Shreyas Doshi Reveals Diverse Enrollment in Product Sense Course

In a recent LinkedIn post, Shreyas Doshi shared data revealing the surprisingly diverse professional backgrounds of individuals enrolling in his Product Sense course. Far from being limited to traditional product managers, the course is attracting a wide array of roles and seniority levels across various industries.

Broadening Horizons Beyond Product Management

Doshi highlights that the enrollment data indicates a significant presence of individuals outside of direct product management roles. This challenges a potential perception that such specialized courses are exclusive to a single discipline. According to the data shared by Doshi:

“it isn’t solely product managers”

This observation sets the stage for a deeper dive into the composition of the course participants. As Shreyas Doshi points out, a substantial portion of the attendees are not just individual contributors but hold leadership positions within their product organizations.

Leadership and Design Engagement

The data indicates a strong representation from product leadership, including those at the Head of, Director, VP, SVP, and Chief Product Officer (CPO) levels. This suggests that experienced leaders are actively seeking to refine their understanding of product sense, perhaps to better mentor their teams or to stay ahead of evolving market demands. Furthermore, Doshi notes a growing interest from the design community.

Designers and Engineers Embrace Product Sense

In his post, Shreyas Doshi details the engagement from design and engineering professionals. He observes a notable increase in designers and design leaders joining the course. Additionally, a considerable number of software engineers and engineering leaders, including CTOs, VPs of Engineering, and Directors, are also participating.

“50+ designers & design leaders (recent uptrend)”

This cross-functional interest underscores a growing recognition of the importance of product sense across different departments within a company. As Doshi elaborates, this trend is even extending to teams learning together.

Emerging Team Learning Trends

A particularly interesting development highlighted by Shreyas Doshi is the trend of Product Managers, Designers, and Engineering Managers/Team Leads taking the course together. This collaborative approach to learning suggests a strategic effort by teams to build a shared understanding and vocabulary around product development and strategy.

“PM+Designer+EM/TL taking it together (new trend)”

This collaborative learning model, as observed by Doshi, can foster better communication and alignment, crucial elements for successful product launches and iterations.

Startup Founders and CEOs Championing the Course

The enrollment data also reveals significant participation from the startup ecosystem. Doshi points out that over 200 startup founders have joined the Product Sense course, with co-founders also taking the course together, a trend that has been ongoing for some time.

“200+ startup founders”

Perhaps one of the most striking insights shared by Doshi is the extent to which some CEOs are not only participating themselves but are actively encouraging their entire organizations to enroll. This top-down endorsement signifies a deep belief in the value of product sense for every employee, regardless of their functional area.

CEO-Driven Adoption Across Functions

Shreyas Doshi illustrates this commitment by noting that some CEOs are sending “every employee at their startup to Product Sense, across every function (e.g. finance, sales, marketing, operations).” This widespread adoption suggests a strategic imperative for all employees to develop a more product-centric mindset, recognizing that product success is a company-wide effort.

The insights shared by Shreyas Doshi in his LinkedIn post offer a compelling look into the evolving landscape of professional development in product-related fields, emphasizing the universal applicability and growing importance of product sense.