The Punk PM #22

Hey there, punk!

We were back with ProductTank Newcastle on Wednesday, celebrating World Product Day with three amazing talks that dived deep into the future of product management in the age of AI.

One thing’s clear: product management isn’t going anywhere. But what product managers do? That’s changing fast.

Here’s what’s shifting, and why it matters.

Quote of the Week 🙊

Insight 🦉

We’re entering a new era of product management—one where you’ll have to prove you create more value than a custom GPT.

That sounds dramatic. But it’s not science fiction. It’s the very near future.

We’ve already got AI tools that can turn customer interviews into user stories, generate wireframes, write specs, and even propose roadmap priorities based on business goals. That used to be the job. But if your role is just a checklist of tasks, you're standing on thin ice.

Because what really defines product management isn’t rituals or frameworks. It’s judgement. Translation. Commercial awareness. The ability to hold ambiguity in one hand and business context in the other and still move a team forward.

The best PMs don’t just build things. They make sense of things.

As AI eats the busywork, what’s left is the real work:

• Spotting opportunities no one’s talking about yet

• Finding the signal buried in customer noise

• Asking the hard questions when no one else wants to

• Turning a vague hunch into a valuable hypothesis

• Knowing when to trust your gut and when to get the data

AI can simulate answers, but it doesn’t understand stakes. It doesn’t see trade-offs, feel tension, or carry context forward from the last five times that idea didn’t work. That’s your edge.

Product management isn’t being replaced, it’s being revealed.

Back in the 1930s, P&G’s original “brand men” weren’t writing specs or running sprints. They were stewards of strategy. Responsible for delivering customer understanding, market impact, and business results. That’s the original mould. And it fits now more than ever.

So if you’ve built your craft around clarity, curiosity, and commercial thinking you’re right where you need to be.

But if you’ve built it around admin and ceremony? It’s time to move.

AI has automated the surface. What matters now is depth. 

Action 🚀

This week, audit your own value. Write down everything you did in your last sprint and circle what only you could’ve done.

That’s the work worth focusing on.

Inspiration 💡

Knowledge Work Is Dying—Here’s What Comes Next – Joe Hudson argues that as AI takes over information-based tasks, emotional clarity and relational intelligence will define the next wave of impactful work. In a world of infinite answers, discernment is the real differentiator. Read more

The Thing You Are Expert At Will Be Your Career Downfall – Julie Zhuo explores how deep expertise can become a trap in the age of AI. When you’ve built your identity around mastery, it’s hard to let go, even when the ground is shifting beneath you. Adaptability is the new superpower. Read more

Are You Better Than ChatGPT? – Leah Reich makes the case for human empathy in a world of machine-generated answers. AI can reply, but it can’t relate. The ability to ask better questions—and truly listen—might just be your most valuable skill. Read more

Signing Off ✍️

If this week’s edition hit home, hit reply and let me know what you’re doubling down on and what you’re letting go of. And if you’ve got a colleague who’s feeling a little too cosy in their Jira cocoon, maybe send this their way.

Play it your way,

Toby