A PM Intern’s Day-to-Day Schedule
When you ask what a product manager (PM) does in a day, you’ll often hear them say, “It depends.”
I remember feeling incredibly lost at the beginning of my internship, but after a couple weeks, I settled into a (very flexible) routine.
This schedule is what I generally followed during my time as a PM intern, if I didn’t have meetings that overlapped. Though internship responsibilities vary from company to company, I hope this helps in answering questions for those completely new to the field and don’t know what a PM internship entails.
Note: my internship experience was completely remote since it took place during COVID.
Here’s the brief overview, and below I’ll give an in-depth explanation:
8:30–9:00 am: Look at my calendar / Catch up on emails / Slack messages
9:00–9:30 am: Meeting with manager
9:30–11:00 am: Work / Expand domain knowledge
11:00–11:15 am: Stand-up meeting with team
11:15–12:00 pm: Work / Listen to podcast / Read PM book or article
12:00–12:30 pm: Eat lunch
12:30–1:00 pm: Attend company events
1:00–4:30 pm: Work / Listen to podcast / Read PM book or article / Schedule 1:1 meetings with other
4:30 pm: Clock out!
8:30–9:00 am: Look at my calendar / Catch up on emails / Slack messages
This isn’t limited to PMs, but you want to get up to speed on affairs outside of your working hours. It’s especially important if your teams are remote, live in different time zones, and/or rely on messaging platforms such as Slack and Microsoft Teams.
Communication is especially vital because you do not want to miss critical information about your product, especially if there’s a bug or blocker that needs to be addressed by you! Be vigilant, stay up-to-date, and clear out your email. The numbers grow exponentially.
9:00–9:30 am: Meeting with manager
As an intern, you’ll (hopefully) have someone to guide you during your stay at the company. They are there to support your growth in the role and are an indispensable resource to tap into whenever you’re feeling stuck.
Generally, when I met with my manager, we’d take 5 minutes to catch up and discuss things about the product, company, or world. Then, they would help me create a goal for the week or check up on its progress. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or admit your shortcomings. (And if you are, that’s a red flag and you should look elsewhere!)
Internships let you grow and get guidance from someone who’s been there, done that, and can now pass knowledge onto you.
9:30–11:00 am: Work / Expand domain knowledge
As an intern, you’ll be tasked with executables like conducting market research, writing one-pagers, clearing up the backlog (assuming the company you work for uses Agile), etc. Now is the time to get comfortable with writing and reviewing technical requirements.
However, some days you’re waiting for other members of the team to complete their work in order to move on with yours. Take this time read a book to grow your skillset, find a podcast discussing product, or search about emerging trends in your field.
If you don’t find yourself enjoying your work, you can also reach out to other members on the team and shadow. Maybe instead of being a PM, you find yourself enjoying engineering, designing, or marketing more. That’s perfectly okay and definitely something you should talk about with your manager!
As a personal anecdote, I’ve always been interested pursuing UX, and someone from the UX team let me sit in on their meetings which was a fulfilling experience that taught me lot about their work as a researcher.
11:00–11:15 am: Stand-up meeting with team
Hate ’em or love ’em, stand-ups are a part of working in an Agile team. This is where teams update each other on what they’ve been working on, what they’ll work on, and what’s blocking them. As a PM, it is your job to handle the issues that is preventing your product from launching, so definitely pay attention to that last bit.
The best part about working remote is that I always attended stand-ups in pajamas, eating a snack. Think of stand-ups as casual meetups. If bigger issues arise, schedule a meeting after so you don’t hold anyone hostage. People are busy, and they’ll love you for respecting their time.
11:15–12:00 pm: Work / Listen to podcast / Read PM book or article
Basically what I did before stand-up, but with the added bonus of having lunch to look forward to.
12:00–12:30 pm: Eat lunch
Do not skip meals. You’ll be hangry and doing a disservice to your health. Plus, you’re legally obligated as a non-exempt employee to clock out at least 30 minutes for an 8 hour working day.
Take a break from your computer and stretch out your legs. A PM’s job is taxing enough.
12:30–1:00 pm: Attend company events
The company I interned for frequently had events to help foster a positive workplace culture despite work from home (WFH). I made a conscious effort to attend a few, especially if the topic interested me.
I heavily encourage you to attend so that you get to know what the company and your coworkers value. Working remote is lonely and makes it difficult to meet people organically, so treat this as a networking opportunity.
One of my favorite events that I attended is a “stories” series that my mentor moderated. People from the company would sign-up to share their story, and it created an authentic experience that is difficult to cultivate when you’re always staring at a Zoom screen. Seriously, some of my coworkers are so badass and inspiring.
1:00–4:30 pm: Work / Listen to podcast / Read PM book or article / Schedule 1:1 meetings with other
Some days, your work requires a lot of time. I remember taking a week to create my first ever roadmap, continuously iterating based on the feedback I received.
However, afternoons were when most of my coworkers had free time on their calendars for 1:1 meetings. 1:1, coffee chats, whatever you want to call them — talk to people in your company and especially to people on your team. Your engineers, your designers, your QA, your business intelligence, your data folks, everyone.
PM is intrinsically a role that requires you to have good relations with people. You don’t directly manage anyone, which is why “manager” in the name is such a misnomer, but I digress. You need to get people to do their work so that your product launches successfully, and people are more motivated to work for someone they like.
Also, this helps your professional network grow. As interns are people early in their career, this opportunity should not be missed. I regret not allocating more time to meeting more people!
4:30 pm: Clock out!
You did it. You got through another day of your internship. Hit the clock out button on your employee attendance system, take some time to reflect, and close your laptop.
This is a personal value of mine, but I prioritize a healthy work-life balance. I’m definitely not the type of person married to their work, but PMs are notorious for working after hours just to ensure their product’s success.
Wherever you lie on the productivity system, just take a moment to breathe and address other aspects of your life outside of work. Dinner’s not cooking itself after all.
