How will this role impact First Command?
The Digital Product Owner (DPO)at First Command will be responsible for ensuring the development and delivery of digital products and services align with customer needs business outcomes, and the strategic product roadmap..
The DPO is accountable for measurable value delivery, maintaining a clear vision of product goals, and fostering collaboration with cross-functional teams. By leveraging deep product knowledge and agile practices, the DPO delivers high-quality solutions that provide tangible business value.
To succeed, the Product Owner will create and maintain product backlogs, define acceptance criteria for product features, and facilitate effective communication between business and technical teams. Collaborating with functional leaders and subject matter experts, they will ensure the timely release of product increments that enhance client experiences and drive business growth. The Product Owner is an expert of their product with quality understanding of solution components including product capabilities, data, integrations, functional, and non-functional requirements.
What will the employee do in this role?
Core Responsibilities
- Conduct in-depth analysis of business needs and document use cases and workflows to ensure clarity for all stakeholders
- Engage with stakeholders to gather and translate requirements into functional and non-functional specifications, considering product constraints and risks
- Demonstrate and continuously update deep product knowledge, including core capabilities, data, integration points, and awareness of industry trends
- Collaborate with technical teams to understand system architectures and ensure product features align with compliance, security, and performance standards
- Organize and prepare large backlogs for planning cycles, and proactively provide business input to ensure work is not blocked
- Facilitate alignment of product features with the technical architecture roadmap and support seamless integration across systems
Backlog Management
- Own and manage the Team Backlog, ensuring it is prioritized and aligned with the product roadmap.
- Create and refine complete, acceptable User Stories that are ready for development.
- Decompose features into detailed user stories with clear acceptance criteria.
- Continuously groom and update the backlog based on stakeholder input and business goals.
Continuous Value Delivery
- Work directly with Developers, SQA, SDET, and Test Leads to clarify requirements and remove blockers.
- Provide immediate feedback on work in progress to ensure alignment and quality.
- Collaborate with teams to deliver incremental value in every sprint.
- Use peer reviews, surveys, and resolution times to drive continuous improvement.
Triage & Acceptance
- Perform the final acceptance of User Stories (sprint-level work) to ensure they meet business and quality standards.
- Manage Bug Triage, prioritizing and resolving defects to maintain high product quality.
- Validate solutions through established quality assurance processes.
- Ensure all deliverables meet acceptance criteria before release.
Scrum Collaboration
- Partner with the Development Manager to maintain healthy agile practices and assist with delivery expectations1.
- Actively participate in Scrum ceremonies (Sprint Planning, Daily Scrum, Sprint Review, Retrospective, etc.).
- Foster a collaborative environment across cross-functional teams.
- Champion agile principles and continuous improvement within the team.
Collaboration Model
- The DPO works closely with the following roles to ensure alignment, quality, and delivery of business value:
- Digital Product Manager (DPM): Aligns user stories with vision and provides regular communication on delivery.
- Solution Architect (SA): Collaborates on technical design and prioritization.
- Development Manager / Scrum Master: Aligns on backlog priorities and delivery expectations.
- Software Engineer (Dev): Acts as SME and manages backlog.
- Software Quality Assurance (SQA): Collaborates on test plans and quality outcomes.
- Test Lead / SDET: Identifies automation opportunities and provides feedback.
- Other DPOs: Syncs on cross-product dependencies and champions standards..
Who will you lead?
- No direct supervisory responsibility, but must provide guidance to Agile teams and collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders.
What skills/qualifications do you need?
Education
- Bachelor’s degree required (may consider experience in lieu of degree)
Work Experience
- Experience in product ownership, preferably in digital solutions for financial services firms
- EX08 – 1-3 years’ experience
- EX09 – 4-7 years’ experience
- Experience in backlog management, user story creation, and collaborating with development teams
- Familiarity with Agile and/or Scaled Agile (SAFe) frameworks
Certifications
- The preferred candidate will have one or more certifications in the following areas:
- Product Management
- Agile and Scaled-Agile (SAFe)
- Platform and Technology
- Process Improvement
- Financial Services
Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
Knowledge
- Agile frameworks (Scrum, SAFe) and backlog management
- Industry trends in digital financial services
- Familiarity with digital platforms and relevant tech stacks
- Familiarity with customer research, personas, and UX design principles
Skills
- Ability to conduct in-depth analysis of business needs
- Skilled at gathering and translating requirements into functional and non-functional specifications.
- Proficient in documenting use cases, user stories, and workflows.
- Ability to break down product features into user stories with clear acceptance criteria
- Backlog prioritization and refinement based on business value and customer needs
- Collaboration with cross-functional teams, including development, UX, and business stakeholders
- Strong communication and stakeholder management skills
- Strong skills working in Azure Dev Ops (ADO) including running reports, writing queries, prioritizing Features & User Stories, writing issues (Features & User Stories), linking, and assigning iterations and teams.
- Exceptional documentation skills, covering both technical and business writing, in MS Office files (e.g. Word and Excel) and tools (e.g. ADO, Trello).
Abilities
- Analytical thinking with a focus on data-driven decision-making
- Ability to act as a bridge between business and technology teams
- Highly organized and detail-oriented with the ability to prioritize in a fast-paced environment
- Strong problem-solving and critical thinking skills
- Empathetic and customer-focused with a passion for delivering value
- Exceptional documentation
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