Background
It’s impossible to dispute how successful the Avengers series of movies has been. The 4 Avengers movies top the list of the most successful superhero films of all time.
Each has made over $1B in worldwide gross box office receipts. Both Infinity War and Endgame broke the $2B barrier with Endgame almost reaching $3B!
The Avengers is such a successful franchise not only because of the non-stop action the movies are known for, but also for the complex and interweaving character personalities, strengths, and weaknesses that make the team of superheroes better than any individual character.
In order for a tech company, and more specifically, a product and engineering organization at a tech company to succeed, you need to have the right mix of Product Manager personas and personas.
It’s something I’ve written a lot about. I’m passionate about building the right Product teams for the right problems at the right companies:
In this post, we’re going to take a look at several of the original members of the Avengers and map them to Product Manager personas. What are their Product strengths, their Product weaknesses, what startup would they work at?
This should be fun!
Note: This post does not include all Avengers in all iterations, there are so many members that have been added over the years, that would be impossible!
Iron Man
Product Manager Persona: The Visionary Product Manager
Why? Tony Stark and his Ironman suit scream innovation and future thinking. Through his company Stark Industries, Stark has access to the latest technologies, a seemingly bottomless source of funding, and a drive to implement new technologies, think creatively, and push the boundaries of what’s possible. And he does it with style.
Biggest Product Strength: Adaptability and Intellect.
Biggest Product Weakness: Doesn’t delegate responsibilities, tries to shoulder everything himself.
Pairs Well With: Hulk/Thor (GSD-PMs)
Would Work At: Google X — The Moonshot Company
The Hulk
Product Manager Persona: The Get Shit Done Product Manager
Why? Do I really need to explain this one? The Hulk sees a problem, so he smashes it, or throws it, or breaks it, or… I think you get it!
Biggest Product Strength: Nothing stands in his way. There is no obstacle that can’t be overcome.
Biggest Product Weakness: Lack of control. There is a LOT of collateral damage.
Pairs Well With: Black Widow (Analytic PM)
Works At: Robinhood
Captain America
Product Manager Persona: The Marketing Product Manager
Biggest Product Strength: Who can deny the power of Captain America branding? It’s almost too good and too on the nose.
Biggest Product Weakness: Only sees the good in everyone and everything. Doesn’t consider what could go wrong or what could fail. By not preparing for (or even being aware of) those possibilities, Cap can’t react well.
Pairs Well With: Hawkeye (Technical PM)
Works At: Snap
Thor
Product Manager Persona: The Get Shit Done Product Manager (with a twist…)
Biggest Product Strength: Thor possesses superhuman strength, speed, agility, and more. His strength is applied in a more focused way than The Hulk, a fellow GSD-PM, but he still functions mostly in the obstacle-clearing part of Product Management.
Biggest Product Weakness: Losing sight of the bigger vision. Thor can be consumed by emotions, especially when his power is threatened.
Pairs Well With: Black Widow (Analytic PM) or Iron Man (Visionary PM)
Works At: DoorDash
Black Widow
Product Manager Persona: The Analytic/Data Science Product Manager
Biggest Product Strength: Black Widow is calculating. She’s always playing 3 or 4 steps ahead of everyone else. What she lacks in brute strength, she more than makes up for in mental capacity.
Biggest Product Weakness: Black Widow second-guesses herself and reflects too often on her past. Instead of moving forward and learning from her past mistakes (and espionage…), she carries that weight in the present, impacting her decision-making ability and her speed to act.
Pairs Well With: Iron Man (Visionary PM)
Works At: Palantir
Hawkeye
Product Manager Persona: Technical Product Manager
Biggest Product Strength: Incredibly accuracy and tactical planning abilities. Hawkeye is able to get very detailed and scope a problem down to the individual user story acceptance criteria detail without blinking an eye.
Biggest Product Weakness: Limited set of skills and constrained in imagination. In Avengers, Hawkeye is limited to physical constraints (# of arrows), and once exhausted, his fighting skills pale in comparison to others like Thor or Iron Man.
Pairs Well With: Captain America (Marketing PM)
Works At: Microsoft
What Do Agree With? Disagree With?
Let me know in the comments or on Twitter at @amitch5903!
Sources
https://www.looper.com/166090/the-biggest-weakness-of-every-avengers-member-explained/
https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/the-best-friendships-in-the-marvel-universe
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-grossing_superhero_films
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