How to find a product job starting from scratch
I was talking to someone yesterday who’s trying to break into product management, and it really got me thinking. What would I do if I was trying to start a career in product management today?
Here’s the thing: a lot has changed since I was job hunting. When I was looking for my first product role before the COVID pandemic it was honestly a lot less competitive. I knew maybe a handful of people in product, and that was it. There weren’t entire industries built around getting a PM job. The Product School and Reforge? It was around but it was nowhere near as popular as it is today. Product management as a discipline was still being defined at smaller companies.
Back then, there wasn’t a clear path into product. I’d argue there still isn’t one today. But now you’re competing against thousands of people who’ve taken bootcamps, read every product blog, and memorized every framework known to humanity. To put this in perspective, there are over 125k product manager job openings in the US alone, but the market has more PMs than required. Companies are now implementing filtration processes and looking for only the top candidates.
So when this person asked me how I’d approach getting into product today, I had to really think about it. Because the game has completely changed. Here’s what I’d do.
Don’t take the obvious route in
Here’s something most people won’t tell you: applying directly to PM roles is the hardest possible path. Most successful people I know didn’t get in through the obvious route.
I’d focus on product-adjacent roles instead. I started off in digital marketing with a background running experiments and A/B tests. When my manager transitioned into product, I was able to follow him into product management. That’s how I got my start. I know people personally who have transitioned from non-product roles into product relatively quickly.
Here are the ones I’ve seen but getting your foot in the door is the first step.
- Product Operations - Managing processes, tools, and data for product teams
- Customer Success Manager - Working directly with customers post-sale to ensure satisfaction
- Product Marketing Manager - Positioning and messaging products to market
- Product Owner - Managing product backlogs and working with development teams
- User Experience Researcher - Conducting research to understand user needs
- Technical Program Manager - Coordinating technical projects across teams
- Growth Marketing Manager - Focusing on user acquisition and retention strategies
Find companies with strong product cultures where you can work alongside PMs and absorb how they think and operate.
Then, after you’ve proven yourself, have that conversation with the director of product: “Hey, I’m curious about product management. I want to learn more.” If you’ve been crushing it in your current role and showing genuine interest, that conversation often leads somewhere good.
This approach works because you’re not just another resume in a pile, you’re an internal candidate with context and relationships.
It’s a volume game
Here’s the part nobody wants to hear: getting a product job is - unfortunately a numbers game.
In my last job search as a senior PM, someone with years of experience who knows what they’re doing, I applied to 300 jobs over a five or six month period while employed. I heard back from 40. Made it to the final rounds with maybe 10. And I’m not bad at interviews. This isn’t unique to me. Some PMs are finding jobs within three to five months on average, but the process is brutal.
Let me be real about what this actually feels like: the rejection really weighs on you after continuing to get rejected time and time and time again. I was getting ghosted constantly. I would apply for a job and get sent an auto-rejection email three months later from a recruiter. I had certain roles just completely removed while in the interview process. I had to take breaks just to be able to kind of reset and get going again.
If you think you’re going to apply to 50 companies and land your dream job, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. You might need to apply to 300+ companies just to get your foot in the door. It might take 6, 9, or 12 months. Your first product job might be at a company you’ve never heard of that’s not particularly well-established.
But here’s the thing, that’s totally fine. You just need to get started.
Once you’re playing the numbers game, here’s how to get better odds.
And since we’re talking volume, you’d be crazy not to use AI tools to make this easier. I use Simplify Copilot, a Google Chrome extension that autofills applications with one button click. Also, get organized with a tracking system. Reach out if you want my Notion template for job interviews. Treat this like the project it is.
Join a product community or group
Here’s something that’s exploded since COVID: product communities and groups. The growth has been incredible. These groups existed pre-COVID, but in the post-COVID era, they’ve become so much more important. We’ve gone from a handful of communities to dozens of active groups where product professionals connect and share opportunities.
Black Product Managers, Women in Product, Product School, Product Camp, there are dozens of these communities where people post jobs, make connections, and help each other out. Someone drops a “Hey, we’re hiring a PM at my company” post, and suddenly, you have an inside track instead of applying through some black hole ATS system.
Here are some of the product communities I think are worth joining:
- Black Product Managers (https://blackproductmanagers.com) — I might be biased here, but it's one of the best essentials if you’re underrepresented in tech
- Women in Product (https://www.womeninproduct.com) — Great community for female PMs and allies, I have friends who are active
- Product School (https://productschool.com/slack-community) — Good starting point for beginners, it can kind of get crazy in Slack
- Reforge Community (https://www.reforge.com) — More advanced, for experienced professionals, you get some connections if you’re intentional while completing the courses, also very pricey
- Mind the Product (https://www.mindtheproduct.com) — The OG product community with global reach, I’ve had more success with their in-person events
- Product Coalition (https://productcoalition.com) — Great for content and networking, less experience here, but I’ve heard good things
Get into these groups. Participate. Actually contribute to conversations instead of just lurking and waiting for job posts. Build real relationships. I’ve had tons of people reach out to me from these communities asking for advice, and I’ve never turned anyone down. Most people in product are pretty generous with their time if you approach them thoughtfully.
Also don’t overlook in-person networking events in your local area. While everyone else is trying to connect via LinkedIn DMs and Zoom calls, showing up to local ProductTank meetups, startup events, or tech gatherings puts you in a completely different league. I’ve found that people who might be hesitant to chat with you online or over Zoom are much more willing to have real conversations in person. There’s something about face-to-face interaction that just breaks down barriers.
Check if there’s a ProductTank in your city, local startup meetups, or even general business networking events. The PM community in most cities is smaller than you think, and showing up consistently makes you memorable. This is where you can really stand above your peers who are all fighting for attention in the same online spaces.
The networking opportunities in these digital communities are honestly better than most in-person events. Use them.
Build a real product (it’s actually possible now)
Okay, this one used to be terrible advice. People would tell me “just build a product” when I was starting out, and I’d spend weeks trying to cobble together an app with tools that weren’t built for non-developers (cough cough, Bubble). It was frustrating and mostly pointless.
But now? Now you can actually do this.
Tools like Lovable, Bolt, Cursor, and v0 let you legitimately build an MVP without knowing how to code. I recently built a directory site and had it up and running with real functionality in a matter of days, not weeks. You can build something, promote it, get actual users, and have a real story to tell in interviews.
Here’s a high-level approach to building your own product:
- Identify a problem you’re passionate about and that you care about
- Choose a simple, no-code solution to build a simple MVP
- Get people in your community to try the app out and use it
- See where it goes and try to gain traction
For me, I took a look at search terms in my local area and asked: what are people searching for specifically? What are people trying to find that I could potentially build a directory around that I have some interest in? That ended up being faith-based communities in my area. My friend was having a hard time finding a place to worship, and I was able to spin up a directory pretty quickly.
There are tons of videos on driving traffic to an MVP. Vibe marketing is having this moment right now, so that’s another avenue you could look at. I’ve been listening to Greg Eisenberg a ton lately (check out his YouTube channel), and he’s really one of the best voices in the space. He’s completely changed how I think about leveraging these tools to build products. The barrier to entry for building something real has never been lower.
Instead of just talking about frameworks and theory, you can say: “I built this thing, here’s what I learned about user behavior, here’s how I prioritized features, here’s what I’d do differently.” That’s the kind of story that makes interviewers lean in.
Don’t overthink it. Build something small and functional. Get it in front of real people. Learn from what happens. Then take that story into your interviews.
Do what others won’t
Sweat equity still matters. Actually, it matters more than ever.
When I was first looking for my first product job, I was trying to outwork every single person I knew looking for product jobs. I applied to every company that had “product manager” in the name, regardless of industry. Cold emailing HR departments. Reaching out to anyone who would listen.
I was literally messaging random people on LinkedIn: “I’m trying to learn more about product management. Could you help me understand what you do?” I asked to shadow people. I went to every networking event I could find.
Look, you have to be willing to do whatever it takes. And I mean whatever. Because the reality is, you’re not finding a product job by casually scrolling through job boards on Sunday morning.
I know people who spend 6 to 9 months preparing for a single interview. I know people applying to hundreds of jobs every month. This isn’t hyperbole, this is the market. It’s going to make you question if you really want this. And honestly? That’s probably a good thing. Because if you’re not committed enough to grind through this process, product management might not be for you anyway.
Get someone in your corner
One last thing: find a mentor in these communities if you can. I’ve never turned down someone who reached out asking for advice about breaking into product. Most people won’t.
The key is being thoughtful about how you approach people. Don’t just send a generic “Can I pick your brain?” message. Do your homework. Ask specific questions. Show that you’ve put in some effort.
Most of us remember what it was like trying to break in, and we’re happy to help someone who’s serious about it. This is exactly what I help people with in my coaching practice — navigating this entire transition from wherever you are to landing that first product role. If you’re really committed to this path and want personalized guidance on your specific situation, feel free to reach out.
Whether it’s through formal coaching or just connecting with people in the community, having someone in your corner who understands the market and can give you honest feedback makes a huge difference.
The bottom line
The market is different now. It’s really competitive. It’s really difficult. Way harder than when I was starting out. The data backs this up. Companies are filtering harder, there are more candidates than ever, and everyone is trying to stand out in the same ways.
But here’s what I know: if you really want it, you can still get it. I’ve seen people in my own community who are proof of this, and I’m genuinely proud of what they’ve accomplished.
It’s going to require persistence. It’s going to require consistency. It’s going to require doing things that feel uncomfortable or uncertain. You might have to take a job at a company you’ve never heard of. You might have to start in a role that’s not exactly what you want.
But if you’re committed, if you’re really committed, it can be done.
The path isn’t easy, but it’s there. Now go get after it.
If you’re serious about breaking into product and want personalized guidance on your specific situation, I offer coaching to help people navigate this exact transition. Reach out here if you’d like to chat about working together.
About the author
Juan Bell
I'm a product growth leader who thrives at the intersection of experimentation, clarity, and momentum. Over the last decade, I've helped consumer platforms, marketplaces, and mission-driven startups unlock growth through smart bets and faster cycles. My work spans everything from MVP launches to scaled A/B testing programs, but what I care about most is impact: building things that matter and helping people move with purpose. Outside of product, I'm raising two daughters, making music, mentoring the next generation of product managers, and treating NBA debates like a second job.
