Chief Product Officer

State of Montana • Helena, MT

2d • Onsite

About The Position

The Chief Product Officer (CPO) role is responsible for establishing a product operating model built around empowered, cross-functional product teams that are accountable for solving real user and business problems. The CPO is expected to champion outcomes over outputs, continuous product discovery, evidence-based decision making, and the practice of measuring success by the value delivered to agencies and the public rather than by the volume of features shipped. This role is responsible for leading and developing the leaders of each functional team, holding them accountable for product outcomes, and removing barriers to execution, rather than directing day-to-day product or development work. The CPO is expected to coach functional leaders in building strong product management, product design, and engineering partnerships, and in developing the product competencies needed for teams to operate with clear strategic context, meaningful customer access, and appropriate decision-making authority. The CPO is also expected to actively use artificial intelligence as a core tool of the position. This includes applying AI to accelerate product discovery, analyze portfolio performance and user data, synthesize stakeholder input, support prioritization decisions, and identify opportunities for innovation and efficiency across the enterprise product portfolio. The CPO champions the responsible adoption of AI within the Office of Product Strategy and ensuring alignment with statewide AI governance, ethical standards, security requirements, and policy. The CPO serves as the primary product strategy executive for SITSD, partnering with the Deputy CIO, State CIO, fellow Chief Officers, and agency CIOs to ensure Montana's technology products are user-centered, strategically prioritized, and positioned to deliver meaningful outcomes statewide.

Requirements

• A Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, Business, Public Administration, or a related field
• Seven years of progressively responsible experience in product management, technology strategy, or enterprise IT leadership
• At least three years in an executive or senior leadership role overseeing technology teams and functions
• Knowledge of product management practices, AI, and portfolio management, sufficient to provide credible executive oversight and strategic direction.
• Ability to develop and communicate an enterprise product vision that guides organizational priorities, investment decisions, and technology adoption.
• Proven ability to lead leaders — setting direction, delegating effectively, and holding team managers accountable for outcomes.
• Experience building and sustaining high-performing product and technology teams through coaching, clear expectations, and a culture of accountability.
• Ability to translate enterprise strategy into clear direction and measurable product outcomes across multiple teams.
• Experience aligning diverse stakeholders across agencies, executive leadership, and technical teams around shared goals.
• Ability to engage, challenge, and advise senior leaders on complex product and technology decisions with significant organizational impact.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to represent technology interests in executive, legislative, and interagency settings.

Nice To Haves

• Master's degree in Information Technology, Business Administration, Public Administration, or a related field.
• Experience in state or local government IT or product leadership.
• Experience leading product or technology organizations through large-scale transformation in a complex, multi-stakeholder environment.

Responsibilities

• Establishing a product operating model built around empowered, cross-functional product teams that are accountable for solving real user and business problems.
• Championing outcomes over outputs, continuous product discovery, evidence-based decision making, and measuring success by the value delivered to agencies and the public.
• Leading and developing the leaders of each functional team, holding them accountable for product outcomes, and removing barriers to execution.
• Coaching functional leaders in building strong product management, product design, and engineering partnerships.
• Developing the product competencies needed for teams to operate with clear strategic context, meaningful customer access, and appropriate decision-making authority.
• Actively using artificial intelligence as a core tool of the position to accelerate product discovery, analyze portfolio performance and user data, synthesize stakeholder input, support prioritization decisions, and identify opportunities for innovation and efficiency.
• Championing the responsible adoption of AI within the Office of Product Strategy and ensuring alignment with statewide AI governance, ethical standards, security requirements, and policy.
• Serving as the primary product strategy executive for SITSD, partnering with the Deputy CIO, State CIO, fellow Chief Officers, and agency CIOs to ensure Montana's technology products are user-centered, strategically prioritized, and positioned to deliver meaningful outcomes statewide.

Benefits

• Work/life Balance
• Health Coverage
• Retirement plans
• Paid Vacation and Sick Leave and Holidays
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) – Employment with the State of Montana may qualify you to receive student loan forgiveness under the PSLF.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive