Vice President - Digital Product and Program Management Office

Futures start here. Where first steps, new friendships, and confident learners are born. At KinderCare Learning Companies, the first and only early childhood education provider recognized with the Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award, we offer a variety of early education and child care options for families. Whether it’s KinderCare Learning Centers, Champions, or Crème de la Crème, we build confidence for kids, families, and the future we share. And we want you to join us in shaping it—in neighborhoods, at work, and in schools nationwide.

At KinderCare Learning Companies, you’ll use your skills and expertise to support the work (and fun) that happens in our sites and centers every day. From marketers and strategists to financial analysts and data engineers, and so much more, we’re all passionate about crafting a world where children, families, and organizations can thrive.

As Vice President, Digital Product and Program Management Office (PMO), you'll set the enterprise vision for digital product management and the broader IT portfolio delivery, translating company strategy and customer needs into prioritized investments and measurable business outcomes.

You'll own the product operating model along with the program and project management frameworks, establish governance and decision-making standards while ensuring cross-functional teams deliver the highest-value initiatives with speed, quality, and accountability. Partner closely with executive leaders across Operations, Marketing, IT, Finance, HR, and other functions to align product roadmaps, enterprise programs, resources, and adoption plans.

Responsibilities

• Define and communicate the enterprise product vision, strategy, and multi-year roadmap, grounded in family insights, center staff feedback, market trends, business priorities, and technology capabilities.
• Lead the IT PMO and product management organization, including the selection, prioritization, planning, governance, and delivery of strategic products, programs, and projects.
• Establish a consistent product and portfolio operating model with clear intake, business-case, prioritization, funding, stage-gate, risk, dependency, and benefits-realization practices.
• Partner with executive leadership to translate strategic objectives into an integrated portfolio; recommend tradeoffs based on customer value, strategic alignment, capacity, risk, cost, and expected return.
• Own portfolio performance and executive reporting, providing transparent views of investment, progress, outcomes, risks, dependencies, resource constraints, and decisions required.
• Build and maintain outcome-based product roadmaps and delivery plans. Define key performance indicators and use data, customer research, experimentation, and financial analysis to guide investment and product decisions.
• Champion a customer-centered product culture and ensure solutions deliver intuitive, inclusive, and high-quality experiences for families, employees, and business partners.
• Create strong partnerships among stakeholders to clarify ownership, accelerate decisions, and remove barriers to delivery.
• Proactively identify and mitigate portfolio-level risks and dependencies; lead recovery planning for critical initiatives and escalate issues with clear options and recommendations.
• Oversee product and portfolio budgets, workforce plans, vendor relationships, and resource allocation to optimize investment and organizational capacity.
• Lead organizational change and adoption strategies so that new products, capabilities, and processes achieve intended business outcomes.
• Create an culture driven by innovation that identifies, pilots & scales new tools and technologies that deliver incremental progress for the organization & its customers.
• Recruit, develop, and retain a high-performing team. Establish clear expectations, coach leaders, and build talent capability plans.
• Promote continuous improvement by evaluating product performance, delivery effectiveness, stakeholder feedback, and industry practices and applying lessons across the portfolio.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, technology, product management, engineering, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience; advanced degree preferred.
• Significant progressive leadership experience in product management, portfolio management, program management, digital transformation, or related disciplines, including leading leaders and cross-functional enterprise teams.
• Demonstrated success defining product strategy, managing complex portfolios, and delivering large-scale initiatives with measurable customer, operational, and financial impact.
• Deep understanding of product development, customer discovery, program governance, change management, financial planning, and benefits realization.
• Strong business and financial acumen with the ability to evaluate investments, balance competing priorities, and make sound decisions in a complex environment.
• Exceptional executive communication, influence, and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to create alignment and drive decisions across functions.
• Experience establishing product and PMO standards, metrics, governance forums, and executive reporting that improve transparency and delivery performance.
• Ability to lead through ambiguity, anticipate risk, simplify complex issues, and maintain focus on outcomes.
• Commitment to developing teams and fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration, learning, and customer focus.

#LI-Remote

Our benefits meet you where you are. We’re here to help our employees navigate the integration of work and life:
- Know your whole family is supported with discounted child care benefits.

- Breathe easy with medical, dental, and vision benefits for your family (and pets, too!).
- Feel supported in your mental health and personal growth with employee assistance programs.
- Feel great and thrive with access to health and wellness programs, paid time off and discounts for work necessities, such as cell phones.
- … and much more.

We operate research-backed, accredited, and customizable programs in more than 2,000 sites and centers across 40 states and the District of Columbia. As we expand, we’re matching the needs of more and more families, dynamic work environments, and diverse communities from coast to coast. Because we believe every family deserves access to high-quality child care, no matter who they are or where they live. Every day, you’ll help bring this mission to life by building community and delivering exceptional experiences. And if you’re anything like us, you’ll come for the work, and stay for the people.

KinderCare Learning Companies is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, age, sex, religion, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, military or veteran status, gender identity or expression, or any other basis protected by local, state, or federal law.