In a world of outsourcing and offshoring, it’s becoming increasingly common for product managers to NOT be co-located with their teams. When you’re remote, you have to work harder at communication. Lotus Notes, Google Documents, and other collaborative environments attempt to make it as easy to work on a document around the world as on a white board in a conference room. While web conferences and phone calls are not as satisfying as face-to-face meetings but they are vastly more cost-effective. But being cost effectves doesn’t necessarily make them effective.

Can you really define a product without knowing the market?

Can you design a product for doctors without knowing medicine?

Can you really define a product in India for sale in the US without someone visiting the US to really understand the market? Likewise, can US companies define products for India without being there?

In Tuned In, our book on creating extraordinary products, we profile ZipCar, an urban car rental service that rents by the hour. You could never envision such a service unless you lived in a big city. Another product, Jitterbug, is a mobile phone for your parents; it has no features except the ability to dial. Perfect for old people. Clearly invented by someone with parents who are bewildered by the features of a typical cell phone.

One of my best product management experiences was when I was based in DC and my developers were based in LA. I flew there once a month to work with the team and our projects. And while I was there, I was there. I dedicated my time to their issues. That means that I didn’t take phone calls from other departments; I didn’t check my email constantly. While in development meetings, I paid attention to the development issues.

I’ve found that one week per month is a good ratio for product management and development. But many product managers claim they cannot spend a week on one group to the exclusion of others. If not a week, try days. One day a week for development, one day for sales support, one day for marketing; one day for client visits, and one day for yourself, doing all the things you committed to do on the other four days.

In the end, what do you expect from product management?

If a product manager needs to manage the daily activities of a team, then the product manager needs to be co-located with the team. I suggest that your project manager and development leads need to be close to the developers. But if the product manager is supposed to be an expert on the customer and the market, then the product manager should be located near the market.

Answered by Steve Johnson