Bridging the Gap: Practical Tips for Product Managers Working with Developers

Advice for Developers

Prepare for frequent requirement changes In internet‑scale products, requirement revisions are routine. Write code that is reusable and extensible:

Encapsulate common UI controls and functional modules so they can be reused across features.

Avoid hard‑coding values; design APIs and data structures that can accommodate an arbitrary number of items (e.g., treat a list of five categories as n categories).

Choose implementation approaches based on the product roadmap, not just immediate cost, to minimise future re‑work.

Allocate buffer time for testing, bug fixing, and unexpected adjustments; development time is only a part of the overall delivery schedule.

Deeply understand requirements to avoid rework Misunderstanding the purpose of a feature leads to costly revisions, especially with outsourced teams. Establish early, detailed communication with the product manager to clarify user value and edge cases.

Example: Deciding whether a page should be pre‑loaded or refreshed depends on whether users typically operate on Wi‑Fi or cellular data—information the product manager can provide.

If developers foresee a mismatch between the intended outcome and the specification, raise the issue before implementation completes.

Communicate using data, theory, and concrete explanations Avoid vague refusals such as “this can’t be done.” Instead, present objective facts:

Estimated development time (e.g., three months) and why that duration is required.

Specific low‑level APIs or platform constraints (e.g., Android framework driver interfaces) that must be used.

Reference documentation or protocol specifications when needed.

Why can’t the feature be built now? It requires calls to low‑level driver interfaces defined by the Android framework, which adds three months of work.

Advice for Product Managers

Provide a clear product roadmap Share short‑term (next month), medium‑term (quarter, half‑year), and long‑term (year) goals with the development team. This enables engineers to design flexible code that can accommodate future extensions.

What problem will the product solve in a year? What should it look like in six months? Which features are essential in the next three months?

Write sufficiently detailed requirement documents Include page logic, layout, functional flow, and usage details. Explain the rationale behind each requirement so developers can select the most appropriate implementation.

When developers ask for missing pages, it often indicates that the original specification lacked necessary detail.

Understand basic development concepts Product managers need not master implementation details, but should be aware of platform capabilities (e.g., native Android widgets, limitations of H5 interactions). This knowledge helps set realistic expectations and avoids requesting impossible solutions.

Knowing that an Android native control can be integrated with a few lines of code prevents unnecessary re‑implementation.

Applying these practices—anticipating change, clarifying requirements, using data‑driven communication, planning ahead, and maintaining basic technical awareness—reduces friction between developers and product managers and leads to more efficient product delivery.