Title: Product Owner Premium II
Duration: 6 Months – Possible Extension
Location: Washington, DC 20433
Hybrid Onsite: 4 days per week from Day 1, with a full transition to 100% onsite anticipated soon
Position Overview: The Product Owner is responsible for defining, prioritizing, and managing the team backlog to ensure delivery is aligned with business goals and customer needs. Working closely with cross-functional teams, the Product Owner translates business requirements into clear user stories and acceptance criteria, supports sprint execution, and maintains ongoing stakeholder communication to maximize product value. The Product Owner is a key contributor to the team's ability to deliver high-quality increments in a predictable, value-driven cadence.
Educational Qualifications and Experience:
- Education: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology with proven related experience as an expert in the relevant areas specified.
- Extensive hands-on experience as a Product Owner in Agile delivery environments, with demonstrated ability to manage complex, multi-stakeholder backlogs in enterprise or large-scale IT settings.
Certification Requirements:
- SAFe® Product Owner/Product Manager (POPM) certification issued by Scaled Agile, Inc., or equivalent Agile product ownership certification (e.g., Certified Scrum Product Owner — CSPO, Professional Scrum Product Owner — PSPO).
- SAFe® Advanced Product Manager, SAFe® DevOps Practitioner, SAFe® Practice Consultant (SPC), or other advanced Agile or product management certifications are an advantage.
Required Skills/Abilities:
- Advanced proficiency in product backlog management, including writing user stories, acceptance criteria, and managing dependencies across teams.
- Advanced proficiency in product roadmap development and near-term planning in alignment with business objectives.
- Advanced stakeholder engagement skills, including the ability to facilitate workshops, manage competing priorities, and communicate clearly with both technical and non-technical audiences.
- Advanced ability to apply data-driven decision-making using product and delivery metrics to guide backlog prioritization and continuous improvement.
- Proficiency in Azure DevOps (ADO) or equivalent tools for backlog tracking, sprint management, and reporting.
- Skilled in Agile methodologies including Scrum, Kanban, and SAFe, with practical experience applying them in multi-team delivery environments.
- Advanced influencing and strategic communication skills, with the ability to build consensus and drive alignment without direct authority.
- Skilled in product requirement analysis, value proposition development, and product development lifecycle management.
“Mindlance is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate in employment on the basis of – Minority/Gender/Disability/Religion/LGBTQI/Age/Veterans.”
