When we were laying the foundations for kickstarting the Product Management Club in April 2023, the team members penned a vision: “To empower product management enthusiasts at Purdue with industry-relevant skills by facilitating knowledge exchange through community events and mentorship.” I have been stoked to see this vision turn into reality over the last year.

It was no easy feat for our team to be able to host renowned product leaders like Diego Granados (a.k.a. PM Diego, Google) and Ross Belmont (Director, Salesforce). Nor was it simple to offer engaging, student-centric professional development sessions like an AI Panel and intensive workshops on Figma and Interview Prep for Product. 13 events and 16 speaker collaborations so far, and we are only intending more for next year!

Anyone would agree that it is rewarding in so many ways to be part of a student club that sincerely resonates with you, whether academically or professionally. Personally, running a club always gave me an opportunity to meet people from different backgrounds who share similar interests. That mutual ambition helped us to connect and grow together. I wanted to do something similar to bring all the Product aspirants at Purdue together. I still remember the day I spoke about my PM Club idea with our program director, Eric VandeVoorde, who told me, “You will always have my support to build this student organization for the long term.” His words of affirmation only strengthened our perseverance to get the operations running.

Despite the challenge that all four of our cabinet members (Nandini Agarwal, Uttam Reddy, Divya Chauhan, and Tanvi Kadari) were in different locations for our Summer 2023 co-ops/internships, we circumvented this potential barrier by proactively choosing the virtual route. That decision catalyzed our efforts to bring more Product leaders to interact with Boilermakers. In our first season alone, we had industry leaders from Google, PayPal, Salesloft, and Microsoft share their learnings. As Nandini Agarwal, PM Club Cabinet Member, puts it, "It's been amazing to watch the club grow and resonate with more students! The ability to connect firsthand with product managers from all over the country is invaluable."

In retrospect, I also can’t emphasize enough how accommodating and kind our speakers have been! They were driven to give back and help the next generation of product aspirants. The club was able to host 13 events that saw attendance from multiple majors, including Engineering Management, Industrial Engineering, Marketing, Business Analytics, and more. As PM Club Cabinet Member Uttam Reddy highlights, "Attending Purdue MEM's PM Club events has provided me with valuable insights into the realm of product management. The expert talks and workshops conducted by industry leaders have played a crucial role in demystifying the complexities of product management."

As we look to the future, we're excited to continue fostering innovation, excellence, and leadership among aspiring technical leaders at Purdue MEM. Join us in shaping the next generation of Product Managers!