Manager of Product

It is inspiring to work in an organization where individuals are deeply committed to the mission and values that drive our success.

We are dedicated to delivering expert pension service to Illinois public educators as they earn their promised retirement security.

Job Summary:

The Manager of Product will lead our product team, driving the strategic vision and execution of product management initiatives across the organization. Reporting to the Deputy Director Quality & Compliance, this role is pivotal in ensuring robust support for our internal SaaS solutions and applications that underpin our business operations. The Manager of Product will oversee a growing team of product professionals, fostering a collaborative and high-performing environment. Key responsibilities include establishing and enforcing standards and best practices for product management, managing product iterations, and ensuring product alignment and user satisfaction. To be successful in this role, the incumbent must excel at self-motivation and motivating others, interpersonal communication, keen attention to detail, critical thinking, decisiveness, emotional intelligence and active listening skills.

In addition to technical oversight, the Manager of Product will play a crucial role in coaching, mentoring, and developing team members, supporting their career growth and skill development. This role will also champion a user-centric organization, cultivating a culture of continuous improvement and innovation across all departments. The ideal candidate will possess strong technical skills in product management, excel at servant leadership and communication abilities, and a proven track record in Agile software development. This role requires a proactive approach to stakeholder engagement, ensuring that product solutions and applications are effectively integrated into business operations. The Manager of Product will be driven by organizational success and have a team player attitude.

Essential Functions:

• Lead and mentor a team of Product Managers, Product Owners, and Business Analysts, fostering a culture of collaboration, continuous improvement, and "Leave it better than you found it" within the team.
• Manage and optimize the utilization of consulting resources ensuring they are effectively contributing to team and organizational goals.
• Demonstrate servant-leadership and knowledge of leading by context rather than control.
• Exhibit exemplary emotional intelligence skills and understand the emotions of others.
• Provide supervisory guidance, leadership, and mentoring that builds an environment of personal growth and professional development.
• Establish and enforce standards and best practices for product management within the IT organization.
• Foster a culture of user-centricity by mentoring the product team in discovery practices and requirement definition, enabling them to reliably translate user needs into actionable requirements.
• Ensure product quality alignment, usability, and high levels of user satisfaction.
• Develop and implement processes and procedures to improve product development efficiency and effectiveness, embracing Agile Product Management methodologies and best practices.
• Collaborate effectively with peer Project and Compliance leaders to ensure alignment and successful delivery of product initiatives.
• Define and track key performance indicators (KPIs) related to product alignment, feature adoption, user satisfaction, and team performance, regularly reporting on progress and identifying areas for improvement.
• Contribute to the budget planning and forecasting process for the product team, ensuring alignment with organizational financial goals.
• Champion Agile methodologies and best practices within the team, promoting a culture of iterative development and continuous feedback.
• Contribute to the organization's digital transformation initiatives by leading the development and enhancement of internal applications and SaaS solutions
• Proactively identify and address challenges related to legacy systems, rapid technological change, and increasing user demands, coaching and mentoring the team through these complexities.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities

• Embraces new ideas and fosters innovation among peers.
• Practices positive interactions, leans on encouragement in place of judgement
• Impresses responsibility on others by displaying ownership in tasks
• Prioritizes the success of the team over individual interests
• Able to multi-task in a fast paced, fluid work environment
• Communicates technical ideas and concepts clearly in business-friendly language

Minimum Requirements:

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Systems, Business, or equivalent experience (7+ years in lieu of a degree).
• 3+ years’ experience managing a software product team; or 4+ years of recent experience serving as an Agile Product Owner on a large, multi-year development initiative.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, coach, and develop team members to achieve results.
• Strong knowledge of Agile methodologies, particularly Scrum.
• Proven success communicating and collaborating effectively with both technical teams and business stakeholders.
• High emotional intelligence with strong relationship-building skills.
• Ability to engage with both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Familiarity with SaaS platforms as well as custom/internal application development.
• Strong organizational, analytical, and problem-solving abilities.
• Exceptional attention to detail and commitment to accuracy.
• Relevant certifications (e.g., Certified Scrum Product Owner – CSPO) preferred.

If you thrive in a dynamic environment and enjoy collaborating with driven, enthusiastic professionals, you will find a rewarding career with us.

For Illinois job seekers:

Pay Range

$111,112.05 - $173,335.00

Compensation will be determined based on the qualifications and experience of each candidate.

Benefits
TRS is an agency of the State of Illinois. As such, full and part-time employees are eligible for the State of Illinois comprehensive benefits program which includes medical, dental and vision coverage. All employees participate in the TRS retirement pension plan and have the option to contribute to additional State of Illinois deferred compensation plans. The TRS pension plan is a reciprocal system to other state and local pension plans (SERS, SURS, IMRF, etc.)