AVP, Senior Product Manager - Specialty Underwriting

You have a clear vision of where your career can go. And we have the leadership to help you get there. At CNA, we strive to create a culture in which people know they matter and are part of something important, ensuring the abilities of all employees are used to their fullest potential. 

The Sr. Product Manager works with business owners and creates, maintains and communicates the Product Vision and Product Roadmap for a very large / complex product or solution, potentially spanning multiple functions. They implement strategic objectives with substantial impact on the short-term success of their area of responsibility and influence the long-term success of the company. The Sr. Product Manager owns the outcomes at the business unit defined strategic implementation level, breaking down the product roadmap into an incremental roadmap that is clearly communicated to product owners and developers on release trains. The Product Sr. Manager also ensures alignment at all times with the product vision, management expectations and maintaining alignment with stakeholders at various levels. This is a key role that works collaboratively with executive-level business owners, solution architects, product owners and delivery teams. Finally, this is a people leadership role.

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

Performs a combination of duties in accordance with departmental guidelines:

• Owns, and has final authority for, the business strategy, content and priorities for a highly complex product or solution, operating with broad latitude in a multifaceted environment

• Collaborates with Business Owner / Initiative Owners and key stakeholders to decompose Initiatives into Agile Release Train (ART)-level work efforts

• Develops and owns the Agile Program Vision, Backlog and Program Increment (PI) Roadmap, continuously communicating to the Portfolio and Team levels

• Develops Benefit Hypotheses and acceptance criteria in collaboration with multiple stakeholders with disparate priorities

• Works with Portfolio Management, where applicable, actively engaging in Portfolio-level meetings and providing insights into budget parameters

• Partners with system architects to prioritize architecture work aligned with the architectural runway and business priorities

• Actively participates in Team-level PI ceremonies, providing business and user context

• Owns internal and external stakeholder preparedness to receive and utilize the value of the product or solution/changes, including distribution channel, service partner and marketing and sales enablement, where needed

• Owns the business strategy behind the product or solution lifecycle, along with legal and compliance adherence, to increase value while mitigating risks

• Collaborates with customer experience and support through the lifecycle of the solution

• Owns preparation of the complex solution context for implementation and owns decision-making for ART-level backlog

• Participates in release management and solution validation

• Provides strategic insights into work activities to help development teams in sizing

• Aligns with the extended Product Management team in support of the overall Product Management discipline

• Manages a team of Product Management / Product Owner resources

May perform additional duties as assigned.

Reporting Relationship

Typically VP or above
 

Skills, Knowledge & Abilities

• Embodies the Lean-Agile Mindset with a proven track record of effectively coaching, developing, mentoring and inspiring teams in an Agile work environment

• In-depth technical, broad theoretical and working knowledge of the domain and solutions being developed, along with the proven ability to deliver outcomes across business functions in pursuit of value within their area of expertise and for the company

• Proven ability to think strategically with limited information and develop plans and roadmaps aligned with disparate priorities of multiple stakeholders to realize outcomes aligned with business strategy

• Strong ability to negotiate and resolve conflicts, facilitate delicate discussions, consider different approaches and make decisions that have an important impact on the business

• Ability to prepare Solution Context (user environment) for changes due to implementation of solutions/updates

• Proven ability to interact effectively with stakeholders at all levels, including business and technical/product teams; building and maintaining collaborative relationships

• Ability to pivot and enact change quickly while managing stakeholder expectations and relationships

• Excellent interpersonal, presentation, verbal and written communication skills

• Strong leadership and management skills, demonstrating integrity and professionalism

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree, with Master's preferred, in a related discipline or equivalent work experience

• Typically a minimum of twelve years of related work experience. Preferably as a Product Manager, Product Owner or equivalent role for complex insurance or finance based solutions within the Specialty Underwriting domain, preferably with experience influencing senior leadership levels

• Program-Level experience in both Waterfall and Agile methodologies

• Successful track record with Agile and Design Thinking methodologies, along with approaches to “from Project to Product” definition, prioritization and funding principles

• Applicable certifications preferred - SAFe PO/PM, CSPO or PSPO

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In certain jurisdictions, CNA is legally required to include a reasonable estimate of the compensation for this role. In District of Columbia, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York and Washington, the national base pay range for this job level is $152,000 to $242,000 annually. Salary determinations are based on various factors, including but not limited to, relevant work experience, skills, certifications and location. CNA offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits package to help our employees – and their family members – achieve their physical, financial, emotional and social wellbeing goals.  For a detailed look at CNA’s benefits, please visit cnabenefits.com.

CNA is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities in the recruitment process. To request an accommodation, please contact leaveadministration@cna.com