Cohen's hardware-product playbook — translated for any builder shipping a real product. Hardware-first with software-PM analogues woven in.
An adaptation of Alan Cohen's 'Prototype to Product' (O'Reilly, 2015) — the most practical hardware-product book ever written, taught with software-PM analogues woven through every module. The 11 deadly sins of product development. How products are actually manufactured. The full PDLC from idea to ship. Preliminary planning + MRD + market sizing + COGS. Detailed product definition + specs + architecture + derisking. Detailed development. Smart platforms (processors + OSes). Power design + batteries. Regulations (FCC, CE, UL, GDPR, SOC2). Project planning + issue tracking + document control. Three rich capstones: take your real product 30% further through Cohen's PDLC, pivot OpenPed (Cohen's hardware example) into a SaaS, or produce a full regulatory-compliance audit. This course is the spine of the Product Management track. Course 2 (Software PM Fundamentals) covers the day-to-day software-PM craft.
Built by Lakshya Kumar
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Sign in to applyComplete all modules, then submit the required number of capstone projects. Each must earn a passing rating from an admin reviewer.
Pick a product you're working on (hardware or software). Walk it through Cohen's full PDLC for one cycle: write the marketing requirements, the spec, the COGS or cost model, the risk register, the regulatory checklist, the project plan. Deliverable: a 10-section PM dossier that another PM could pick up and execute. Document what you learned, what surprised you, what you'd do differently.
I'm taking a course on hardware product management based on Alan Cohen's 'Prototype to Product.' Topics: the 11 deadly sins of product development, manufacturing (PCB assembly, supply chain, factory test, volume bands), the PDLC (preliminary planning, detailed definition, EVT/DVT/PVT, reality checks), specs + architecture + requirements, smart platforms (MCUs, OSes), power design + batteries, regulations (FCC, CE, UL, GDPR, SOC2, HIPAA), project planning + tracking. Help me think about my own product through these frames. I want both hardware and software perspectives.
Translate the book's hardware fitness device into a connected SaaS. Re-author Cohen's chapters 4-6 deliverables as if it were a software product: MRD for the SaaS, software COGS (cloud platform + LLM + integrations), software architecture, software risk register, software-equivalent regulatory matrix (GDPR/SOC2/etc.). Demonstrates that you can carry Cohen's framework across product types.
For a real or hypothetical product, produce the full regulatory matrix: which standards apply, which testing labs, what certifications, what timelines + costs. Include both hardware and software regs. Identify the critical-path regulation. Builds the muscle that most PMs lack and most products fall on. Should be auditor-ready.
The canonical software-PM book. Pairs with Cohen's hardware focus.