Product Owner vs Product Manager

Category	Product Owner (PO)	Product Manager (PM)
Primary Focus	Maximising value delivered by the development team	Maximising product success in the market/user ecosystem
Timescale	Near-term delivery	Medium- to long-term strategy
Scope	One team or product area	Whole product or portfolio
Key Responsibilities	Manage backlog, write user stories, accept work, clarify requirements	Define vision, strategy, goals; understand market, competitors, user needs
Decision Authority	Prioritises the backlog and defines what gets built next	Owns product direction, business case, roadmap
Customer Interaction	Frequent, delivery-focused	Strategic research, market/user insights
Team Interaction	Works daily with developers and Scrum Master	Works with executives, sales, marketing, policy, operations
Roadmap Ownership	Contributes, usually short-term	Owns the roadmap, long-term prioritisation
Success Measures	Team throughput, value delivered, sprint outcomes	Product adoption, revenue/usage, strategic outcomes
Planning Horizon	Current sprint → next few iterations	Quarters → multi-year plans
Market Awareness	Moderate	High—competitors, market trends, regulatory context
User Research	Applies research to refine stories	Commissions and interprets research to shape strategy
Business Case	Rarely responsible	Often responsible
Influence Level	Tactical	Strategic
Best Fit Role	Scrum teams executing a defined vision	Organisations managing full product lifecycle