Product management is fundamentally broken — there’s no clear strategy, vision, or leadership
- PMs are often sidelined by engineering or commercial teams and reduced to project coordination roles with little real ownership
- Major decisions (including team structure and priorities) are made without product input
- There’s no product methodology, no shared frameworks, and no culture of product excellence
- Leadership avoids conflict and defers decision-making, leaving teams in a state of chronic ambiguity
- Middle managers are promoted based on tenure, not capability — often acting as passive stewards rather than actual leaders
- Promotions and leadership roles are filled through opaque, closed-door processes
- The leadership layer lacks diversity — culturally homogeneous, predominantly Dutch
- Constructive feedback is routinely dismissed as “negative”, psychological safety is low. If you’re deemed as a problem, you will be forced out with bullying and coercion
- Recognition is inconsistent, there’s no equity, and no meaningful performance-based reward system
- Career growth for PMs is limited unless you’re part of the internal inner circle which is white and Dutch, or in some teams Brazilian. If you are in this circle you can do anything, like start your own team or move abroad as a lead of a product you’ve never managed before
- Overall team morale and structure have suffered due to avoidance, inconsistency, and lack of advocacy from leadership
