Product Gym
Product Gym Overview and Guide
Product Gym is a members-only product management program that focuses on career acceleration and helping its members land product management jobs. Based in New York City, the six-week program for members includes career coaching from experts in the field as well as skill-enhancing workshops and interview feedback.
Product Gym offers up-to-date and realistic product management tools, both for those looking to break into product management and for full-time PM veterans looking for their next position. In this Product Gym review, we cover everything you should know about this professional association.
What You Need to Know About Product Gym
Product Gym is a membership-based association and professional community for product managers that offers networking opportunities, career coaching, no-nonsense feedback, and a special six-week course to its members.
- Cost: $6,000
- Schedules: Part-Time, Online
- Courses Offered: Product Management
- Upcoming Start Dates: Rolling start dates
Product Gym Curricula: What Can You Study?
Product Gym’s curriculum focuses on honing participants’ ability to secure jobs as product managers. To help members generate more phone interviews and nail their onsite interviews, Product Gym’s team of instructors coaches them through the most up-to-date practices and lets them in on industry-insider tips.
Below is a rundown of all the topics covered in the Product Gym curriculum.
Product Management Fundamentals
All product managers need to know the tricks of the trade. Members will therefore learn how to create product roadmaps, how to conduct business and market analysis, how to define a minimum viable product (MVP), how to evaluate both objective and key results (OKRs) and key performance indicators (KPIs), how to build stakeholder consensus, and more.
Interview Fundamentals
Members will learn questions commonly asked at the first, second, and third onsite Interviews, as evaluated by Product Gym’s team of seasoned instructors. They’ll also learn which questions they should ask recruiters during the interview process.
Case Study and Whiteboarding
This session will prepare participants to respond to case study scenarios during their product management interviews. You will learn strategies for limiting the scope of vague or open-ended questions, turning them in your favor.
Technical Product Management
This section will address the technical programming knowledge that product managers are expected to have. Whether you have a background in software engineering or no experience at all, this module will help you speak the language of the tech industry.
Preparing for Product Launch
Participants will be asked to walk instructors through a product they’ve launched from start to finish. They will be prompted to reflect on what stakeholders they want to work with, how they will position their product in a competitive market, and who their target market is.
Data Science for Product Managers
This section will address the industry’s current expectations around what product managers need to know about data science. By the end of the module, members will know what “data-driven decision-making” really means and be able to explain to an interviewer how their previous work has embodied this principle.
Resume, LinkedIn, Cover Letter
Members will craft custom resumes and branded cover letters that are sure to win them multiple interviews. Moreover, you will focus on crafting your online persona, including how to optimize your LinkedIn profile so that AI recruiting software will take notice.
Finally, participants will learn the exclusive Product Gym methodology for job applications, which has been proven to generate many interview inquiries.
Master the PM Pitch
Being able to pitch yourself is an essential skill. Here members will learn what details to include, which to omit, and how to make a product manager interview feel more like a conversation.
UX Research, Design, and Visual
In this section of the program, participants will learn what their UX designer and visual designer colleagues will need from them in their product manager role.
Engineering and Product
An experienced tech lead will coach members on what technical concepts they need to know to nail the product manager interview.
Product Marketing vs. Product
The job of a product manager depends on the size of the company you’re working for. Here, participants will learn the responsibilities that product managers carry at each type of company, considering differences in how products are brought to market, priced, and promoted.
Working with Data
In this part of the curriculum, members learn about data analytics, exploring how to deal with the data they receive and how to ensure that they interpret it properly.
Product Gym Campuses: Where Can You Study?
Product Gym offers courses both online and in-person, and members have reported that both delivery methods are effective. Formal classes are held in New York City, but Product Gym also hosts events in one other physical location.
- New York City
- San Francisco
- Online
Product Gym Schedules: When Can You Study?
Part-Time
Product Gym’s six-week program takes place on Saturdays. Classes run from 9:30am to 3:30pm, with a half-hour break for lunch.
Each morning session focuses on product management fundamentals, interview preparation, and data science. After lunch, students turn their attention to resume and cover letter building, pitching, UX design, engineering, and product marketing.
Exclusive Access to Online Resources
Outside of the six-week curriculum, members benefit from guidance and insights from other members of the Product Gym community. The courses, workshops, and coaching calls are all available as recordings, so you can access them in any time zone and at any time.
Product Gym Tuition
If paid upfront, the Product Gym subscription fee is $6,000. If paid in installments, the cost ranges from $7,500 to $9,000.
Product Gym Financing and Payment Options
- Upfront Payment. Participants who can afford to pay $6,000 all at once get the best deal on membership.
- Two Payments. If upfront payment isn’t possible, participants can pay $3,750 in two installments, bringing the total to $7,500.
- Three Payments. Participants can also choose to pay $3,000 in three installments, bringing the total to $9,000.
Product Gym Admissions: How To Get In
The Product Gym membership package is all about giving you no-nonsense, honest feedback. You may be surprised to learn that you were doing product management work in your previous roles, just without the official title.
For this reason, if you have the passion, focus, and discipline for product management, you are encouraged to apply, even if you think you may not be qualified enough.
Product Gym Application
There is no formal written application for Product Gym. Instead, you can schedule a consultation with one of its career counselors by visiting the website.
Product Gym Interview
During your 30-minute Zoom consultation call, you will tell the career counselor about yourself and your goals, and you’ll have a chance to learn more about the program and curriculum. By the end of the call, you’ll have everything you need to decide whether you want to buy a membership.
Product Gym Admission Rate: What Are My Chances of Getting In?
There is no admission rate at Product Gym, as admissions are membership-based.
Product Gym Outcomes: Will I Find A Job?
Product Gym’s entire focus is on helping members land product management jobs. All of the staff are former technical recruiters and product managers who have insider tips that they are eager to share with members.
Job Placement Services at Product Gym
As a member, you will have unlimited access to career coaches, tailored interview feedback, and access to skill-based workshops. Many current and former members of Product Gym have given testimonials indicating that the association’s services have helped them secure jobs in product management.
Should You Apply To Product Gym?
If you’re looking for guidance on how to land a job in product management, Product Gym is for you. With its team of expert instructors, Product Gym makes skill acquisition feasible for all its members. Below are some things to consider as you think about becoming a member.
- Commitment. Product Gym pushes members to make the most out of the curriculum. You’ll need to make sure you’re committed to product management before you apply to Product Gym.
- Member Community. Product Gym does not call itself a bootcamp or a school, but rather a community. Being a part of this community presents plenty of opportunities for networking and skill-sharing.
- Career Support. Members of Product Gym are afforded one-on-one career coaching, as well as other kinds of career support. From an exclusive alumni network to salary and negotiation support, there is a wide range of ways in which Product Gym supports the career aspirations of its members.
Product management is a difficult field to navigate. While product managers are in high demand, the combination of technical and soft skills that the role requires can be hard to acquire without guidance. Product Gym’s goal is to provide space for that guidance, fostering a community of product managers who can help each other succeed.
From the six-week program to workshops to career coaching services, Product Gym works to advance the career interests of all its members. If you feel ready to dedicate yourself to a career in product management, then Product Gym is for you.
Price Range
$0-$3,995Programs Available
Programs Pace
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6 Reviews
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Anonymous
Let me tell you something you don’t want to do this job search during Q4. I am going to give it to you bluntly. DON’T JOIN THIS PROGRAM UNLESS YOU WANT TO BE A PRODUCT MANAGER, UNLESS THIS IS WHAT YOU FEEL IS YOUR DESTINY. The process is very simple, clear, and straightforward. Come prepared, pay attention, do the work, and get ready to be pushed. There is no way for ego here. There is no room for doubt, because the people that come to Product Gym are about one life and that is GET A PRODUCT MANAGER JOB OR DIE TRYING. Thank god for me, I got the job and didn’t die. You have to be about this life. I don’t understand people that say this is their passion and this is their dream, but don’t do the work. Bring your A game and you will be fine.
February 20, 2019
Anonymous
I come from banking as the title suggest and I can tell you that I am doing great right now. I am crushing the job. “Crushing It” is a term we love to use at PG and I am feeling just that, as if I have control over what I am doing. Product Gym is viciously effective in helping you get the job. Don’t worry if you ARE accepted into the program, you will be fine so as long as you do the work.
My first 30 days on the job, I was crushed though. That time was tough, but I recall I didn’t do so well my first 30 days in banking, college, or anything else I did for the first time. You will make mistakes and that’s okay. I made tons and you know what its fine here. Most people carry with them the baggage they had from their previous careers thinking product is going to be like that, but its not and that’s why you were drawn to the experience anyways. Stop thinking you need to know everything and just trust the process. Take it from me; it took me 8 months to land this job, but I know I could have done it earlier if I wasn’t getting in my own way all the time.
March 22, 2019
Anonymous
I first met Richard when I joined a Product Management Resume Building webinar a few weeks prior. I quite honestly had very little expectations about the seminar, but was pleasantly surprised with how much guidance I received from Richard in that one-hour session. Subsequently, we also were able to set up a 30-minute consult to discuss our resume and LinkedIn profiles in more depth (as part of the webinar). Yet again, I went in anticipating that I’d receive a few nuggets of knowledge at best. But… that was far from what actually happened. Not only was I provided a WEALTH of information in that Zoom chat, I also received an astounding amount of tangible data and feedback that I can act on. Say that to say, that I am appreciative of the content that Richard and the Product Gym team have curated, and I highly suggest that anyone on the PM job hun consider it to give you that extra UMPF across the finish line!
April 26, 2019
Anonymous
Rich has great advice and tons of helpful resources.
He definitely knows what he is talking about and has successfully pushed people through this process many times.
If you are on the fence, his ability to help negotiate your offer will essentially cover the cost of the course.
April 29, 2019
Anonymous
they were Great and were able to provide detailed feedback. Rich and Cody are an amazing team and the practical advice provided is invaluable.
June 27, 2019
Anonymous
It’s amazing that this stuff isn’t taught in school
I took this course on recommendation of two people that had taken this before. I was HIGHLY skeptical of the information during the info session I attended. Especially when they were touting 20+ interviews a week. I’ve been a PM before and wasn’t nearly getting that. I also was confused about what I was actually buying. Is this interview coaching or is this a class on PM?
The answer I learned is both. The PM classes are taught by people that do the actual work they teach, data scientist teaches data science, engineers teach engineering etc. And then Rich, Cody and RK do the coaching parallel to the program…and it was problematic for me because nothing they told me made any sense… Until I really got more interviews than I could handle. I did more interviews in a two week span than I had done in the 10+ years I was out of school. And I learned their coaching is a direct response to the recruiting industry and all its inherent biases. You learn exactly, and I mean exactly – down to the word – how to take advantage of this information asymmetry to use to your benefit through PG.
This program requires a little bit of blind faith, no doubt. Where these people shine is that they care about the results. And it shows–another review said how the PG is a bit unrefined and unprofessional. It’s true. They don’t have the fancy template slides, the nice projectors, their email and messages sound like a drill sergeant more than a coach. Rich said it best tho. You’re not signing up for Product Spa. It’s a gym. It gets grimey. And the gains you make are on you. You need to push the weights. Otherwise, why bother paying.
I had a few people in my cohort that took Product School which I was also considering, but I ultimately felt that Product School wouldn’t actually be able to get me a job. I didn’t have confidence that they knew what they were talking about about job acquisition. This was confirmed by the people in my Product Gym cohort. Alot I’d general information but nothing that could be used tactically or what I didn’t already know.
For an already seasoned PM like me, what made me join was actually hearing the students in the cohort talk about their interview experience. These were people with almost no product manager title but got more interviews and rounds than myself. I found that slightly insulting and frankly jealous. For me, these people were taking opportunities away from me but I quickly learned that the program teaches you, forces you to start talking like a PM. I slowly learned how to articulate my experiences in ways that other people could understand and digest. I learned that a first round recruiter call is different than a hiring manager and you have to tailor your pitch to them.
I highly recommend this course to people that are serious about getting the job, whether you have PM experience or not. Just be prepared for the work and their harsh process.
August 15, 2019