[sb8244]

It also matches with my experience fwiw. The biggest issue I saw with qualitative is that it almost always was used to reinforce an existing idea that the PM has. I've never heard a PM say they learned something surprising and are reconsidering their initial idea.

[kareemm]

> I've never heard a PM say they learned something surprising and are reconsidering their initial idea.

You have never worked with a good PM then. I hear unexpected things from customers pretty much every single time I talk to one.

[ttymck]

It's possible I've not worked with a good PM, but the fact remains that I haven't seen the industry _incentivize_ the "good PM" behavior you're describing nor have there been consequences for "bad PMs", so does "good" and "bad" really mean anything?

[kareemm]

There are lots of companies where talking to customers is a requirement for a PM to have continued employment. I’ve worked for more than a few. Seems to me that’s a pretty significant incentive.

[ttymck]

"Talking to customers" is "good PM behavior"? Isn't that like saying "writing code" is "good developer behavior"?

[llamaLord]

Additionally, as a PM, I hear unexpected things from my engineering teams to and they very often change the course of an initiative we're running.

A PM is an Air Traffic Controller - not a dictator.