Product Development Jobs in Brainerd, MN (NOW HIRING)

Ascensus is the leading independent technology and service platform powering savings plans across America, providing products and expertise that help nearly 16 million people save for a better today and tomorrow.

The Digital Onboarding Product Owner is an influential member of the Transition Services Team who is responsible for creation/maintenance of the onboarding methodology and service delivery model. This role is accountable for establishing the vision, goals, and strategy for a given domain (Unqork). Based on strategic direction from leadership, the Product Owner works closely with IT, Product and other business teams who have a role in the onboarding process to define service delivery features and assist with prioritizing the development/maintenance backlog, driving service delivery development with technology (where applicable) with the goal of maximizing business value delivered. The ability to influence, build relationships, partner with the business and technology, and lead strategic planning and execution in a fast-paced environment are critical to this role.

Job Functions, Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Role requires in-depth expertise of Defined Contribution retirement plan administration/onboarding across multiple service delivery models and market segments.
• Superior understanding of both Ascensus onboarding service delivery models and the external customer experience and competitive environment to be customer centric. Understands the trends impacting our customers, competition, and marketplace.
• Ability to solve complex issues across business groups, taking broad perspective and identifying unique solutions with quantifiable impact on organizational goals
• Generates new and valuable ideas and business solutions using creativity, combined with superior business knowledge and analytics (data); assesses and manages risk using sound judgement to make decisions and take action
• Seeks to create sustainable long-term value for the organization. Communicates value attributes in a way that creates clarity and inspires action.
• Works independently with little guidance in the most complex of situations; may be asked to lead functional teams and/or projects with notable risk and/or complexity.
• Clearly articulates value proposition, defines desired outcomes for product development, and establishes metrics/KPIs used to measure success
• Drives innovative solutions and provides direction and guidance throughout the product lifecycle
• Conveys vision/goals at the beginning of each increment of work
• Represents the voice of the customer and engages with stakeholders/end users to ensure an accurate understanding of business need
• Collaborates with the scrum team on feature definition, translating complex business needs into detailed user stories with actionable acceptance criteria to support Behavior Driven Design (BDD)
• Maintains an organized product backlog capturing evolving requirements and adjusting priorities as required
• Participates in UX design sessions, discussions, and usability testing as required
• Partners with the scrum team to plan and execute release-on-demand project implementations
• Provides PO review and approval of user stories upon completion; inspects product progress at the end of each sprint to assess progress and change course if needed
• Acts as the primary point of contact for updates and feedback related to product and team
• Partners with Organizational Readiness on implementation strategy, rollout, adoption, and user support
• Promotes new capabilities to drive engagement and adoption
• Demonstrates I-Client philosophy and the Core Values of People Matter, Quality First and Integrity Always
• Responsible for protecting, securing, and proper handling of all confidential data held by Ascensus to ensure against unauthorized access, improper transmission, and/or unapproved disclosure of information that could result in harm to Ascensus or our clients

Supervision:

• No direct reports, but provides critical leadership and influence to Transition Services

Experience, Skills, Knowledge Requirements:

• Degree in Business, Technology, or a related field
• Advanced with Microsoft Office applications and a strong knowledge of Agile and SDLC methodologies
• Minimum 10 years' experience in Retirement and Financial Services
• Minimum 5 years' experience as a Product Owner or in a related Technology-based role
• Demonstrated experience implementing and executing Agile practices with strong technical skills
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and deliver high-quality work that adheres to all standards, regulatory, and audit requirements
• Strong communication and writing skills with the ability to interact and influence at all levels of the organization
• Demonstrated experience with facilitation, situational awareness, conflict resolution, negotiation, decision-making, and change management
• Curious and detail-oriented, with strong analytical skills

Be aware of employment fraud. All email communications from Ascensus or its hiring managers originate from @ascensus.com or @futureplan.com email addresses. We will never ask you for payment or require you to purchase any equipment. If you are suspicious or unsure about validity of a job posting, we strongly encourage you to apply directly through our website.