Product Manager II

ACT Education•Iowa City, IA

8h•Remote

About The Position

ACT is seeking a Product Manager II to help build a new pathway navigation experience that helps high school students explore, plan, and take confident next steps toward college and career. You will work cross-functionally with design, engineering, research, and business partners moving quickly, testing ideas and prototypes, and translating student and customer insights into a product students actually want to use. The finalist will be hired at the salary and level commensurate with their qualifications. For this position, we anticipate offering an annual salary in the range of $80,000 to $100,000. ACT manages salaries within the range based on relevant factors including, skills, experience, and internal equity. Location: This is a remote position, based in the United States. Visa: Applicants must be authorized to work in the U.S. without the need for visa sponsorship. Please Note: This is a Fixed Term Position that will last 6 months, with the possibility of an extension.

Requirements

At least 3 years of experience in product management or a closely related discipline
Experience building or launching a 0-to-1 product, or leading a significant new feature or product effort from concept to launch
Experience working cross-functionally with design and engineering in an agile environment
Demonstrated ability to build prototypes, mockups, or lightweight proofs of concept to test and communicate product ideas
Bachelor’s degree in technology, education, data science/analytics, business or related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience from which comparable knowledge and abilities can be acquired
Comfortable operating with ambiguity and building structure and process where none exists
A scrappy self-starter who can build their own prototypes (e.g., Figma, no-code AI tools) to test ideas
Skilled at navigating and influencing across organizations
Excellent written and verbal communicator who builds trust quickly with new stakeholders
Strong project management instincts; keeps complex, cross-organizational work on track
A genuine passion for education and unlocking opportunity for students
Experience using AI tools to support day-to-day work (e.g., drafting, research, data synthesis), with sound judgment about when human review is required.
Ability to use data and analytics tools (e.g., SQL, dashboards) to translate research and usage data into product decisions

Nice To Haves

Experience working and influencing in cross-functional organizations
Experience in Edtech, workforce development, or college and career readiness space

Responsibilities

Serve as the connective product lead across different functional teams, aligning roadmap, priorities, and timelines
Build trusted working relationships with stakeholders in product, design, engineering, and business functions
Define and validate the product vision and requirements for a new pathway navigation experience for high school students, from early concept through launch
Build scrappy prototypes to ideas quickly and gather feedback before committing engineering resources
Make fast, pragmatic tradeoffs to move the team from ambiguity to a validated direction with limited resources and an evolving scope
Lead lightweight, continuous discovery with high school students, counselors, and educators to understand their pathway planning needs
Translate research and data into clear product requirements and prioritization decisions
Socialize findings to build a shared understanding of user needs and product direction
Partner with designers and engineers to scope, prioritize, and ship product features on a fast-moving timeline
Own the end-to-end product development lifecycle, from requirements through launch coordination and post-launch performance tracking
Communicate clearly and proactively with stakeholders, keeping everyone aligned on status, decisions, and risks
Manage project timelines and dependencies across cross-functional teams
Present product updates and recommendations to leadership