Why Your Salesforce Instance Needs a Product Manager
I’ve worked with countless Salesforce instances, especially for organizations with 5-1,000 users, and I’m constantly struck by a recurring issue: the lack of product management. Most people associate product management with the products or services a company sells, but the truth is, internal platforms like CRMs also need product management.
Without it, CRMs often go sideways—becoming misaligned with business needs, underutilized, or riddled with inefficiencies. Even if you don’t have a dedicated Product Manager (PM) for Salesforce, you need someone in your organization—preferably an employee—who takes on these responsibilities.
Here’s why this role is critical, what happens when it’s missing, and how a Product Manager can transform your Salesforce instance.
The Problems With Not Having a Product Manager
No Single Individual Balancing Platform Capability with Business Needs
Without a PM, there's no one with both the technical understanding of Salesforce’s potential and the business acumen to ensure it aligns with your organization's goals. This gap often leads to underused features, misaligned processes, and wasted investment.
No Structure for Managing Platform Changes
CRMs evolve over time—whether through new feature rollouts, integrations, or shifts in business priorities. Without a structured approach to managing these changes, the platform can quickly become chaotic, with poorly implemented updates or mismatched priorities derailing progress.
Unclear Accountability for Long-Term Success
A Salesforce admin, while essential, isn’t typically tasked with driving the platform’s long-term strategy. They may lack the capacity or the cross-functional insight required to ensure Salesforce supports overarching business goals.
Why CRMs Need Product Management
Large-scale internal platforms like CRMs are just as complex and dynamic as any product a company sells. They’re integral to daily operations and can be a game-changer for growth—if managed properly. A Product Manager ensures that happens by overseeing the lifecycle and health of the platform.
Unlike an admin or technical specialist, a Product Manager focuses on strategy, cross-department collaboration, and the big picture. Their role is to connect Salesforce’s capabilities to your business needs, ensuring the platform supports organizational goals both now and in the future.
What Does a Product Manager Do?
Strategic Oversight
Set the roadmap and strategy for the platform.
Ensure Salesforce aligns with long-term business goals and adapts as those goals evolve.
Prioritize Initiatives
Evaluate competing priorities and determine what gets built, updated, or integrated based on impact and feasibility.
Stakeholder Management
Work across departments to understand needs, manage expectations, and align efforts.
Coordination
Bring together technical teams, business leaders, and end users to ensure smooth implementation and updates.
Data Management
Oversee governance, data migration, and the structure of data within Salesforce to ensure accuracy, accessibility, and usability.
Leadership in Change Management
Manage platform changes proactively, ensuring updates or new features are adopted effectively and do not disrupt operations.
The Value of a Product Manager for Salesforce
A Product Manager doesn’t just maintain the status quo—they drive the success of Salesforce as a business-critical tool. Here’s what they bring to the table:
Alignment Across Departments: They break down silos, ensuring the platform works for everyone—from sales to marketing to operations.
Proactive Platform Health: Instead of reacting to issues, they anticipate and plan for the platform’s growth and evolution.
Efficient Use of Resources: By prioritizing initiatives and managing changes, they ensure time and money aren’t wasted on misaligned efforts.
A Focus on Business Outcomes: Unlike a purely technical role, the PM ties every decision back to overarching business goals.
Final Thoughts
If your organization uses Salesforce—or any CRM—and you don’t have a Product Manager (or someone acting in that capacity), it’s time to rethink your approach. A Salesforce admin can handle technical configurations, but they aren’t typically tasked with or equipped for strategic decision-making.
By adding a Product Manager to your team, you’ll create a roadmap for Salesforce that aligns with your business, drives adoption, and ensures the platform remains a powerful asset for years to come. Because when no one owns the platform’s strategy, the platform can’t fully support your strategy. And that’s a problem you can’t afford to ignore.
