Data Product Manager

About Empowerly

Empowerly (www.empowerly.com) is an education technology company with a mission to empower students to become the most successful version of themselves. We personalize college and career counseling, offering data-driven education technology, startup and research internship programs, and personalized counseling led by former college Admission Officers and experienced college counselors. We are a rapidly growing, mission-driven, and venture-backed company that values collaboration, data-driven decision-making, and empowerment.

Empowerly has raised $12 million from investors, including Goodwater Capital, FJ Labs, Scrum Ventures, Translink Capital, Azure Capital Partners, and Spero Ventures. Our leadership team brings experience from Teach for America, Goldman Sachs, Facebook, Google, Lucky Strike, Microsoft, and various Seed, A, B, C, Private, and Publicly Traded companies. In 2022, Empowerly's co-founders were named in Forbes 30 Under 30, and the company was recognized as one of Inc. 5000's fastest-growing companies in America.

About the Role

As companies undergo digital transformation, they face significant challenges in adopting data-driven decision-making. In fact, McKinsey reports that 70% of digital transformation projects fall short, with 48% of executives citing "people challenges" as the main obstacle. To address these challenges, Empowerly seeks a Data Product Manager who will play a crucial role in leveraging data to drive decision-making and bridge the gap between marketing, operations, and engineering. 

As a Data Product Manager, you will be at the forefront of developing and enhancing data-driven products that meet and exceed customer needs. Your role will involve understanding user challenges and working closely with front-end and back-end engineering teams. This position offers the opportunity to work in a collaborative, fast-paced environment and make a significant impact on Empowerly’s product offerings and overall business strategy. 

You will ensure that all departments can harness data to answer critical business questions, improve internal processes, and optimize user experiences across the platform.

Key Responsibilities

• Define product data goals that align with key business objectives and translate insights into actionable features.
• Analyze customer journey data, identifying reasons for churn and areas to improve retention.
• Leverage data from customer interactions, such as essays, to enhance our understanding of the admissions journey and use this insight to influence product features like chatbots.
• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams to ensure that data-driven solutions align with business needs and product vision.
• Build frameworks to set and track OKRs and KPIs throughout the product lifecycle.
• Develop and manage the roadmap for data products, ensuring they are scalable and optimized for the long term.
• Query, collect, and manage data to build and enhance EmpowerlyGPT, our AI-driven solution, ensuring it addresses key user challenges and improves the admissions experience.
• Work with data scientists and engineers to develop innovative, data-driven features that improve user engagement and product performance.
• Promote data literacy across the organization, driving higher data adoption and empowering teams to use data effectively.
• Oversee the development and maintenance of data infrastructure to support the scaling of Empowerly’s product offerings.
• Continuously monitor, evaluate, and optimize the performance of data products to ensure quality, reliability, and business impact.
• Strong ability to translate your technical capabilities in a product manager role from both sides – our customers, clients and engineers.
• You are able to make complex topics simple and clearly communicate nuance to stakeholders (engineers, customers, field, etc.) in both written and verbal form 
• You are excited to solve ambiguous problems with a collaborative team
• You will work closely with a distributed Engineering Team and remote teams located across the United States and Brazil, fostering a collaborative and inclusive environment.
• You will understand basic UI/UX. Specifically, iIdentify and address key challenges faced by our users, ensuring that our product solutions are tailored to meet their needs
• This is a critical hire and with a focus on the execution and iteration of our product strategy, focusing on both short-term and long-term goals – including sprints to ensure that our product roadmap aligns with the company's vision.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Data Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• Proven experience in data product management, data engineering, or data analysis, preferably in a technology-focused or startup environment.
• Ability to query, collect, and manage large-scale data sets to inform decisions.
• Proficiency in SQL, Python, or Javascript/NodeJS.
• Experience with building or contributing to AI-driven products like chatbots.
• Solid understanding of ETL processes, analytics, and data integrations.
• Proficiency in database design, administration, and data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI).
• Strong problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate complex data into actionable business insights.
• Experience working in Agile environments, managing projects, timelines, and deliverables.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, capable of explaining complex technical topics to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with B2B2C, B2C, or B2G2C marketplaces.
• Familiarity with college preparation, application, and admissions processes.
• Understanding of customer journeys, especially in the education space.
• Ability to work collaboratively in a remote, distributed team environment.

Why Join Empowerly?

By joining Empowerly, you will have the opportunity to directly impact student success through innovative data solutions. As our Data Product Manager, you will shape the future of how we use data to guide students through one of the most pivotal moments in their lives, while also contributing to the development of a platform that scales quickly and efficiently. You’ll also be instrumental in building EmpowerlyGPT, using AI to enhance user experiences and drive engagement across the platform.