Product Mastery Now for Product Managers, Leaders, and Innovators 577: Stop seeing two roles, start seeing two engines: The project-product partnership playbook – with Leah Huf and Jill Diffendal
Alignment between product and project management
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TLDR
This episode dives into the often-overlooked divide between product and project management and how bridging this gap can unleash greater innovation in organizations. Leah Huf and Jill Diffendall from the Project Management Institute (PMI) share research findings, actionable frameworks, and real-world experiences to help product and project professionals collaborate more effectively, align success metrics, and deliver true customer value.
Introduction
Product teams create features that never launch. Project teams deliver on time but miss the market. Sound familiar?
Today we’re tackling the costly disconnect between product and project management – a divide that’s holding back innovation in organizations everywhere. You’ll discover how to overcome the three biggest collaboration obstacles, and a proven framework for turning friction into fusion.
Joining us are Leah Huf and Jill Diffendal from the Project Management Institute, who’ve not only researched this product/project partnership but are actively implementing these principles to transform how PMI delivers value. Leah brings 14 years of experience spanning operations, program, and product management, currently serving as Senior Product Operations Manager at PMI. Jill, with over 20 years in content development and strategic communications, manages thought leadership research that’s reshaping how we think about project success.
Summary of Concepts Discussed for Product Managers
Product and Project Management:
Jill shares that PMI’s research found a huge overlap between product and project management, with 79% of product managers having worked as project managers, and many project managers working on product development. This overlap emphasizes the necessity for better integration between the disciplines.
Comparing and Contrasting the Roles:
Leah breaks down distinctions between product and project managers—product managers focus on customer value, vision, and strategy, while project managers handle execution, risk, and alignment. However, both groups share responsibility for outcome delivery and success, requiring collaboration, adaptability, and shared risk management.
The Shift to Product-Led Organizations:
We discuss the increasing trend toward product-led models, where organizations not only deliver products but also maintain and improve them over their lifecycle. Jill and Leah explain how this organizational orientation requires new governance structures, ongoing cross-functional teams, and a centralized focus on continued customer value.
Major Obstacles and How to Overcome Them:
Unclear boundaries and competing definitions of success can undermine collaboration. Leah advises early, open conversations between product and project teams, sharing tools, aligning on metrics, and breaking down silos. Both guests emphasize that trust and communication—not just rigid processes—are foundational to effective partnerships.
Useful Links
Innovation Quote
“Trust is in fact earned in the smallest of moments. It is earned not through heroic deeds or highly visible actions, but through paying attention, listening, and gestures of genuine caring connection.” – Brené Brown
“Of all the things I’ve done, the most vital is coordinating those who work with me and aiming their efforts at a certain goal.” – Walt Disney
Application Questions
- Where in your organization do you see disconnects between your product and project counterparts? How have these affected outcomes?
- How does your team define success, and are those definitions aligned or at odds with other teams, such as project management?
- What processes or tools could be adopted or adapted to create better collaborative rhythms between product and project roles?
- Have you experienced value being lost at handoff points? What strategies could prevent that in your context?
- How can you help foster a culture where transparent conversation about roles and responsibilities is both encouraged and normalized?
Thanks!
Thank you for taking the journey to product mastery and learning with me from the successes and failures of product innovators, managers, and developers. If you enjoyed the discussion, help out a fellow product manager by sharing it using the social media buttons you see below.