Chief Product & AI Officer

brightfin

About The Position

The Chief Product & AI Officer (CPAIO) holds end-to-end ownership of product strategy, engineering execution, and the AI-driven development lifecycle (AIDLC) for brightfin, an AI-native cost optimization platform serving enterprise CIOs across technology expense management (TEM), IT financial management (ITFM), FinOps, and AI spend management. Reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer, this executive leads a unified product and engineering organization responsible for translating market opportunity into shipped product, building the platform architecture that supports outcome-based commercial models, and scaling the company from its current $30M ARR base toward a $100M ARR target over a three-year horizon. The role combines strategic product leadership with hands-on engineering credibility, organizational design, and senior talent acquisition. This is a builder role. Not a role to manage a portfolio, represent the company at conferences, or produce roadmaps that live in decks. A role for someone who earns the room with engineers, forms a product point of view with conviction, and measures success in shipped product and measurable customer outcomes — not features. If the combination of a winning platform, a wide-open market, and the mandate to build an AI-native development organization from the ground up sounds like the right problem — keep reading.

Requirements

Deep working knowledge of AI-driven software development practices, including LLM-based tooling, agentic workflows, and the operational changes required to embed AI throughout the development lifecycle.
Comprehensive understanding of enterprise SaaS product strategy, platform architecture, and multi-product portfolio management.
Substantive knowledge of the ServiceNow platform, ecosystem economics, and the strategic distinction between ServiceNow-first and ServiceNow-only architectures.
Working knowledge of the technology expense management, IT financial management, and FinOps categories, including buyer personas, competitive landscape, and the operational problems customers are solving.
Understanding of outcome-based and consumption-based commercial models and the product and measurement infrastructure they require.
Familiarity with enterprise security, compliance, and data governance requirements applicable to platforms handling enterprise financial and operational data.
Knowledge of modern engineering organization design, including team topology, on-call and reliability practices, and the trade-offs between speed and durability.
Twelve (12) or more years of progressive leadership experience in product management, engineering, or both, with a meaningful portion at the executive level (Vice President or above).
Demonstrated experience building or scaling an AI-driven development lifecycle in a production environment, with first-hand operational involvement rather than oversight from a distance.
Track record of shipping enterprise software products at scale, including responsibility for both new product introduction and continuous platform evolution.
Prior experience leading a combined product and engineering organization, or leading one function while operating in close partnership with the other.
Experience hiring, developing, and managing senior leaders, including directors, vice presidents, and individual contributors at the staff or principal level.
Engineering fluency sufficient to engage substantively with senior engineers on architecture, technical trade-offs, and execution risk, without necessarily writing code day-to-day.
Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to articulate product strategy to customers, the board of directors, and the broader organization.
Demonstrated ability to form and defend a market and product point of view supported by customer evidence rather than authority.
Proven judgment under conditions of speed, ambiguity, and incomplete information.
Sound organizational and people-management judgment, including the ability to hold high standards while maintaining a constructive working environment.
Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, business, or a related field is required.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree (MBA or MS in a technical discipline) is preferred but not required; equivalent professional experience will be considered.
Direct experience in the TEM, ITFM, FinOps, or adjacent IT cost management categories.
Experience operating in or selling to large enterprise CIO organizations.
Experience scaling a SaaS business from approximately $30M to $100M or more in annual recurring revenue.
Experience building products on or alongside the ServiceNow platform.

Responsibilities

Define and own the long-range product vision and strategy spanning TEM, ITFM, FinOps, and AI spend management, including market positioning, roadmap, and competitive differentiation.
Lead, manage, and hold accountable the combined product and engineering organization, establishing one unified operating rhythm and shared set of priorities.
Build, operate, and continuously improve the AI-driven development lifecycle (AIDLC), moving concepts from discovery through deployment at materially faster cycle times than traditional software development methods.
Architect and deliver the product foundation required to support an outcome-based commercial model, including the measurement systems and platform capabilities that tie customer results to contractual commitments.
Recruit, develop, and retain senior product and engineering leadership, including domain experts in IT finance, FinOps, and enterprise SaaS.
Partner with the CEO and executive team on company-wide strategy, capital allocation, pricing, and go-to-market alignment.
Establish and maintain engineering standards covering quality, security, scalability, and platform reliability appropriate for enterprise customers.
Govern the company's technical and product relationship with the ServiceNow ecosystem, including integration depth, platform dependencies, and the architectural decisions that preserve optionality beyond it.
Represent product and engineering to customers, prospects, the board of directors, and investors as required.
Establish key performance indicators for product adoption, engineering velocity, platform reliability, and customer outcomes, and report against them on a regular cadence.