#AskScout24: What does a Product Manager do?

With its online platform ImmobilienScout24, Scout24 operates Germany’s leading portal for offers and demands in the German real estate market. We talked to our two Product Managers Sarah Schülke (left) and Maria Baronski (right) about their start at the company, their current projects and exciting challenges.

Why did you choose Scout24?

Sarah: In 2013 I was a student looking for an internship in a company in which I could learn a lot and would be challenged. ImmobilienScout24 was exactly what I was looking for and I have never regretted my decision. I learnt a lot here, had the opportunity to manage projects on my own and to be deeply involved. That’s why I decided to work here full-time as a product manager after my graduation.

Maria:I already had experience in the B2C and e-commerce segment and was looking for an interesting B2B opportunity to get to know this segment better. Scout24 offers a very good mixture of what I already know and a new area for this. As I also have a personal interest in the real estate market and its specific problems and this is a very future-oriented industry, it is very exciting for me as a product manager to contribute to the success of a market leader. In addition, Scout24 is very close to its customers and its sales department is in-house, which makes fast and customer- focused solutions possible.

What are the current projects in Product Management?

Maria and Sarah: We are currently working on various projects with the aim of developing products and flows that are even more individually tailored to users and their needs by using Big Data, Machine Learning, Data Mining, etc. Digital sales is a top priority for us in what is actually a rather conservative industry. How can you encourage business customers whom we have always worked with personally to buy online? Of course, we also want to prepare our customers for the Bestellerprinzip (the person who assigns the real estate agent has to pay). We support commercial sellers to continue to be successful on the market and real estate sellers in achieving the best sales result. We also have projects in which we help searchers find the right property even more easily.

What do you particularly like about working at Scout24?

Sarah:For me, working at Scout24 means above all it never gets boring. We work on projects that constantly demand different skills and thus always give you the opportunity to develop yourself further. We work a lot cross-functionally and across departments which is a lot of fun for me personally. The greatest treasure of Scout24 is its colleagues – they are committed, helpful, work very well as a team and move in the same direction.

Maria: Of course, the great colleagues! And the focus on team OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) and product discovery – that’s how we pull together, work focused and make sure that we build solutions that actually solve the user’s problem. In addition to the growth in the projects, I also like the regular external and in-house training courses very much. Here we always have the opportunity to contribute ourselves to our further development, supported by a well-structured training process.

Where do you see optimisation potential?

Sarah: Regarding the working environment, the office of our AutoScout24 colleagues in Munich is brand-new and therefore on the top-notch stand. I’m looking forward to moving into our new office next year, outshining the Munich office (laughs).

Maria: I would like to approach the Scout24 vision even more courageously and revolutionarily and implement it faster. I think the vision of a networked marketplace is fascinating and would love to realise it as soon as possible. Above all, our AI program is very exciting and has the potential to revolutionise the market. I think we’ll make great progress here in the coming months and years.

What tasks and challenges can a new colleague expect?

Maria and Sarah: At Scout24 and in particular ImmobilienScout24, new colleagues naturally expect a large number of major projects and opportunities to influence the entire German real estate market. We are very international and by working with cross-functional teams and external service providers such as ThoughtWorks we can learn a lot from each other every day. In addition, you can also grow outside of the projects through the further training at the Scout24Academy and contribute to a good cause by participating in Social Day. There are also plenty of soft advantages: from the choice between MacBook and Dell, the possibility of having packages delivered to your office and good coffee in our in-house coffee bar to our upcoming move to a brand new building at Berlin main station.

Sarah and Maria are looking for more Product Designers to join their teams. Check out the opportunities here(in German).