Campbell, CA. Inconsistent processes, a lack of understanding in the C-suite, insufficient training—these are some of the challenges facing product managers today, according to a new study released this week. The result, according to findings, is that one in five products fail to meet customers’ needs.

The study, conducted by the 280 Group, a product management and product marketing services firm, reveals the most difficult challenges facing product management organizations throughout the world and presents critical actions to overcome them.

The 2015 Challenges in Product Management survey is one of the first to gather such extensive data from the product-management community. The product management field is often misunderstood, carrying with it a distinct set of hurdles and challenges.

“In an age when product managers are being heralded as ‘mini-CEOs,’ it is vital for the industry to gain a deeper understanding of the Product Management landscape,” said Brian Lawley, founder and CEO of The 280 Group. “By surveying product management professionals and executives, the results of this study allow us to quantify the challenges in bringing their products to market and supporting them from creation to end-of-life, and better address the most urgent needs of Product Managers.”

Here are the study’s key findings:

Half of respondents are at companies where a consistent process is not used across teams.

• Less than 30% of respondents indicated that their executive team completely understands what product management is and the value it provides to the company.
• While respondents indicated that optimizing product management fully at their company would result in a large increase in profits, more than 60% indicated they have no plan for doing so.

These findings also reveal critical actions necessary for implementing successful product management and improving the tech industry as a whole. Some of these actions include

• creating a comprehensive plan for optimizing product management at your company,
• creating a clear process that is used across your company that supports all of the development methodologies being used, and
• educating your executives on the strategic role of product management and the benefits that excellent product management will bring to their own parts of the organization.

“By creating and implementing a plan that includes all of the study’s suggested elements, organizations will see dramatic improvements in the effectiveness of their product management function, resulting in a significant increase in revenues and profits,” said Lawley.

The Challenges in Product Management survey was taken by more than 800 product managers and product management executives this past spring. To download the complete survey results, go here.