Product Owner, Item Development Platform

College Board - Learning & Assessments Division (L&A)
Location: This is a fully remote role. Candidates who live near CB offices have the option of being fully remote or hybrid (Tuesday and Wednesday in office)
Type: This is a full-time position

About the Team
Item Cloud is dedicated to transforming the speed, scale, and cost of assessment development and item pretesting at College Board. The product side of Item Cloud is organized within Learning & Assessment while the engineering side sits under Technology. Through our innovative software applications, we are proud to facilitate high-quality item generation for the Digital SAT Suite as well as the AP Program, ACCUPLACER, and LATAM in service of our mission. We collaborate closely with AD&D, AP, CRA, Digital Delivery, and Psychometrics to help ensure that our tests meet rigorous internal and industry standards, allow students to effectively demonstrate their skills and knowledge, and is accepted by HED and K12 for their intended uses.

About the Opportunity
As our Director, Item Cloud Digital Product Owner for Project Proteus, you're a key driver to how we increase the scale, efficiency, and quality of assessment development for the SAT, PSAT/NMSQT, PSAT 10, and PSAT 8/9 ELA tests. You're also a thought leader on assessment design and development innovation for other programs. Finally, you're a strong day-to-day partner for colleagues from different parts of our organization, particularly AD&D, Digital Delivery, Item Cloud Engineering, and Psychometrics, and play an important role in ensuring tight coordination and alignment across these teams as we progress towards our ambitious goals. You ensure an enhanced and streamlined experience for our users, enabling them to accelerate high-quality item development at scale.

In this role, you will:
Strategy and Planning (60%)

• Develop and manage product vision, product roadmap, and prioritized backlogs, based on long- and short-term product goals and organizational priorities and with input from AD&D and Item Cloud Engineering
• Drive clarity and alignment across diverse inputs by proactively proposing and advocating for a prioritized product roadmap that balances stakeholder needs, technical feasibility, and user impact
• Collaborate with Design and Engineering Leads to develop goals and slate stories for each sprint based on our priorities and capacity
• Document clear and comprehensive requirements and acceptance criteria for stories in advance of grooming sessions
• Contribute to internal investigation of and experimentation with emerging technology solutions, including discussion of their potential application in assessment development

Testing and Delivery (20%)

• Validate stories from current sprint based on the stated acceptance criteria
• Facilitate the implementation or integration of new features via timely releases that deliver continuous value to our users

User research (10%)

• Collaborate with team members and others in AD&D on user interviews, focus groups, usability tests, etc. to help shape the design and development of new features or inform the efficacy of existing features
• Collaborate with team members and others in AD&D to gather and monitor data on usage and behaviors to inform the prioritization of new features

Communications (10%)

• Navigate differing perspectives across disciplines and stakeholders with confidence and diplomacy, ensuring that product decisions reflect shared goals and clear trade-offs
• Report up and across on initiative health and risks, triaging issues when needed, and developing a regular cadence of communications with our stakeholders and users

About you, you have:

• 5+ years relevant experience as a Product Owner of digital product(s), ideally in the EdTech space
• Deep familiarity with Agile practices, including building and managing product roadmaps and backlogs and collaborating with engineering and design teams
• Proven ability to build trusted relationships across functions and assertively guide teams toward well-reasoned, user-centered product decisions-even when priorities or perspectives diverge
• Strong experience defining user needs and documenting right-sized and clear product requirements
• Strong experience with a variety of tools and techniques to aid in the sequencing and breakdown of large chunks of work
• Strong experience with distilling data from survey research, usability testing, etc. to yield insight and drive decision-making
• Experience researching emerging or innovative technologies, including generative AI, and experimenting with them in a thoughtful, responsible manner
• Some background in English Language Arts (e.g., have taught ELA and/or developed ELA content) is a plus
• Strong analytical thinking and structured problem-solving ability.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including facilitating meetings and presenting remotely and in-person
• Proven ability to complete complex tasks on short deadlines and in a fast-paced environment
• Bachelor's degree
• The ability to travel 4-5 times a year to College Board offices or on behalf of College Board business

For all roles at College Board:
We are seeking individuals who are passionate about expanding educational and career opportunities and committed to mission-driven work. Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States for any employer and should possess clear and concise communication skills, both written and verbal. Proficiency in Microsoft Suite tools is preferred, though a willingness to learn is equally valued. We look for those with curiosity and enthusiasm for emerging technologies, particularly AI-driven solutions, and a proactive approach to independently learning and applying new digital tools. Most importantly, applicants should demonstrate the skills and mindsets aligned with College Board's Operating Principles, reflecting a commitment to continuous growth, collaboration, and impact, notably:

• A commitment to candid, timely, respectful feedback
• A learner orientation and an openness to ideas and diverse perspectives
• The ability to push for excellence through data-informed decision-making, iterative learning, external benchmarking and user-inputs
• Strong problem-solving skills, including the ability to break down complex issues and identify clear paths forward
• A track record of prioritizing high-impact work, simplifying complexity, taking initiative, and making decisions quickly with clarity of purpose
• A habit of collaborating across differences, practicing empathy, and contributing to a culture of trust and shared success

About Our Process

• Application review will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. This role is expected to accept applications for a minimum of 5 business days.
• While the hiring process may vary, it generally includes: resume and application submission, recruiter phone/video screen, hiring manager interview, performance exercise, a panel interview, a conversation with leadership and reference checks.

What We Offer
At College Board, we offer more than just a paycheck, we provide a meaningful career, a supportive team, and a comprehensive package designed to help you thrive. We're a self-sustaining nonprofit that believes in fair and competitive compensation, grounded in your qualifications, experience, impact, and the market.

A Thoughtful Approach to Compensation

• The hiring range for this role is $80,000-$135,000.
• Your exact salary will depend on your location, experience, and how your background compares to others in similar roles at the College Board.
• We aim to make our best offer upfront, rooted in fairness, transparency, and market data.
• We adjust salaries by location to ensure fairness, no matter where you live.
• You'll have open, transparent conversations about compensation, benefits, and what it's like to work at College Board throughout your hiring process. Check out our careers page for more.

#LI-TheAcorn
#LI-Remote