Product Manager Cover Letter

So you’ve finished your degree and earned a little on-the-job experience through an entry-level position. You’re now skilled enough to apply for a product management position with a company you’ve had your eye on. Your resume is up to date with all of your hard-earned skills and knowledge around product planning, verification, pricing, and forecasting, and you’re well-acquainted with the technical fundamentals.

But there’s something missing: the perfect cover letter.

We’re going to walk you through how to write a cover letter that stands out for all the right reasons, so you’re in the running for that high-dollar product management position.

Why Do I Need a Product Manager Cover Letter?

Landing a product manager role with a reputable company can be tough—a well-structured resume may not be enough to secure an interview. That’s where your cover letter comes in. A great cover letter gives your prospective employer insight into your approach to life and work, as well as your general attitude to learning. It gives you a chance to frame your knowledge and skills in a way that highlights the value you could add to the company. A cover letter is where you can present a professional narrative that a resume or CV may not communicate.

How Do I Write a Product Manager Cover Letter?

If you’re stuck on how to write a cover letter in terms of style and content, fear not—you’ve come to the right place. This article will show you how to write a cover letter that’s tailored specifically to the position of product manager. First, let’s take a quick look at the key differences between a cover letter and a resume.

Cover Letter:

• A self-introduction briefly describing who you are, the role you’re applying for, and why you’re an ideal candidate for the position.
• Typically consists of three to four paragraphs, and should be written in a friendly tone.

Resume:

• A document providing a detailed overview of your professional background, skills, qualifications, and other relevant information.
• Usually includes bullet points highlighting relevant experience and educational qualifications.

How Should a Product Manager Cover Letter Sound?

It’s important to use the right tone in your cover letter. You want to establish a friendly yet professional voice that emphasizes your enthusiasm for the role and engages the reader’s attention enough that they want to finish your letter and move onto your resume. Your letter should be relatively formal and consistent in style; it should showcase your grasp of language and your ability to express yourself persuasively.

Below are a few tips to keep in mind as you draft your product manager cover letter:

1. Jot down all the key points you want to include before you begin to write the letter.
2. Start by describing what interests you about the company and the position.
3. Discuss your interest in product management and give a brief outline of qualifications.
4. Describe your experience and and perhaps the latest product you have managed, emphasizing how your experience has strengthened your skills.
5. Finally, provide a convincing statement about your skills and why you think the company should hire you.
6. Each paragraph should contain a distinct point but also make a cohesive connection with the next, so it flows and makes sense to the reader.
7. Don’t repeat points or your perspective employer may give up reading early.
8. Keep an eye on the length of the letter—if it’s too short or too long, you’ll lose the the reader’s attention quickly.
9. The ideal length is three to four short paragraphs, each with different content.
10. Once you’ve finished drafting, be sure to review your letter, looking out for spelling mistakes and grammatical errors.

What Should a Product Manager Cover Letter Include?

The most important thing to get across in your letter is why you believe you’re suited to the role. In order to do this, you have to structure your cover letter in a cohesive manner. Your product manager cover letter should:

State what interested you in the role and what specific skills you’ll bring to it.

Mention your highest educational qualification and the duration of your experience. For example: “I hold a Certificate of Product Management from X and bring over four years’ experience in the field”.

Describe your most recent work achievement. For example: “I have recently managed the launch of product A and B”. This provides the employer with a concrete example of your achievements.

Explain how your skills and experience will allow you to excel in this position. For example: “My engineering and management degree has provided me with an exceptional grasp of the technical aspects of the role, an eye for detail at every level, and the ability to envision the future of a product. I don’t confine myself to being solely a product manager, but also consider myself a leader in promotional campaigns”.

Showcase your knowledge of the company and your excitement to work with it. This is important because you need to demonstrate that you’ve thought about what you can bring to the company, not just why it’d be great for you.

Show that you don’t shy away from taking risks, and your experience has helped you to develop your risk management skills.

What Should a Product Manager Cover Letter NOT Include?

Remember to keep your letter succinct and to the point, with no repetition of key points. Your product manager cover letter should NOT include:

• Unnecessary details about your passions and hobbies that aren’t directly related to product management.
• Long descriptive words or complicated terms to demonstrate your knowledge.
• Unflattering remarks about your current or previous employer. This is likely to raise a red flag to a potential recruiter and indicate performance management issues.

Example of a Great Product Manager Cover Letter

To give you a clearer picture of how to structure your product manager cover letter, below is a sample.

Dear Mr. Z,

I am writing to apply for the position of product manager at Klara. With more than three years’ experience working as a product manager for numerous tech companies, I believe I’d be a good fit for this position and am confident I can implement my extensive knowledge and skillset for the benefit of the company.

I finished my MBA after completing chemical engineering and immediately joined Zen, where I have been responsible for managing a dynamic product line while coordinating and connecting appropriate teams to ensure a smooth product development workflow.

Some of my duties at Zen included:

• Interacting with multiple stakeholders
• Developing a roadmap for product development
• QA testing
• Analyzing potential partner relationships for the product

I am highly adept at ensuring the buy-in of stakeholders and aiding in team collaboration. Throughout my current tenure, I was able to successfully launch ten products, which were created by several cross-functional global teams. This experience has helped me to gain a more sophisticated insight into customer motivation.

I also have a background in Agile methodology and have worked as a Scrum Master for a number of software projects before working as product management lead. I have used my experience to establish new development protocols that align with the latest requirements.

I am hopeful that my strengths, knowledge and experience will be of benefit to your company, and I look forward to discussing this further with you in person. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Best regards,
Titas

How to Begin a Career in Product Management

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, product manager positions are likely to grow 10% by 2026. Product management brings together multiple disciplines and involves working with people across different functions, including engineering, user design, marketing, finance and budgeting. If you’re wondering who should pursue a product management career—the answer is there’s no one single background that’s the perfect fit for product management, and you don’t need to be an expert in every area. You just need to know which experts to call on.

Many product managers start out as engineers, have completed a bachelor’s degree in business, or may even have an MBA. If you’re interested in adapting your skills to the field of product management, Thinkful’s online Product Management Course teaches you how to manage product lifecycles, in a flexible format with the security of a career guarantee when you graduate. You can start today and sign up for immediate access to course materials, one-on-one mentorship, and career guidance. Your first 15 days are free and any work done during this time counts towards your graduation if you choose to enroll at the end of the 15 day period. Time to break into the tech industry in the exciting field of product management.