Director, CES Digital Platforms

Consumer Technology Association•Arlington, VA

About The Position

The Product Owner is the organization’s accountable owner for CES system performance, reliability, and strategic alignment. This is a business leadership role with deep platform fluency — the ideal candidate combines strong stakeholder instincts, sound vendor judgment, and the credibility to make and defend platform decisions in a complex, multi-team environment.

Requirements

7–10 years of experience in business systems, product management, enterprise applications, or a closely related role.
Demonstrated ownership of SaaS business platforms in a complex, multi-stakeholder organization.
Strong experience in business partnership, requirements management, and cross-functional stakeholder communication.
Proven vendor management experience, including contract oversight and performance accountability.
Experience leading or managing technical team members, formally or informally.
Excellent prioritization, communication, and judgment in ambiguous, fast-moving environments.
Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems, Business Administration, Computer Science, or a related field; or equivalent professional experience.

Nice To Haves

Experience as a Product Owner or Product Manager in an enterprise context, with demonstrated ability to manage a platform backlog and make prioritization decisions under competing demands.
Background in associations, events, trade shows, or similarly time-critical operating environments.
Familiarity with data integration, reporting, and analytics considerations.
Experience in environments transitioning from fragmented or decentralized system ownership to centralized governance.
Experience with Eventbase, MapYourShow, EventPoint, or similar event technology platforms.
Product management certifications (e.g., CSPO, PSPO) are a plus.

Responsibilities

Own and maintain the CES platform roadmap, prioritizing work based on organizational value, operational risk, and show-critical timing.
Serve as the accountable owner for CES system performance, reliability, and continuous improvement across all systems managed by the CES Platforms Team.
Define success criteria for platform initiatives and track progress against them.
Establish clear ownership, documentation standards, and support models for all systems managed by the CES Platforms Team.
Make or facilitate decisions on system changes, vendor selections, and platform investments.
Partner with Marketing, Conferences, Sales, Finance, Operations, Data & Analytics, and IT to understand business needs and translate them into actionable requirements.
Serve as a trusted advisor to business leaders on CES system capabilities, tradeoffs, and investment decisions.
Act as subject matter expert and strategic advisor for CES systems managed by other teams.
Prioritize system enhancements based on enterprise value, attendee and exhibitor experience, and operational risk.
Own vendor relationships, contracts, renewals, and performance management for all systems managed by the CES Platforms Team.
Lead platform selection processes including requirements definition, vendor evaluations, and RFPs as needed.
Hold vendors accountable to SLAs, timelines, and quality expectations through active, ongoing engagement.
Maintain collaborative, informed communication with system vendors throughout the year.
Establish and maintain governance for acquiring, configuring, and modifying CES business applications.
Own change management and release coordination, particularly during critical CES work cycles.
Communicate system changes, anticipated downtime, and release timelines to affected teams in a timely and clear manner.
Reduce operational risk during peak periods through disciplined planning and execution.
Directly manage the Integration Engineer, providing clear priorities, coaching, and support.
Build and maintain strong working relationships with IT, Data & Analytics, and business teams across CTA.
Represent the CES Platforms team in organizational planning and technology discussions.