Introduction

SaaS teams need more than builders to win today. The new trio - PM, PMM, and Growth - is key to making products succeed.

What's the problem it solves?

In fast-moving SaaS markets, building a good product is no longer enough. Many teams rely only on the old trio (Product Manager, Engineer, Designer), which can result in products that are built well but don’t sell, grow, or connect with the right people. The article argues we now need a new trio that also includes a Product Marketing Manager and a Growth Owner to get the full job done.

Quick Summary

The author shares two product stories from the same company. One failed to grow despite being useful, while the other landed deals before launch. The difference was not in how the products were built but in how they were positioned, marketed, and sold. The lesson: product quality is only part of the story. Without strong messaging and smart growth plans, good products fall flat.

With AI making it faster to build products, it's now even more important to get the go-to-market parts right. The author suggests a new trio - Product Manager (PM), Product Marketing Manager (PMM), and Growth Owner. Each has a different focus: the PM makes the product, the PMM shapes the story, and the Growth Owner builds systems to attract and keep users. When these three work together, they can cover more ground and help the company grow faster.

To make this work, companies should start by teaching teams what each role does and why it matters. PMs and PMMs must align early in the process. Growth Owners should be added only after product-market fit is clear. Over time, this trio can help teams think beyond features and start building businesses that last.

Key Takeaways from the article

• Building great products is no longer enough - you need great positioning and smart growth
• The classic PM-Engineer-Designer model falls short in today’s SaaS environment
• A new trio (PM, PMM, Growth) brings product, message, and traction together
• Each role has a unique focus but shares a common goal: building a successful, scalable product
• Many companies still don’t understand the full value of product marketing or growth roles
• Educating leadership and syncing early in the product cycle are key to making the trio work
• Don’t add a Growth role too early - it works best once you have product-market fit

What to do

• Start by aligning PM and PMM through shared goals and early collaboration
• Educate leadership and teams on what PMMs and Growth roles actually do
• Use internal training to explain the difference between feature building and market success
• PMMs should join product planning early - not after features are already built
• Use tools like SPACER to keep positioning and messaging in sync
• Delay hiring a Growth Owner until you have enough data and users to run real experiments
• Once you have the trio, meet regularly to share updates on product, messaging, and user behavior
• Focus early growth experiments on user retention before expanding to new users
• Create shared success metrics across the trio - not just individual KPIs
• Build habits of internal launches, shared messaging, and cross-team visibility

This model helps teams stop working in silos and start building products that actually grow and sell.

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