What We're Looking For
Agate is seeking a Manager of Product Management to lead a team responsible for requirements definition, backlog management, and delivery coordination across our platform and project-based work. This is a hands-on leadership role for someone who thrives in fast-moving environments, brings structure to complexity, and knows how to turn business needs into clear, actionable work that helps engineering teams deliver.
This role is ideal for a builder. You are energized by solving hard problems, comfortable operating with limited direction, and motivated by the opportunity to create practical, repeatable processes in an environment that is still evolving. You may already be leading a small team, or you may be a strong senior-level product, product owner, or business analysis professional ready to step into management.
Our platform serves State, Local, and Education customers, and we are continuing to mature our product delivery model as we scale. The right candidate will be excited by the chance to improve how work moves from intake to execution, strengthen collaboration across teams, and help build the structure needed for the next stage of growth.
What You'll Do
- Lead and develop a team responsible for requirements gathering, backlog management, and delivery coordination
- Translate customer, business, and operational needs into clear product requirements and actionable work for engineering
- Establish standards for high-quality requirements, including epics, user stories, acceptance criteria, and readiness for development
- Oversee backlog creation, prioritization, and maintenance to ensure teams are focused on the highest-value work
- Partner with engineering leadership to improve sprint readiness, delivery predictability, and cross-functional execution
- Build scalable processes, templates, and operating rhythms that improve clarity, accountability, and consistency
- Support Agile delivery practices and help strengthen how teams plan, refine, and deliver work
- Identify opportunities to reduce rework, improve coordination, and create a more efficient product delivery model
What You'll Bring
- 6+ years of experience in product management, product ownership, business analysis, or a related role in software delivery environments
- Experience leading, mentoring, or guiding others involved in requirements gathering, backlog management, or delivery planning
- Strong ability to translate complex or ambiguous business needs into structured, actionable requirements
- Experience creating or improving repeatable processes in environments where structure was still developing
- Strong working knowledge of Agile delivery practices, including backlog refinement, sprint planning, and cross-functional collaboration
- Ability to build credibility quickly and work effectively across Product, Engineering, Project Management, and customer-facing teams
- Comfort operating in startup or scale-up environments with shifting priorities, lean resources, and meaningful ownership
- A practical, self-sufficient mindset and a bias toward action
- Experience supporting complex enterprise or platform-based software
- Experience in government, public sector, SLED, or other high-compliance environments
- Experience leading Product Owners or Business Analysts
- Familiarity with SaaS or platform product development
- Experience helping organizations mature Agile delivery practices
What Success Looks Like
- Establish a more consistent and repeatable process for how requirements are gathered, defined, and prepared for delivery
- Improve backlog quality and readiness so teams can plan and execute with greater clarity and confidence
- Strengthen coordination across Product, Engineering, and Project Management
- Reduce delivery friction caused by unclear requirements, inconsistent process, or misaligned priorities
- Improve predictability, accountability, and overall execution across delivery teams
- Help build a more scalable operating model that supports growth without adding unnecessary complexity
In your first year, you will:
What Makes This Role Exciting
This is an opportunity to step into a visible leadership role and help shape how Agate delivers as we scale. You will have real ownership, the ability to influence process and team standards, and the chance to solve meaningful operational challenges in a growing business.
It is an especially strong fit for someone who loves building in environments that are still taking shape - someone who takes pride in bringing order to complexity, improving how teams work, and creating practical systems that make a real impact.
