u/Maverick2k2

After spending most of the last decade working across project management, Scrum, Agile delivery, programme management and transformation, I’ve decided to move back into Product Management.

This wasn’t an easy decision because delivery has given me a really broad skillset: stakeholder management, planning, prioritisation, risk management, Agile, transformation and working across complex organisations.

But over the last year or so, I’ve become increasingly concerned about where the delivery profession is heading.

I’m seeing a lot of very experienced Scrum Masters, Agile Coaches, Delivery Managers and Project/Programme Managers struggling to find their next role. At the same time, it feels like organisations are consolidating roles and expecting Product Managers, Engineering Managers and other leaders to absorb more of the traditional delivery responsibilities.

I don’t think delivery is disappearing. Complex organisations will always need people who can actually get things done.

But personally, I didn’t want to keep specialising further and further into delivery and then find myself overly dependent on one type of role.
My background was already fairly broad. I started in technology, worked in Product Management earlier in my career, and then moved increasingly into Agile, delivery and business transformation.
So I’ve decided to move back towards Product, while taking all of that delivery and transformation experience with me.

What appeals to me about Product is being closer to the actual decisions: understanding user problems, setting direction, prioritising, making trade-offs, working with engineering and ultimately being accountable for whether something creates value.

I’m not saying Product is safer, better, or immune from the same market pressures. It isn’t.

For me, this is more about broadening my options rather than becoming increasingly specialised in one profession.

Has anyone else made the move from Delivery / Programme Management / Agile into Product?
Interested to hear whether you think the delivery profession is genuinely changing, or whether this is just a particularly bad job market.

I’ve accepted an alternative offer, but it was a great experience nevertheless.

All of the Amazonians I met throughout the process were fantastic, and I really appreciated everyone on here who took the time to share their insights.

In hindsight, I could have prepared differently, particularly by having a stronger Disagree and Commit example.

The example I gave to the hiring manager didn’t really demonstrate the principle, and I suspect that may ultimately have counted against me. I remember how a lot of the questions during that particular interview were focused on handling conflict and disagreement - unfortunately had very few examples prepared.

My impression is that the process leaves very little room for a weak interview. You can perform strongly across most of the loop, but one interview where you don’t demonstrate the required signals clearly enough can make a significant difference.

Unfortunately for me, that was my first interview with the hiring manager, while I was still getting used to the process and format. As the interviews progressed I did find that I was getting better at doing it.

Either way, it was a valuable experience, and I learned a lot from going through it.

Good experience nevertheless.

Thanks again all.

I do not work at Amazon, but interested in joining.

I think I’ve read everything on here, from sexual harassment cases, slave labour to people being put onto PIPs in their notice period.

I have never worked in any org where this happens.

Are HR reviewing posts on here?

I’m sure there are other perspective joiners looking at this sub and thinking wtf.

Disclaimer: I don’t have any particular opinion about Amazon, positive or negative. I’m just someone trying to learn more about what it’s like to work there.

I interviewed for a L7 IC role. Finished the loop.

Overall it was a good experience, I’m glad I did it; after reading the horror stories here, I was expecting to meet psychopaths. All the interviewers were friendly , and candid about their time at Amazon. They were very senior , all Directors. I felt I really vibed with the final interviewer; turned out that like me he is a bit entrepreneurial. What a cool guy.

Many also openly spoke about their challenges during their time there and their learnings. I really appreciated that. I could relate to some of their challenges whilst working in other companies.

They did all mention that working at Amazon is demanding but you can learn a lot.

I have had a lot worse interviews in other companies - a couple in Consulting were a blood bath in the final round - a grilling and a cross-examination.

With Amazon yes they probed but it wasn’t done in a negative way. It was to understand how you did something and the thinking behind it.

I am exhausted , having 4 interviews in a single day was insane but I enjoyed the experience. I treated it as meeting Amazonians rather than getting attached to an outcome.

Hi all,

I’m in a bit of a dilemma and would appreciate some advice.

I currently have a couple of offers, but I’m also waiting for Amazon to schedule my final-round interview loop. I’ve told the recruiter that I need to complete the interviews this week, but they seem to be struggling to get everything booked in.

They’ve also suggested times that clash with other final-round interviews I already have scheduled.

The difficulty is that most of the other companies I’ve interviewed with have only had a couple of rounds, whereas Amazon’s process is much longer. I’m interested in the Amazon role, so part of me wants to wait it out, but I’m conscious that I could end up losing the offers I already have while waiting for Amazon to organise the loop.

My main concern is ending up in the worst-case scenario: going through the full Amazon loop, not getting the role, and then finding that the offers I already had have expired or been withdrawn.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? Would you keep pushing Amazon to get the loop scheduled, wait it out, or prioritise the offers already on the table?

I’ve been parachuted into transformation roles a number of times over the years. It started with the emergence of Agile, when organisations were looking for people to come in and implement new ways of working.

I’ve generally seen these situations play out in one of two ways:

You have executive sponsorship.

There is clear backing for the change, which gives you the authority and support needed to implement meaningful improvements.

You don’t have executive sponsorship.

Instead, you’re expected to drive the transformation through a senior manager. If that person doesn’t come from a transformation background, doesn’t share the same view of what needs to change, or is resistant to the change itself, you can quickly find yourself blocked.
The difficult part is what happens over time.

The underlying problems remain because you haven’t been given the authority or sponsorship needed to address them, but you can ultimately find yourself being held accountable - or even scapegoated - for those same problems continuing to exist.

Is this a common experience for people working in transformation and change roles?

And if you find yourself in the second situation, how do you navigate it successfully?

How do you create meaningful change when you’re accountable for transformation but don’t necessarily have the authority or sponsorship to make it happen?

I am in my early 40s and currently work in a Delivery role within the Product and Technology function of a large organisation.

Over the past few years, my role has expanded beyond traditional Delivery Management. I’ve helped introduce a more structured product operating model, portfolio roadmaps, quarterly planning, governance, reporting and delivery metrics. I also recently led a major internal tooling migration.

The experience has been valuable, but I’m increasingly unhappy with my current situation.

My relationship with my manager has become difficult. We have different views on how work should be delivered: I favour clear ownership, proportionate discovery, documented requirements and structured handovers, while my manager prefers a more informal, self-organising approach.

There have been occasions where Delivery has been held accountable for progress without being included in relevant discussions or having access to the information needed to provide effective oversight. My documented performance goals have also not always matched the expectations I was later assessed against.

I also don’t feel actively supported or sponsored for progression. My remit has gradually shifted away from some of the broader transformation work I previously handled towards more routine coordination and administrative responsibilities. Career-development discussions have been effectively non-existent, so I’ve had to seek mentoring elsewhere within the organisation.

The organisation is also restructuring and redundancies are taking place, so the perceived security of remaining where I am may not be as strong as it once was. I enjoy working with many of my colleagues, but I don’t see a clear progression path in my current team and worry that staying will leave me increasingly typecast in Delivery.
I’ve now received an offer from a large global consultancy for a Senior Consultant role focused on AI Product Management and transformation.

The role would involve owning product vision and backlogs, leading cross-functional teams, working directly with clients, supporting AI discovery and experimentation, and contributing to proposals and consulting propositions.

The attraction is that it would give me formal experience in Product Management, AI and consulting, which could broaden my future options. However, I’m unsure whether moving into consulting is the best route to long-term progression, or whether I would be better staying put and waiting for a more senior Product or Product Operations opportunity. I am interviewing in tier 1 companies for Senior Delivery and Transformation roles.

My concerns are the usual consulting risks: travel, inconsistent assignments, pressure to remain billable and the possibility that some projects may be more Delivery-focused than genuine Product Management. The specific client assignment would also not be confirmed until closer to joining.

Would you stay in the current role and continue looking, accept the consultancy offer to build formal AI Product Management experience, or hold out for something more senior?

I’d particularly appreciate perspectives from people who have moved from Delivery into Product, worked in consulting or made a similar career change in their 40s.

I’m a Delivery Manager in a large organisation. I introduced shared roadmaps, regular refinement sessions, Jira standards and sprint planning, which work well with most Product Leads.

The main issue is my manager, who is also the Product Owner for some of the initiatives I support. He often has discovery conversations or changes priorities without including me or documenting the outcome.

He can be unresponsive when I ask for updates, but later holds me accountable when delivery is delayed or unclear.
I’m expected to own delivery artefacts and keep work moving, but I’m not always given the product requirements or decisions needed.

If I investigate deeply, I’m told I’m “too curious.” If I wait for Product input, I’m told I should have chased harder.

Is this normal for a Delivery Manager, or am I being given accountability without the information and authority needed to succeed?

I’ve reached a bit of a career crossroads and would love to hear from people who’ve worked in both Delivery and Product.

I’ve spent much of my career in delivery and programme roles, helping teams plan, prioritise and deliver products.

Over the years, though, I’ve noticed that while delivery plays a huge role in successful outcomes, Product Managers often receive more visibility, recognition and career progression.

Many I’ve worked with have gone on to become Heads of Product or Product Directors, while delivery career paths seem much narrower.

Outside of work, I’ve recently built and launched a couple of AI-assisted mobile apps. I found I genuinely enjoyed identifying user problems, prioritising features, iterating based on feedback and deciding what to build. It made me realise I may enjoy product management more than delivery.

For those who’ve made the switch:

Was it the right move?

Is Product genuinely a better long-term career, or am I seeing it through rose-tinted glasses?

Has a delivery background helped you as a Product Manager?

I’d really appreciate hearing from people who’ve experienced both sides.

Hi - I’m dealing with a difficult situation at work and would appreciate some advice.

I’m a Delivery Manager where my Product Owner is also my line manager, but they are largely absent from the day-to-day delivery process. When new initiatives come up, it often takes a long time for them to raise the right tickets, provide context, or clarify priorities.

They also regularly miss check-in meetings where we’re supposed to discuss sprint goals and progress. This leaves me trying to keep things moving without enough direction or visibility.

The issue is that whenever I raise this, the responsibility seems to get pushed back onto me, as though I should somehow be managing the gaps myself.

I’m trying to handle this professionally and avoid making it personal, but it’s becoming difficult because the lack of input is affecting delivery and clarity for the team.

Has anyone dealt with a PO or manager like this before? How would you approach it without making the relationship worse?

What is the community thoughts on Agile and AI?

I’ve seen a lot of advice suggesting that Scrum Masters should become more technical. I tried to take that approach, but my manager’s feedback was that I should focus more on managing flow, removing blockers and supporting delivery, rather than developing technical knowledge.

Their view was that the team already has technical and domain experts, so my role should be to enable those people rather than risk stepping into their area of expertise. I was also criticised for contributing to technical discussions, as this was seen as outside the expected scope of my role.

My role now is mainly focused on facilitating ceremonies, backlog management and improving ways of working. I work in a large organisation, so there is a clear separation between delivery, product and technical responsibilities.

Advice here is complete opposite to my experience working in a large well known org.