Technical Product Manager, People Products
Toast
You’ll be part of our People and Places team whose ambition is that our People Experience is a key differentiator and reason for candidates to choose Toast and employees to stay at Toast, as much as our Products are today. Our People Products team goal is to amplify People’s Team ambition by developing AI-powered conversational self-service products to deliver personalized employee experiences and insights in the flow of work through cloud based scalable, integrated, compliant products to unleash productivity and boost engagement of Toasters and possibly also ship to Toast customers.
You'll join a team that is redefining how a mission-driven company operates and scales its most important asset: its people.
In This Role, You Will:
Technical Product Development
- Execute on the product vision and roadmap for assigned tech initiatives ensuring alignment with business objectives and employee needs.
- Manage the end-to-end product lifecycle for assigned technology initiatives, from ideation and user research to deployment and iterative improvements.
- Develop and maintain comprehensive roadmaps, release notes, and marketing materials to ensure alignment and transparency.
- Provide clear direction to execution teams, driving automation initiatives through delivery and change management in collaboration with data and technology partners.
- Employ rigorous A/B testing and data-driven insights to refine solutions and ensure continuous experience improvements.
- Apply design thinking and user research methodologies specific to generative and conversational AI, delivering intuitive, high-impact solutions employees love.
- Drive Technical Program Delivery: Lead the planning, execution, and delivery of complex technical programs from end-to-end. You will create clear program plans, define milestones, and proactively mitigate risks.
- Executive Communication: Craft executive summaries and launch newsletters to showcase the impact of our programs to the entire organization.
- Strategic Planning: Work directly with the Director of People Products on portfolio planning and execution, and collaborate with the People Products leadership to drive new third-party and internal product launches.
- Drive Cross-functional Alignment: Collaborate with various teams: Create solid partnerships with engineering, product, design, and business departments. Collectively, establish program objectives, select technical requirements, and plan the timeline for completion. Develop and refine processes to help manage programs and projects effectively. Ensure that team roles, responsibilities, and accountability are clear across various departments.
- Remove Obstacles: Identify and proactively resolve roadblocks and interdependencies, ensuring teams have what they need to execute efficiently and on schedule.
- Measure Success: Define and track key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to measure business impact.
- Foster a Culture of Execution: Inspire and motivate teams to deliver high-quality results, on time, and with a focus on continuous improvement.
- Act as the central point of contact between engineering, product, and the People team, facilitating effective communication and decision-making.
- Work closely with the program leaders and team to show the importance and role of the programs. Use data to bring different stakeholders together and make informed decisions. Consider different views and information, then give a clear recommendation to reach consensus.
- Present complex technical concepts, product demos and program statuses to both technical and executive audiences in a clear, compelling manner.
- Demonstrate skill in simplifying complex ideas, identifying risks and dependencies, and achieving goals within technological constraints.
- Champion best practices and ensure solutions align with enterprise architecture and security standards for our People & Places technology stack.
- Define and track success metrics and KPIs to measure the impact of programs on People & Places outcomes, using a data-driven mindset to continuously optimize performance.
- Proactively monitor platform features and maintain comprehensive documentation to manage technical debt.
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Business Administration, or a related field; advanced degree preferred.
- 10+ years of experience leading large technical programs and in product management. This includes launching products used by more than 10,000 employees. At least 2 years of experience should be in AI programs and products.
- Strong Technical Acumen with a deep understanding of the product development lifecycle. Proficiency in Agile methodologies and experience with project management tools (e.g., Google Workspace, Asana, Jira/Confluence) is required.
- Experience working in a large People and Places AI-focused department, specializing in employee or customer experience solutions, or consulting roles focused on People and Places AI products.
- Hands-on experience with AI tools, frameworks, or platforms.
- Proven hands-on design experience with the ability to create low-to-high-fidelity wireframes and develop product marketing enablement materials.
- Strong product sense, with abilities in strategy formation, navigating ambiguity in complex spaces, and deep experience with rigorous AB testing.
- Proven success managing complex, cross-functional projects in areas such as big data, analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning.
- Strong communication and leadership skills with the ability to influence and inspire teams and stakeholders without relying on direct authority.
- Proven experience in defining big visions and inspiring teams to deliver new innovations and impactful products.
- Able to create highly collaborative team spirit and able to take in multiple points of view, synthesize decisions, and communicate outcomes across the organization
- Artistry and excellence in simplifying complex ideas, identifying risks and dependencies, and delivering for customers within the constraints of technology
- Advanced proficiency in key tools such as SmartSheet and Google Suite.
- Working knowledge of Project Management, Lifecycle Management, and Agile tools like Jira, Asana, or SNOW.
- Experience in creating plans, presentations, and roadmaps for products and programs. Ability to make dashboards, communicate with stakeholders, and prepare related documents.
- Strategic Mindset: The ability to analyze industry trends and use data to inform product and program decisions.
- Data Fluency: Familiarity with data querying, visualization tools, and basic data analysis to measure program success and identify key insights.
- Technical Product & Program Management: Experience applying product management and technical program management principles to drive adoption of new technologies and processes.
- Domain Passion: A genuine passion for improving the employee experience and contributing to organizational effectiveness at scale.
- Relevant product or pragmatic management certifications, learnings in AI Product Management, accredited PMP or equivalent practical experience are a plus.
AI at Toast
At Toast we’re Hungry to Build and Learn. We believe learning new AI tools empowers us to build for our customers faster, more independently, and with higher quality. We provide these tools across all disciplines, from Engineering and Product to Sales and Support, and are inspired by how our Toasters are already driving real value with them. The people who thrive here are those who embrace changes that let us build more for our customers; it’s a core part of our culture.
Our Spread* of Total Rewards
We strive to provide competitive compensation and benefits programs that help to attract, retain, and motivate the best and brightest people in our industry. Our total rewards package goes beyond great earnings potential and provides the means to a healthy lifestyle with the flexibility to meet Toasters’ changing needs. Learn more about our benefits at https://careers.toasttab.com/toast-benefits.
The base salary range for this role is listed below. The starting salary will be determined based on skills and experience. In addition to base salary, our total rewards components include cash compensation (overtime, bonus/commissions, if eligible), benefits, and equity (if eligible).
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is Baked into our Recipe for Success
At Toast, our employees are our secret ingredient—when they thrive, we thrive. The restaurant industry is one of the most diverse, and we embrace that diversity with authenticity, inclusivity, respect, and humility. By embedding these principles into our culture and design, we create equitable opportunities for all and raise the bar in delivering exceptional experiences.
We Thrive Together
We embrace a hybrid work model that fosters in-person collaboration while valuing individual needs. Our goal is to build a strong culture of connection as we work together to empower the restaurant community. To learn more about how we work globally and regionally, check out: https://careers.toasttab.com/locations-toast.
Apply today!
Toast is committed to creating an accessible and inclusive hiring process. As part of this commitment, we strive to provide reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities to enable them to access the hiring process. If you need an accommodation to access the job application or interview process, please contact candidateaccommodations@toasttab.com.
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