How important is domain expertise?

Anyone who has come across job postings for product management roles has seen requirements such as these:

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or equivalent. MBA or advanced degree  preferred.
• 8+ years of successful product management.
• Minimum 5 years of experience with “insert the domain expertise here” related technologies.

For technology companies it makes sense that a product manager would be somewhat technical; after all, you would be working with engineers, so having some understanding of technology helps. Same goes for MBA/other advanced degree (although you can learn business from being in the workplace). "Experience" I understand as well - you need someone who has done it before and worked as a product manager. 

But when it comes to domain expertise, I beg to differ. How important is it to have domain expertise? One can argue that if you are a hands-on tactical person that worked for a competitor, then it really makes sense to hire someone with domain expertise. But, if you are going to envision the next big thing and shape the company’s strategy, then having domain expertise may work against you.  Case in point: if you were to hire a consultant, you would likely consider someone who can leverage their experience in different industries to your benefit. The advantage of having a product manager with functional expertise and no domain expertise is a fresh look at your product and market. That person hasn't been “tainted” by the conventional method of doing things so he/she can actually think outside the box. Product managers are smart; given time they will come up to speed and become your market & domain experts.

So when you are planning on hiring your next product manager, figure what type of product manager you need: someone tactical or someone strategic. If it’s the latter, you will probably get the most out of someone who has had the opportunity to work with various domains.

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