Senior Product Lead

Who We Are

WillowTree, a TELUS Digital Company, partners with the world’s leading brands to help them tackle their thorniest challenges - be it launching new digital products, delivering personalized marketing at scale, or harnessing the power of data and AI to transform their business. These mission-critical initiatives aren’t solved by a single discipline. Great digital is a team game - it requires seamlessly combining strategy, engineering, design, data science, marketing, and more. Other firms have bolted on these capabilities - as digital natives, we’ve built them into our teams from Day 1. The result? Top and bottom lines that grow, alongside our client’s capabilities. Check out how we have impacted our clients' digital portfolios over the years.

In January 2023, WillowTree was acquired by TELUS Digital (Symbol: TIXT).  The combined company brings an unparalleled ability to deliver seamless, trusted, digitally-enabled experiences across any channel a customer might choose - be it mobile apps, websites, voice skills, chatbots, email, service agents, or associates.

Location & Flexibility

The Senior Product Lead role will be an integral part of WillowTree's hiring success. To help retain our deep culture of collaboration both among ourselves and our stakeholders, this role will maintain an in-office presence in a hybrid capacity (Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays) from our Vancouver, BC office.

The Opportunity

The Senior Product Lead is a highly-autonomous role with numerous opportunities to substantially impact our teams, clients, and company. You’ll blend core concepts of product ownership from Agile methodologies with a holistic product strategy and account management approach, incorporating technical expertise. You’ll use your expertise to understand our client’s needs, translate business requirements into actionable tasks for our development team, and collaborate with a diverse team of designers, strategists, developers, and test engineers to bring the client’s vision to life.

Responsibilities 

• Build strong, trusting relationships with key client stakeholders, gaining credibility as a "trusted advisor"
• Lead client discussions around product vision and end-user needs
• Elicit requirements and manage complex requirement backlogs that consider multiple platforms
• Build a shared understanding of product requirements among all stakeholders (internal and external)
• Drive a strategic product roadmap that considers business value, technical lift, dependencies, and time and budget constraints
• Facilitate conversations around scope management and feature prioritization
• Collaborate with product designers to create best-in-class user experiences that are feasible and within technical constraints
• Run or assist in client journey mapping, user story mapping, and other product-oriented workshops
• Lead technical discussions with engineers to help define system architecture, and data flows to guide feature development
• Effectively leverage analytics and metrics data points to drive informed decision-making and enhance product strategies
• Analyze and interpret data to identify patterns, trends, and opportunities for product optimization and improved user experiences
• Manage and document technical dependencies and API needs
• Provide meaningful contributions to the promotion of best practices, skills development, and process improvement
• Mentor other Product Leads, informally or formally

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in the software development industry as a Product Manager, Product Owner, Technical Business Analyst, Requirements Manager, or related position 
• Experience working with stakeholders to elicit and define requirements for multiple platforms: iOS, Android, Web, Backend technologies, etc.
• Proven understanding of the differences in capabilities across iOS, Android, Web, and TV platforms
• Firm grasp of accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1) and their integration into product development processes for enhanced inclusivity and compliance
• Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate effectively with people of different roles and technical backgrounds
• Experience in driving product vision, go-to-market strategy, and UI/UX discussions
• Ability to quickly spin up on new technologies and understand constraints and platform-specific risks
• Robust documentation and technical writing skills, with proficiency in using user stories, acceptance criteria, flow diagrams, API documentation, and other requirements documentation methods
• Strong technical acumen with a deep understanding of product development processes from concept to product launch and frontend and backend technologies (i.e., web/native apps, APIs, databases)
• Proven track record of facilitating scrum ceremonies (i.e., Stand up, Refinement, Sprint planning, Retrospectives) to drive successful software development cycles
• Demonstrated expertise in leading the kick-off of new features and designs, resulting in efficient project implementation and stakeholder satisfaction
• Excellent user experience intuition and ability to develop empathy for users of your product
• Experience as a mentor and leader who creates a safe environment where all ideas are welcomed and considered

Bonus Points

• Agency or consulting experience with a variety of clients and industries
• An understanding of the differences in capabilities across iOS, Android, Web, and TV platforms
• Experience with product research and strategy
• Knowledge of UI/UX platforms and design thinking
• Certified ScrumMaster and/or Certified Scrum Product Owner

Why WillowTree?

We offer a place to be yourself.

Our differences, both visible and invisible, benefit our teams, our communities, and the products we craft. That’s why WillowTree strives to build a team with diverse backgrounds, skills, and perspectives. You’ll work hard here; however, we’ll balance that with a culture that supports your growth and cares about your well-being. We’re committed to creating an environment of inclusion — a place where every Tree can thrive.

We want you to reach your fullest potential and part of your professional development at WillowTree will include dedicated time to innovate on passion projects and an annual stipend to fund your professional pursuits.

WillowTree celebrates our differences and provides equal employment opportunities to all team members and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. Diverse teams build better products. We acknowledge that the tech industry especially lacks opportunity for those who are of non-traditional backgrounds and in underrepresented groups. In order to create the best products for everyone, we know that it's important for our team to reflect the diversity of our users, and we are committed to being the change we want to see.

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