RQ00124 - Product Manager - Senior for TPO

Job Title: RQ00124 - Product Manager - Senior for TPO
Client: Metrolinx
Work Location: 277 Front St, Toronto, ON
Job Type: Hybrid
Estimated Start Date: 2025-03-17
Estimated End Date: 2025-09-17
#Business Days: 133.00
Hours per day or Week: 7.25 hours per day (5 Days)
To check the detailed description and matrix visit our website: 
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Description
KEY CONTRIBUTIONS
Functional/Technical

• Product Development/Roadmaps
• Collaborates with Metrolinx business units and stakeholders to understand CRM product vision, business needs, discuss, capture and prioritize ideas/needs that require technology enablement and develop product roadmaps;
• Organizes demand from business units with Metrolinx delivery teams and vendors in order to support quality releases that meet business goals;
• Provides input to the short executable plans derived from product roadmaps and oversees CRM product development through execution of the business requirements;
• Acts as a conduit between the business and delivery teams, identifying issues between the product roadmap and delivery plans/associated constraints, in order to find long-term solutions and engages the required stakeholders to reconcile conflicting priorities.

Vendor/Customer Relationships

• Supports managing the relationship with vendors, which includes defining problem statements, establishing and managing a robust product backlog and roadmap; reviewing vendor proposals to realize value for money and providing input to the Metrolinx Management Vendor process for vendor performance reviews;
• Organizes demand from business units with Metrolinx delivery teams and vendors in order to support quality releases that meet business goals;
• Works across the organization to build relationships with customers, product and vendor delivery teams and product operations to ensure product success;

Product/Project Management

• Plans and provides ongoing maintenance and management of their assigned project portfolio. Responsible for integrating program activities for their assigned product roadmaps and project; including collaboration with the business Product Delivery and strategic vendors;
• Confirms product designs at key milestones, in collaboration with Product Delivery teams, to stay apprised of progress through development, resolve escalated problems, and address business expectations in the event of development issues;
• Liaises with business stakeholders and clients to understand business priorities and business drivers in order to oversee the prioritization of a release that will meet the customer and client needs;
• Provides leadership and direction in project steering committee meetings or sprint retrospectives; advocates on behalf of the customer to ensure projects or releases are successful and business outcomes are met and benefits achieved;

Customer/Stakeholder

• Communicates regularly with the business to understand product vision, business needs and develop product roadmaps to ensure alignment of goals and plans; provides regular updates to stakeholders and provides opportunities for feedback on progress;
• Liaises with product delivery and the vendors to identify technology driven initiatives to be prioritized within the product roadmaps, e.g., software upgrade;
• Liaises with multiple stakeholders across the organization including for example Business Technology; Marketing; Finance, Performance, and Risk Management & Communications to provide input on their respective product portfolio (including financials and benefits realization) in order to develop portfolio view across all products;
• Liaises with Communications and Change Management professionals to understand change impacts and build inputs to the product roadmap accordingly. 

Operational Excellence

• Through the development of product roadmaps advises the business on how they can leverage technology and innovation to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their business;
• Fosters the advancement of Product Management capabilities as part of continuous improvement activities and maintaining Product Management practice in alignment with other Metrolinx groups;
• Monitors customer satisfaction with Metrolinx products and intervenes to improve product delivery efficiency and effectiveness, when required.
• Keeps current and advises the Senior Manager, Metrolinx Products regarding the direction of emerging tools and products that would improve the technology maturity of the organization.

Financial Stewardship

• Provides input to budgets and staffing plans that adhere to corporate standards and applicable legislation; meets service delivery objectives and manages project and department activities within budgetary limits;
• Tracks initiatives, reviews progress and endorses scope, time or cost changes, allocates funding to section projects and ensures expenditures are tracked to meet project plans; escalates severe problems to Senior Manager and informs business of any impact on business’ requirements;
• Provides input to forecasting, budgeting and financial management for each project;
• Oversees the financial management, controls functions and processes for assigned Metrolinx product families including budgeting, forecasting, costing, planning, profit/loss analysis for projects and services.
• Identifies opportunities to streamline processes and/or leverage technology/automation that may lead to (cost and/or time) savings;
• Collaborates with and provides support to the MetrolinxVendor Management Office and Metrolinx Procurement Services during procurement planning activities for technology products and services;

People Leadership

• Contributes to a working environment that is aligned with the organization’s desire to be “an employer of choice”, ensuring that people resources possess the required skills, are properly aligned, and are provided with the resources to do the job;
• Leads virtual teams large and small of vendor project managers, technical experts, Product Delivery and Product Operations resources responsible for delivering initiatives on assigned product roadmaps;
• Provides guidance to in some cases to 1-2 employees and a varying number of contractor and vendor resources and delivers timely feedback to ensure a cohesive operational unit and the optimum use of team skills; monitors work assignments to ensure adherence to timelines; monitors the achievement of performance objectives;
• Provides creative leadership with input from others to develop and deploy a strategic vision; connects and aligns projects with strategic corporate goals; demonstrates leadership and core competencies at a high level of development and is an exemplary model of living the corporate Values and Code of Ethics;
• Leads assigned team members in a single work group performing related tasks and provides leadership and oversight regarding the work assignment and deliverables, and adherence to timelines and quality expectations;
• Advises other staff and provides expertise on product management issues;
• Advises the client on how they can leverage technology more effectively to realize their business objectives;
• Provides guidance and direction to staff in some cases and project teams (e.g. defines team member roles, responsibilities, and expectations); delivers timely feedback to ensure a cohesive operational unit and the optimum use of team skills; manages staff and monitors work assignments to ensure adherence to timelines; monitors the achievement of performance objectives; develops and implements action plans to address performance gaps.

Section 3: Requirements
Education

• Completion of a degree or diploma in Business, Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science or related discipline - or a combination of education, training and experience deemed equivalent.

Experience

• Minimum eight (8) years’ relevant experience with (4) years’ experience within CRM Product Management; IT or related function
• Experience contributing to the success of midsize to large initiatives with above average levels of complexity and business criticality
• Experience managing projects and teams to a successful delivery
• Certifications or Designations
• Agile certification (Agile Certified Professional, Certified Scrum Product Owner)
• Certified Product Manager an asset
• Project Management Professional (PMP) or PRINCE2 an asset
• ITIL Foundations Certification an asset
• PROSCI certification an asset

Section 4: Leadership Competencies & Specialized Skills

• Service-Focused Leadership
• Transformational Leadership
• Communicating Effectively
• Delivering Superior Results
• Building a High-Performance Culture
• Making Sound Decisions
• Living the Values
• Energizing the Team
• Personal Effectiveness

Technical Competencies: 

• Knowledge of the principles, practices and methods of Product Management to: create the product vision and maintain the product roadmap for one or more assigned I&IT product families; build a product vision and own a detailed 12 – 18 month product roadmap to track and manage business outcomes; champion new products through the Product Lifecycle from vision to end of life;
• Expert knowledge and experience, as reflected above using agile approaches and principles in the IT environment;
• Expert knowledge and understanding of advance procurement vehicles and their application to Vendor Management best practices for I&IT.
• Management and leadership skills to manage a team of professionals; develop long term staffing/capacity plans; provide oversight/lead staff/teams across the organization on cross-functional program implementation initiatives;
• Knowledge of project management principles and practices to oversee projects and teams at a complex level that involve all forms of project delivery;
• Relationship management, partnership building, facilitation and persuasion skills and political acuity to: encourage collaboration and innovation with relevant stakeholders; act as an evangelist to get people behind the product vision; identify issues and engages the required stakeholders to reconcile conflicting priorities;
• Budgeting skills and experience to develop and manage budgets within budgetary limitations.
• Interpersonal and oral/written/presentation skills to brief/update senior management, prepare project/program related reports and materials, deliver presentations and provide subject matter expertise to consultants, staff, and decision-makers.

Section 5: Unusual Working Conditions (optional)

• No unusual or disagreeable conditions

Note:

• Location: Hybrid – 2 days per week onsite
• Public Sector Experience: Required