The career paths could be varied depending upon the interest of the individual.
I am assuming that the product owner wants to continue in the digital product management field.
The below diagram explains one of the various pathways that a product professional could have, out of which the most common one is explained below.
The number of years of experience is also an average. It could be different for different individuals, and that is based upon the following factors:
- Industry – if it fast-paced, ever changing or is a stable/mature one or is it past its growth phase and has entered a decline phase
- Market – which market you cater to, which demographics your product serves and how dynamic are they
- Skills – what skills sets you have and what value you add to the business
- Personal interest – your personal choice of assuming responsibilities. Some people are experts at their work and they don’t want any additional responsibilities of team, line management, multiple products etc.
- Location – where you are working in the world has its economic and geographic factors that determine the growth of the company and your role