Don Jarrell writes, “I recently read Sec of State Colin Powell’s essay “The Craft of Diplomacy” (Wilson Quarterly, Summer 2004) and think he nailed the point: “diplomacy is a craft more than it is either a science or an art. In science, both material and method are beyond the free choice of the scientist. In art, neither the material nor method are beyond the free choice of the artist. A craft lies in between: The material is given in the world as we find it, but the methods by which the statesman can shape that material offer wide, if not unbounded choice.”
Aside from the fact that there is a lot of diplomacy in Product Management, his definition of a craft, as seen in diplomacy, is very applicable to Product Management, where our “material” is the available technologies and competencies.
