Program Development Manager

Authentic•New York, NY

5d•Onsite

About The Position

The Program Development Manager leads Authentic’s Dayton-based team of Program Developers, who configure and launch insurance programs in the company’s policy administration system (PAS). The manager initially leads a team of 5–6 developers and is responsible for planning, prioritizing, and delivering their work while growing the team as the program portfolio expands. This is a player-coach role: the manager leads people and projects, stays close to the configuration work, and may handle builds directly. Software engineering experience and insurance experience are not required; the manager will learn the insurance domain and the PAS workflow. The role reports to the VP of Programs and is part of the Programs department. The department designs and builds insurance programs end to end: Program Design handles market research, actuarial studies, rate development, forms, and state filings, while Program Developers configure and launch programs in the PAS. The role is based onsite in Dayton, Ohio, and offers room to expand its scope as the team and program portfolio grow.

Requirements

At least 5 years of professional experience, including 1–2 years managing people; direct-report management is preferred, and formal team lead experience is considered.
Proven project management skills, including managing multiple workstreams, dependencies, and deadlines while keeping stakeholders informed.
Background in IT, technical operations, systems implementation, or another technology-adjacent environment.
Genuine interest in developing people, with examples of coaching someone to grow in their role.
Comfort with technical and configuration systems and willingness to learn basic coding and Git workflows; software engineering experience is not required.
Ability to think strategically about how the team’s work connects to the broader business and improve processes.
Clear, proactive written and verbal communication with technical and non-technical audiences.
Strong judgment, organization, and attention to detail.
Ability to work onsite in Dayton, Ohio.

Nice To Haves

Experience in insurance, insurtech, or financial services, especially with a policy administration system such as an in-house PAS, Guidewire, or Duck Creek.
Exposure to rating, rules, or forms configuration, or to SERFF filings.
Hands-on experience with GitHub, configuration-as-code, or basic scripting and query languages such as SQL or Python.
Experience leading an implementation, configuration, or business systems team.
Experience growing a team through hiring, onboarding, and process development.
Formal project management training, such as PMP, Agile, or Scrum.
Advanced Excel skills.

Responsibilities

Manage a growing team of 5–6 Program Developers by setting priorities, holding weekly one-on-ones, providing regular feedback, and leading performance reviews.
Coach developers on build quality, problem solving, and ownership, and help them progress to more complex work.
Maintain a visible, approachable presence in the Dayton office and check in on the work and the team.
Partner with the VP of Programs on headcount planning, hiring, onboarding, and training as the team grows.
Develop team documentation, playbooks, and best practices.
Own workload management from intake and scoping through prioritization, assignment, and delivery tracking for program builds and configuration changes.
Oversee configuration of rates, rules, and forms in the PAS to ensure live programs match approved rate development and filings.
Manage inbound Operations requests, including endorsements, build configuration, class mappings, and form attachments; establish turnaround expectations and keep requesters informed.
Manage new program launches, including timelines, dependencies, staging QA testing, and go-live readiness.
Maintain a consistent review and release process for configuration changes shipped through GitHub to carrier programs, tenants, products, and coverages.
Identify recurring bugs and requests and turn them into process or tooling improvements.
Perform builds, configuration tasks, and bug fixes, especially early in the role and during busy periods.
Learn the PAS and configuration workflow well enough to unblock developers, review their work, and estimate effort accurately.
Work with actuarial and program design teams, including Product Analysts, to coordinate the transition from filing to build.
Partner with Operations, underwriting, and program stakeholders to set priorities and communicate timelines.
Identify breakdowns in departmental handoffs and propose practical improvements, such as clearer SOPs or better intake processes.