Where do I go from here?

VMware
oqsS81

Go to company page VMware

oqsS81
Jan 12, 2021 9 Comments

TL;DR: work as a product manager and current work is very boring. I dislike it. Having joined vmware right out of college all I’ve known is cloud infra and K8s.

I have always wanted to work for a B2C company and run rapid experiments.
However I feel given I lack such experience it will be very hard to break into the b2c space as a PM.
Is this true?

Given my experience as a PM in kubernetes at vmware,
What B2C companies might be open on hiring a PM with no experience in SaaS or b2c products?

TC: 160k, 2yoe

comments

Want to comment? LOG IN or SIGN UP
TOP 9 Comments
  • VMware
    c2-h5-oh

    Go to company page VMware

    c2-h5-oh
    I think in the SWE ladder at VMware, you can switch to the PM track after you hit Senior SWE if that’s what you really want to do.

    I can’t comment on the B2C part, although VMware is primarily B2B, as you know. So join some B2C company as a SWE and switch to PM there?

    “..cloud infra and K8s...” Most people at vmw would find cloud infra interesting, I suggest talking to your manager to give your more challenging work if you want to continue down this path
    Jan 12, 2021 2
    • VMware
      oqsS81

      Go to company page VMware

      oqsS81
      OP
      thanks...updated the post to clarify I’m a PM...
      switching to swe would require a very different skill set
      Jan 12, 2021
    • VMware
      c2-h5-oh

      Go to company page VMware

      c2-h5-oh
      Ahh, just a tip then - you can try to switch to some consumerish B2B company like MS or Salesforce, if you’re unable to get good B2C matches.
      Jan 12, 2021
  • VMware
    techware

    Go to company page VMware

    techware
    You are still early in your career and can easily switch to B2C companies. The easiest route is to apply as a generalist (as opposed to a specialist) PM to companies like Facebook, Google, Uber etc. They value PM skills more than the domain. Also try companies in other domains like e-commerce or digital payments etc. Would not recommend switching to engineering role only to go back to PM job. It will show you don't care about the PM function!
    Jan 21, 2021 0
  • VMware
    Xjbc61

    Go to company page VMware

    Xjbc61
    Paypal and Visa might be options. Also Amazon.
    Mar 1, 2021 0
  • VMware
    t-t-tanzu

    Go to company page VMware

    t-t-tanzu
    I find your statement curious. PM is always long game - the adrenaline hits from a “win” are often measured in quarters or years - not days or weeks.

    Even in b2c it takes time to setup the experiment, conduct, analyze, learn, and then drive roadmap.

    Is it the job that’s slow? Your team? Are you in CPBU?

    At least in MAPBU the Kubernetes PM job moves fast.
    Jan 13, 2021 0
  • VMware
    RofD55

    Go to company page VMware

    RofD55
    VMware labs isn’t perfect but there’s a ton of projects where you do rapid experiments and enable clients on lean methodology, TDD and UCD.
    Jan 13, 2021 0