Product people are usually not short on books. Many of us already have shelves full of the essentials, the ones we reach for again and again. I’ve gathered those classics in the best product management books list, which still does the job well if you are building up your foundational library.

But every year brings a handful of new releases that shift the conversation. Books that help us see our work differently or give us tools that respond to where product roles are heading today. These are not the familiar frameworks or the old arguments about roadmaps versus backlogs. These are books that reflect the complexities we are living through now. The realities of AI. The demand for better systems thinking. The need to align strategy, architecture, teams and outcomes. The fact that so much of product work today happens far beyond the software layer.

If you are looking for something new to read, or you want a gift for the product manager who already owns the classics, this list is a solid place to start. These are the notable 2025 releases that deserve a spot on a modern PM’s radar.

Books That Push Our Craft Forward In 2025

Below you will find short, honest takes on what each book is actually about and who it is likely to resonate with.

Impact-first Product Teams

by Matt LeMay (Feb 7, 2025)

If you’ve ever felt like your team is doing “all the right things” but somehow nothing meaningful is happening… this book is your reset switch. Matt cuts through the theatre and drags you back to the truth: impact or bust. It’s sharp, grounded, and blessedly free of ritual worship.

Great for: PMs and leaders losing patience with performative product work.
Stands out because: It replaces theory with brutally useful questions and tools.

New Products Management, 13th Edition

by C. Merle Crawford and C. Anthony Di Benedetto (March 24, 2025)

A heavyweight, academically rooted guide to developing products from early opportunity through launch. It is especially useful if you work on physical products, regulated environments or long-cycle systems. Software PMs might find it dense, but the grounding in true end-to-end product development is valuable.

Good for: PMs outside pure SaaS, or anyone wanting a deeper understanding of structured product development.

The Systems Leader

by Robert E. Siegel (June 3, 2025)

A brutally accurate portrait of leadership today: a never-ending balancing act between equally important, equally conflicting priorities. Innovation and execution. Empathy and strength. Local and global. Siegel gives you language and tools to navigate those tensions instead of drowning in them.

Great for: Directors, VPs, founders, anyone steering complex orgs.
Stands out because: It validates what leaders already feel and shows how to manage it.

Deep Future

by Pablos Holman (July 22, 2025)

A rallying call for product people who are itching to work on bigger problems. Energy, water, food systems, climate, manufacturing. Areas where technology can shift the trajectory of human progress. If you have ever felt that you might be meant for more than incremental feature work, this book will put wind in your sails.

Good for: Builders who want to move into deep tech or high-impact work.

Building Rocketships

by Oji and Ezinne Udezue (July 28, 2025)

A modern take on building high-growth companies in a world where AI is reshaping what speed, efficiency and customer centricity look like. The authors draw on decades of hands-on experience to show what product-led growth requires when the stakes are high and the market moves quickly.

Good for: Product leaders, startup executives and teams navigating rapid scaling.

Me, My Customer, and AI

by Henrik Werdelin and Nicholas Thorne (Aug 12, 2025)

A lively, founder-friendly guide to building with AI by staying obsessively close to customers. It is tactical, energizing and grounded. The exercises help teams cut through noise and validate ideas quickly. This one is written for early-stage builders who need to find focus fast.

Good for: Entrepreneurs, incubators and PMs launching new products.

Real Progress

by Tim Herbig (Sep 12, 2025)

Tim Herbig takes aim at the performative side of product work and instead offers a clear, usable system that links strategy, OKRs and discovery. If your team is tired of going through motions without seeing outcomes, this book will feel like a breath of fresh air.

Good for: Heads of Product and senior PMs who need clarity, not ceremony.

Architecture for Flow

by Susanne Kaiser (Sep 17, 2025)

A systems-level playbook for building adaptive organizations. Kaiser brings together Wardley Mapping, Domain-Driven Design and Team Topologies into a coherent approach for aligning strategy, architecture and teams. It helps leaders tackle bottlenecks and build organizations that move with intention rather than inertia.

Good for: Technical product leaders, platform PMs and transformation teams.

Product Delight

by Dr. Nesrine Changuel (Sep 23, 2025)

A thoughtful look at how emotional connection separates products people tolerate from the ones they love. Dr. Changuel shows how to design for that connection with structure and intention. A strong read if you want to create experiences that resonate and last.

Good for: PMs and designers focused on retention, engagement and loyalty.

Product In Service

by Scott Colfer (Sep 24, 2025)

A concise, honest look at product work in service-heavy environments. Government, healthcare, education and similar sectors have constraints, legacy systems and human complexity that most product books ignore. Scott Colfer gives product people tools to work with the world as it actually is.

Good for: PMs and leaders in public sector or complex service ecosystems.

The AI Product Playbook

by Marily Nika and Diego Granados (Oct 14, 2025)

A clear guide for PMs working with AI. It breaks down roles, skills, frameworks and ethical considerations in a way that is accessible but never simplified. Teams trying to build confidence in AI will get a lot out of this.

Good for: PMs transitioning into AI product roles, or teams building shared foundations.

User Needs Mapping

by Rich Allen (Oct 24, 2025)

Misalignment is usually not about intention. It is about mismatched mental models. Rich Allen provides a visual, practical way to build shared understanding of user needs, dependencies and priorities. Very helpful if your organization keeps tripping over itself.

Good for: Facilitators, PMs, product ops and anyone tasked with alignment.

Service Design (Updated Edition)

by Lavrans Løvlie, Andy Polaine and Ben Reason (Oct 2025)

A modern update of a foundational service design text. This edition reflects the reality that most products now live within broader service ecosystems. It is practical, comprehensive and built for teams shaping full end-to-end experiences.

Good for: Designers, product teams and leaders working across journeys and touchpoints.

What Do Product Managers Do

by Tami Reiss (Nov 15, 2025)

A playful illustrated introduction to product management written for kids but surprisingly useful for adults. It is charming, accessible and oddly accurate. A fun way to explain the job to anyone who has ever asked what it is you do all day.Good for: Families, classrooms and teams onboarding new talent.

A Special Mention From Late 2024

Some books arrive just before the calendar turns and risk getting overlooked. This one deserves to sit alongside the 2025 releases because it fills a gap many PMs feel. It is rare to find a modern, comprehensive reference that covers the full spectrum of digital product work without losing clarity.

How To Excel At Digital Product Management

by Lee Fischman (Dec 2024)

An expansive, deeply researched guide that gives both new and seasoned PMs a rich understanding of the craft across strategy, marketing, design, execution and leadership. Lee Fischman blends practical insight with sharp analysis and moments of humor, which makes it as enjoyable to read as it is valuable as a long-term reference. A standout resource for PMs, founders and senior leaders who want a complete, modern view of what great product management requires today.

Good for: PMs, founders and C-level leaders looking for a comprehensive reference.

Looking for something shorter and more hands-on?

Books are great, but sometimes you want something you can apply immediately.

Here at ProdPad, we publish a range of free product management ebooks designed to be practical, focused, and easy to use. If AI is part of your day-to-day work (or rapidly becoming so), here’s one to start with:

It covers how product managers can use AI tools to reduce busywork, improve decision-making, and create space for higher-value thinking, without losing judgement or context.

Reading with intent

There’s no single “right” book to read next. The best choice depends on where you are in your product journey, the challenges you’re facing, and the kind of work you want to do more of in the year ahead.

Hopefully this list makes that choice a little easier,  whether you’re reading for yourself, or buying for someone else.

Happy reading!