Digital Transformation & Product Strategy Manager (Public Service Administrator, Option 3)

State of Illinois•Chicago, IL

5d•$8,571 - $12,651•Onsite

About The Position

The Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology (DoIT) is seeking a seasoned technical leader to serve as the Digital Transformation & Product Strategy Manager, supporting the Department of Early Childhood (IDEC). In this role, you will serve as a trusted advisor to the CIO, acting as the primary driver for human-centered service delivery and the modernization of the agency’s digital product portfolio. We are looking for a leader who can bridge the gap between policy goals and user-focused technology. You will be responsible for navigating complex organizational landscapes to maintain momentum on high-impact initiatives, ensuring that digital products are simple, secure, and sustainable. The ideal candidate will have a proven track record of managing product roadmaps, leading scaled agile delivery, and managing vendor performance in a large-scale environment.

Requirements

Requires knowledge, skill, and mental development equivalent to four (4) years of college in computer science, engineering design, product innovation, information system management, or a direct Information Technology related field.
Requires prior experience equivalent to three (3) years progressively responsible administrative experience in digital product management, agile delivery leadership, or organizational transformation within a large-scale public or private enterprise environment.
Requires three (3) years of professional experience managing the full product lifecycle, including strategic planning, stakeholder engagement, requirements engineering, agile delivery, resource and risk management, post-launch optimization of digital services, and delivering digital roadmaps that incorporate human-centered design, UX best practices, and modern technical environments such as Saas, cloud services, and CI/CD.
Requires three (3) years of professional experience managing cross-functional teams (such as developers, UX designers, or analysts) in a Scaled Agile or high-velocity delivery environment, including leading program-level planning events (e.g., PI Planning), facilitating retrospectives, driving continuous improvements, and ensuring unified planning and predictable outcomes across multiple teams.
Requires three (3) years of professional experience in vendor management, budget oversight, and strategic resource planning, including monitoring contractual compliance, coordinating onboarding and required training, evaluating performance against deliverables, and collaborating with executive and operational stakeholders to support digital transformation goals, contract renewal decisions, and overall service quality.
Requires the ability to verify identity.
Requires employment authorization to accept permanent full-time position with the State of Illinois.
Requires the ability to pass a position specific, agency required background check and requires self-disclosure of criminal history.
Requires the ability to travel in performance of duties with occasional overnight stays.
Requires the ability to work overtime including scheduled, unscheduled, short notice, evening, weekends, and holidays.
Requires the ability to serve in an on-call capacity.
Requires the ability to lift and carry objects or equipment weighing up to 10 pounds. This is considered sedentary work as defined by the U.S. Department of Labor (20 CFR 404.1567(a)). Sedentary work involves lifting no more than 10 pounds at a time and requires occasional lifting, carrying, walking, and standing.
Requires adherence to the revolving door restrictions outlined in 5 ILCS 430/5-45.
Requires compliance with the provisions outlined in section 4A-101 of the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act, necessitating the occupant of this position to file of a Statement of Economic Interest.

Nice To Haves

Three (3) years of professional experience managing the full product lifecycle, including strategic planning, stakeholder engagement, requirements engineering, agile delivery, resource and risk management, post-launch optimization of digital services, and delivering digital roadmaps that incorporate human-centered design, UX best practices, and modern technical environments such as Saas, cloud services, and CI/CD.
Three (3) years of professional experience managing cross-functional teams (such as developers, UX designers, or analysts) in a Scaled Agile or high-velocity delivery environment, including leading program-level planning events (e.g., PI Planning), facilitating retrospectives, driving continuous improvements, and ensuring unified planning and predictable outcomes across multiple teams.
Three (3) years of professional experience in vendor management, budget oversight, and strategic resource planning, including monitoring contractual compliance, coordinating onboarding and required training, evaluating performance against deliverables, and collaborating with executive and operational stakeholders to support digital transformation goals, contract renewal decisions, and overall service quality.
Three (3) years of professional experience as a product owner performing systems and business analysis, including feasibility assessments, backlog governance, and translating executive and user needs into technical specifications.
Three (3) years of professional experience leading organizational transformation, specifically driving a cultural shift from project-based delivery to product-based, including continuous improvement models using agile principles.
Two (2) years of professional experience in organizational change management, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and agile maturity through program-level retrospectives and coaching.
Extensive knowledge of Human-Centered Design (HCD) and User Experience (UX) methodologies to improve service delivery and user outcomes.
Extensive knowledge of the modern technical landscape, including SaaS configurations, cloud-native service delivery, and Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery/Deployment (CI/CD) standards to optimize performance and reliability.
Ability to develop and maintain cooperative working relationships with federal, state, or private business staff, managers, executives, and external stakeholders, fostering collaboration in resolving sensitive administrative issues and supporting subordinate team members or project staff.
Certification(s) in one or more of the following: Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe), or similarly related methodologies.

Responsibilities

Under general direction, serves as the Digital Transformation & Product Strategy Manager for the Department of Innovation & Technology (DoIT), supporting the Department of Early Childhood (IDEC) leading the creation of the agency’s digital transformation roadmap and product strategy by integrating human-centered design and modern product management to improve service delivery for Illinois families.
Directs strategic requirements engineering and backlog governance, including establishing rigorous frameworks for translating executive and user needs into technical specifications.
Leads the creation of the agency’s digital transformation roadmap and product strategy by integrating human-centered design and modern product management to improve service delivery for Illinois families.
Supervises Contractual Staff.
Keeps abreast of new developments in the information technology field by continuing education through online training platforms, meetings, training sessions, seminars, and conferences to increase familiarity with and remain current on products, vendors, techniques, and procedures.
Performs other duties as required or assigned which are reasonably within the scope of the duties enumerated above.

Benefits

Competitive Group Insurance benefits including health, life, dental and vision plans
Flexible work schedules (when available and dependent upon position)
10 -25 days of paid vacation time annually (10 days for first year of state employment)
12 days of paid sick time annually which carry over year to year
3 paid personal business days per year
13-14 paid holidays per year dependent on election years
12 weeks of paid parental leave
Pension plan through the State Employees Retirement System
Deferred Compensation Program – voluntary supplemental retirement plan
Optional pre-tax programs -Medical Care Assistance Plan (MCAP) & Dependent Care Assistant Plan (DCAP)
Tuition Reimbursement Program and Federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program eligibility