My personal favorites
Here are a few books I highly recommend. They helped me improve my product management skills.
Continuous Discovery Habits: Discover Products that Create Customer Value and Business Value
by Teresa Torres
One of the book's strengths is that it focuses on the importance of involving cross-functional teams in the product discovery process, conducting weekly customer interviews to generate and test hypotheses, and how to use customer feedback to iterate and improve your product ideas. In addition, it provides practical tips and strategies for managing these interviews effectively, ensuring they are valuable and insightful.
Running Lean: Iterate from Plan A to a Plan That Works (3rd Edition)
by Ash Maurya
It is a valuable handbook for anyone looking to validate their business idea, achieve product market fit, and bring their product to market quickly. The author provides a clear and practical framework for testing and iterating your product and focusing on identifying and solving the correct problems for the right customers.
Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products
by Nir Eyal
It is a valuable guide to creating habit-forming products. The author delves into the psychology of habit formation and provides actionable strategies for incorporating these principles into product design. The book is well-researched and stresses the importance of creating products that positively impact users' lives and not just manipulate them for profit.
The Mom Test: How to talk to customers & learn if your business is a good idea when everyone is lying to you
by Rob Fitzpatrick
A must-read for anyone who works at startups, builds products, talks to customers, or wants to sell a product or idea. It provides valuable insights into effectively gathering customer feedback and avoiding common pitfalls that lead to inaccurate data. In addition, the author's writing style is engaging and easy to understand, making it a quick read.
Think Like a UX Researcher: How to Observe Users, Influence Design, and Shape Business Strategy
by David Travis & Philip Hodgson
An incredibly dense but well-structured book for understanding the principles and practices of user experience research. It provides a wealth of information on how to conduct effective research. It also emphasizes the need to comprehensively collect attitudinal and behavioral data to understand user behavior and motivations.
Escaping the Build Trap: How Effective Product Management Creates Real Value
by Melissa Perri
This book is essential for any organization looking to become product-led. It provides a clear and actionable framework for shifting from a build-driven culture to a product-driven one. In addition, it offers practical strategies for aligning teams, making data-driven decisions, and creating value for customers.
Inspired: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love (2nd Edition)
by Marty Cagan
It provides valuable insights from top companies like Google, Apple, and Amazon on their approach to product development. In addition, it offers a clear understanding of the role of a product manager in the process and how they can drive success by covering essential topics such as understanding customers, building the right team, creating a vision and strategy, and validating and executing product ideas.
The Lean Product Playbook: How to Innovate with Minimum Viable Products and Rapid Customer Feedback
by Dan Olsen
A guide for product managers using the Lean methodology with practical tips, strategies, and real-world examples of validating product ideas, prioritizing features, and measuring success. Easy-to-digest steps, accessible for all levels, cover critical topics like customer development and creating a product roadmap.