managers are responsible for creating an environment of overall development. They may collaborate with other departments to effectively use the available resources.
Management: Product managers use their management skills to manage the product development team and to decide and assign them various tasks.

Education

Many product analysts usually have a bachelor's degree in business or finance. A degree in finance or business can help them gain a basic understanding of market research and how to manage customer behaviour. Many product analysts also gain certification courses in statistics. Industry-specific training is also available for product analysts. Many product analysts also pursue a master's degree which can help them in securing a supervisory role.

The career path of product managers can be slightly different from that of product analysts. Product managers have a bachelor's degree with various specialisations depending on the industry where they work. Candidates who want to become product managers can pursue a bachelor's degree in business management or administration. They can also choose economics or marketing for their bachelor's degree.

Salary

The average salary of a product analyst is ₹6,37,459 per year. In contrast, the average salary of a product manager is ₹9,98,437 per year. Salaries of both these professionals may vary depending on their educational qualifications, skills and experience. The salary of a product analyst and a product manager can be different at the same location.

For example, the average salary of a product analyst in Gurgaon, Haryana is ₹7,12,155 per year. In comparison, the average salary of a product manager in Gurgaon, Haryana is ₹17,00,000 per year. Both the professionals can increase their salaries by gaining relevant skills, certifications and experience.

Skills

Here are some essential skills for a product analyst:

Basic software knowledge: Product analysts may require the knowledge of basic tools and software to research data and market trends. They may use tools like MS Office in their day-to-day job.
Creativity: Creativity helps product analysts devise new and effective ideas for the marketing of a product. They may also use their creative skills to find efficient ways to perform data analysis and research.
Organisational skills: Product analysts keep their tasks organised to manage time. Organisational skills can help them prioritise tasks depending on their importance and handle multiple tasks at the same time.
Communication: This skill can help product analysts in interviewing customers and assessing their requirements. Communication skills can also help them in collaborating with other professionals with competing interests.
Self-motivation: Product analysts keep themselves motivated so that they can take the initiative to learn new skills and improve their performance.

Here are some common skills that product managers require to perform their duties:

Product management and development: Product managers use these skills to manage the product life cycle and to deliver it in the market. They can enhance their product management and development skills by pursuing the right certification and training courses.
People management and customer research: Customer research skills can help product managers in planning strategies for the development and launch of a new product for the company.
Business skills: Product managers can use their business skills to understand the demands of the market by using factual statistics and data. Pursuing an education in business management or administration can help candidates develop business skills.
Strategic thinking: Product managers use this skill to perform competitive analysis and develop effective marketing strategies. They use strategic thinking to make informed decisions and successfully launch the product in the market.
Planning skills: Product managers also keep track of inventory and plan the campaigns accordingly. They document possible outcomes and also develop backup plans in place.
Leadership skills: Leadership skills can help product managers effectively lead their team members and provide them guidance when necessary. They know how to motivate development team members to achieve product goals.
Technical skills: Product managers require technical skills to perform their day-to-day duties related to product development. Their job may require coordinating with the IT department for various purposes such as preparing the design and features of products.

Similarities between product analysts and product managers

Here are some common similarities between product analysts and product managers:

Business knowledge: Both the job roles require a basic understanding of finance and business as they study the market and devise strategies for the growth of their products.
Collaboration: Product analysts often collaborate with other professionals to understand or convey the product requirements. Similarly, product managers also collaborate with their team members and other departments in their day-to-day job.
Goals: The goals of product analysts and product managers can be the same. Both of them work for developing products that increase the profit of the organisation.
Work environment: Usually, product analysts and product managers work in an office environment. Both of them can work for a small company or join a multi-national organisation, depending on the industry.

Please note that none of the companies, institutions or organisations mentioned in this article are associated with Indeed. Salary figures reflect data listed on Indeed Salaries at time of writing. Salaries may vary depending on the hiring organisation and a candidate's experience, academic background and location.