Senior Product Management Consultant

We’re hiring a Senior Product Management Consultant

Employment Type: Contract to Hire

Location: Richmond VA, Washington DC, and surrounding areas

Location Type: Hybrid - Home Office/Local Ippon office 

About Ippon:

The Ippon story started in 2002 in Paris, France - cue in the accordion. Our founder and CEO Stéphane Nomis used his unique experience as an international Judo champion to create a culture based on the sports values of ambition and excellence. Our USA Headquarters office is located in Richmond, VA, with additional offices in New York, NY, Washington DC, and Atlanta, GA. We are a technology consulting firm that specializes in helping accelerate our clients’ digital roadmaps and business agility in the areas of Product Innovation, Platform Modernization, Cloud Strategy, AI, Data & Analytics, and Operating Model Design. 

About the position:

We are currently seeking a Product Leader and technology consultant with versatile skills so they may lead executive alignment workshops, drive sales proposals, serve as a project manager, or even map dependencies to facilitate a release strategy. Our Senior Product Management Consultant will lead the development and execution of product strategies for our clients. They work closely with clients to understand their business objectives and translate them into product roadmaps. The role requires excellent communication skills, strategic thinking, and a deep understanding of market trends and championing the voice-of-customer. The SPMC will need a consulting competency navigating executive partnership while collaborating with cross-functional teams, including engineering, design, sales, and marketing, to ensure products drive meaningful value and are delivered on time and within budget. No sweat, pressure is your middle name. 

Roles and Responsibilities

• Discovery & Strategy –
• Engage with customers to gather feedback, validate product ideas, and identify opportunities for improvement
• Partner with all appropriate stakeholders to develop and execute product strategies that align with the company's overall vision, goals, and market opportunities
• Gather requirements, define functionality, and set goals in a clear, actionable format that can be used to communicate with the team, develop the product roadmap and drive through delivery
• Lead the development and maintenance of the product roadmap, prioritizing features and enhancements based on customer needs, market trends, and business objectives
• Lead solution design and architecture efforts, working closely with clients to understand their requirements, develop customized solutions, and design workflows to meet their unique needs and objectives
• Leverage senior managers and executives in the client organization to help achieve goals, deliver meaningful business outcomes, and positively influence the strategic direction of the team and the company overall
• Advocate for the customer throughout the product development process, ensuring their needs are understood and addressed
• Delivery – 
• Collaborate closely with engineering, design, marketing, sales, and other cross-functional teams to define product requirements, drive product development, and ensure successful product or feature launches
• As a team lead, work to maintain/advance team engagement, and escalate risks in morale or delivery early and often
• Identify, prioritize, and resolve technical, functional, and business issues across devices, platforms, and use cases that apply to the product
• Maintain product documentation, including user stories, acceptance criteria, and release notes, and ensure they are kept up-to-date and accessible to stakeholders
• Track and report on key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to monitor product performance and user engagement
• Proactively identify engagement stakeholders impacted by area of ownership and work with those stakeholders to factor their requirements into product decisions
• Lead agile ceremonies such as sprint planning, backlog refinement, and sprint reviews to ensure successful delivery of product increments
• Make trade-off decisions as needed to balance scope, schedule, and quality, while ensuring the product meets customer needs and expectations
• Familiar and have practical experience using lean methodology and agile frameworks in product innovation and development
• Internally coach new and junior team members on best practices for agile ceremonies; externally serve as a mentor and coach to client teams on Lean and Agile product development methodologies
• Consulting –
• Function as a consultant in Product Management on various types of client engagements and across all stages of product life cycle; serve as a client-facing Product Manager (occasionally onsite) with the ability to quickly reconcile a strong understanding of the client’s product risks and how to mitigate upfront before engineers are asked to build
• Serve as a trusted advisor to clients, understanding their business objectives, challenges, and requirements, and providing strategic product recommendations and solutions. Communicate product updates, progress, and priorities to stakeholders across the organization, including senior management, to ensure alignment and transparency
• Assess client delivery models through people, process and tools, and present opportunities for improvement. Partner with clients to manage organizational change and overcome adoption barriers by facilitating communication, addressing resistance, and promoting the benefits and value of change to key stakeholders
• Collaborate with the sales and marketing teams by interpreting client needs to develop customized solutions and proposals
• Stay informed about industry trends, best practices, and emerging technologies, and share knowledge and expertise with clients and internal teams to drive innovation and continuous improvement
• Interpret market trends and commercial feedback into tangible business value, and communicate a cohesive product strategy for both internal and external use
• Proactively share and demonstrate expertise, knowledge gained or new insights, both internally and externally to like-minded communities 
• Understand and contribute to the client business strategy for a team and the company overall

Competencies we are looking for:

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent industry experience
• Comfortable interacting with both business and technical teams
• Proven experience in a variety of roles throughout the product life cycle
• 3+ years of experience owning strategic vision for 1 or more enterprise initiatives or LOB
• Proven experience managing a variety of stakeholders at all levels of an organization
• A minimum of 7 years of professional work experience related to product management
• A minimum of 3 years of experience working on client-facing teams
• Proven Project Management experience preferred
• Demonstrated ability to develop effective working relationships that improve the quality of work products with all levels of client stakeholders
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to build relationships and collaborate effectively cross-functionally

What we offer:

• Competitive salary – Great starting salaries for well-qualified candidates
• Generous Paid Time Off policy - Ippon offers flexible time off to help you be your best
• Health, dental, and vision insurance – We are dedicated to helping our employees live healthier lives through comprehensive health programs
• 401k with company match - Ippon offers an industry-leading 401(k) matching plan 
• Family Leave - We support the importance of family and offer maternity, paternity, and family medical leave plans
• A fun, smart, and healthy work environment, focused on our values and teamwork

We value the diversity and different perspectives each of our employees brings to Ippon Technologies.

Ippon Technologies is an equal-opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, veteran, or disability status

Visit us on LinkedIn or at https://us.ippon.tech/ to learn more.

So, do YOU speak Ippon?