Climate Product Managers: A Key Role in Climate Solutions
- MAGDA CHEANG
- Oct 27
- 6 min read
Updated: Oct 29
In today’s blog, we’ll be discussing a specific role within climate-tech and renewable energy industry- that of the Product Manager.
Climate SaaS solutions often involve creating complex, data-driven platforms (e.g., for carbon accounting, ESG reporting, energy optimisation, or climate risk modelling, renewable asset monitoring etc), which means technical credibility, industry knowledge and system thinking are critical in these positions.
Why do you need talented Climate Product Managers?
Let’s discuss what kind of company would need a Product Manager. Usually, start-ups that have a specific software or technology-based solution would require such an employee in their organisation. Generally speaking, when there is a climate-tech SaaS or technology focused product, this solution can be complex or technical. If it is an early stage company you might be trying to create the minimum viable product (MVP) which is the simplest version of the product.
An MVP allows product managers to test and validate their ideas and assumptions before committing further resources to full-scale development. The process of creating the minimum viable product is the first stage of product development. Later stages include iterating on the product, collecting further user feedback and developing new functionalities and features.
A product manager has the ability and skills required to translate business requirements into a language that the engineering team can build. Ultimately, they are responsible for solving user problems in a way that makes the business revenue.
Let’s discuss some of the responsibilities a Climate Product Manager might have in your climate-tech start-up.
Understand what user problems are and combine these with business solutions
Define features based on specific goals of the climate-tech company e.g. increase revenue, increase user adoption. In other words, they bridge the gap between company and business goals and translate them into engineering requirements that the technical teams can understand and deliver against.
A Product Manager would also create a product roadmap, which is usually a technical document that articulates the long-term goals and direction of the product. It can include a number of different aspects such as product features, timelines, stakeholder alignment, market feedback, UX/UI components, dependencies, goals and objectives.
They also conduct market research and competitor analysis to understand what is going on in the industry. They create cross-functional relationships with R&D, UX and engineering teams.
Product Managers also create playbooks, processes and project timelines and requirements. They often use agile methodologies in order to keep track of OKRS, KPIs and timelines.
Product managers use their cross-functional and stakeholder management skills in order to drive product development and improve by collaborating with multiple departments (such as engineering, UX/UI, customer research, sales and marketing teams)
They are also often responsible for selling the vision of the product internally, and can be involved in helping the sales team discuss competitive talking points and benefits of the features that the product has.
A day in the life of Climate Product Manager
As a Product Manager is a highly cross-functional role, the day to day tasks of the role are quite varied.
In general, the day to day responsibilities of a Product Manager are about connecting and communicating with other people in the business, learning and analysing data and trends, creating product strategy, and making product decisions along with creating documentation.
Some day to day tasks of the product manager could include hosting meetings with other team members or meeting regularly with the sales team to ensure that the product vision and capabilities are being clearly communicated with customers.
This could also include gathering feedback from customers on the product and seeing how they can translate into new product features and requirements. As a product manager you would also meet with the engineering teams, to understand their progress of the development of features, check in on timelines, review demos and provide feedback if necessary. Climate Product Managers also resolve issues and questions, often doing Q&A and preparing relevant explanatory content where necessary.
Depending on the scope of your role in the company you would also meet regularly with the marketing team to follow up on product marketing campaigns, discuss product marketing strategies and tactics and also review the success or KPIS for your product marketing metrics.
What are some of the most essential skills that a Climate Product Manager should have to ensure they are successful?
Strong Problem Solving and Data Analysis Skills Are Needed
A large part of the day to day tasks of the Product Manager involve data analysis. These could be data points in relation to A/B tests for specific product features, looking at user adoption, product data and usage and a variety of other metrics.
Review and Data Analysis
A large part of a product manager’s role is analysis of data. You could be looking at and analysing the following metrics:
Analysing the product’s usage data, including adoption data, functionality or user experiences
Sales figures, marketing metrics, adoption metrics, revenue numbers
Reviewing other KPIs that you have set
Reviewing and analysing the effectiveness of sales training for the products you create that empowers others to talk about the benefits of the product you are building
Competitive analysis: looking at your competitors, market trends, industry trends etc
Analysing the product’s usage data, including adoption data, functionality or user experience
Creating and conducting customer interviews, and understanding what the feedback means
Collecting information about customer acquisition metrics, activation and retention metrics, and analysing the data to improve performance.
3. Communicating with Cross-Functional teams
A product manager’s job includes a great deal of communication internally and externally. This would include gathering feedback from customers and prospects, meeting with the development team. Also, checking in on progress with development and communicating that with stakeholders. Product managers may meet regularly with marketing teams, to check on campaigns, discuss product marketing strategy and review marketing success metrics. Product Managers also have to discuss key stakeholders like the VP of Product, CEO/COO, finance and customer success.
Common KPIs of a Product Manager
Now that we’ve explored the day to day work of a Product Managers let’s discuss common key performance indicators (KPIS) of Product Managers might have when working at a climate-tech start-up.
1. Product Adoption
Track how quickly and extensively customers begin using the product. Key indicators include active user counts, engagement levels, and feature adoption rates.
2. Customer Satisfaction & Engagement
Gauge satisfaction through surveys, feedback channels, and customer support interactions. These insights reveal product usability, functionality, and overall customer experience.
3. Customer Retention and Churn Rate
Monitor the percentage of customers who continue using the product over time. High retention signals strong value and loyalty. Low churn rates are ideal for retention.
5. Conversion Rate
Evaluate the proportion of trial or free users who transition into paying customers—an indicator of the product’s ability to generate revenue.
6. Revenue Generation & Lifetime Profitability
Track revenue-related metrics such as growth rate, average revenue per user (ARPU), and gross margin to assess financial impact and long-term sustainability. Other related metrics are LTV (life time value) and Customer Acquisition Cost.
7. Feature Adoption
Analyse usage rates for individual product features to identify which deliver the most value and guide future prioritisation.
8. Competitive Analysis
Compare market share, customer sentiment, and perception against competitors to understand the product’s position and inform strategy.
9. Product Quality & Error Rates
Monitor quality indicators such as defect frequency, bug resolution speed, and reported issues to maintain standards and target improvements.
Expert Insights: Olga Shavrina, Chief Product Officer at Vai and Climate Product Consultant
We spoke to Olga Shavrina Chief Product Officer at Vai who has 15 years of experience in product management to get her insights on the top skills needed to be an effective product manager and what she enjoys about the role.
In my view, the number one skill for a Product Manager is execution – getting the right thing done. It sounds simple, but it’s not. First, you need to decide what the right thing for the product or business is now, and then make it happen on time and with sufficient quality. That means setting many parts in motion, organising people, and making trade-offs.
The second key skill is stakeholder management. A PM must understand how the business functions as a whole and what are its high level objectives, what roles each stakeholder plays, the risks they face, and how the product helps (or hinders) them. Every feature can affect multiple stakeholders, so they need to be considered and clearly communicated.
The third is constant learning — from clients, colleagues, competitors, and above all, from the product itself. Treat everything as an experiment, stay curious, and embrace mistakes. Users will always surprise you, and learning from them helps the product evolve. What do I enjoy most about the role? Solving problems. It feels like being a kid solving riddles :) And when the riddle is about making Earth cooler and healthier, the reward is twofold.
By hiring Climate Product Managers in your climate-tech start-up, you're not just adding headcount, you're enhancing your ability to build a product that solves real challenges in the climate space. If you become a product manager in the climate-tech or sustainability industry, you will be creating solutions to real-life problems and have a rewarding career.
At Jobs for Planet, we help climate tech start-ups grow and drive a sustainable future. Want to learn how we connect clients with top talent? Book at meeting or email us if you would like access to our talent network.
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