Product Owner

UFG is currently hiring a Product Owner who will be accountable for specific business objectives based on the area and/or Product(s) they are focused on. The Product Owner (or in collaboration with the Technical Product Manager) creates a Product roadmap and defines the strategic vision for their team driven by the overall organization vision. The position will have a deep understanding of the target market/industry and build close relationships with key stakeholders to ensure that the team’s effort is aligned with
overall strategy. A Product Owner manages dependencies with other team’s functions while identifying, building, and managing strategic partnerships across the different areas. They work closely within their team to ensure business value and user feedback is translated into new development. The Product Owner must also continually engage with customers and stakeholders on a regular basis and leverage new information to maintain and prioritize the product backlog. 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Develop Product vision, performance metrics, roadmaps, and clearly communicate this with stakeholders and team members.
• Define the business value for the Product and support messaging, communication, and customer outreach as necessary.
• Build the Product Backlog, prioritize the backlog based on business value, and continuously refine the backlog.
• Prioritizing backlog includes incorporating stakeholder input into product roadmap while effectively negotiating tradeoffs of conflicting priorities based on value to the business and customer.
• Breakdown large epics/features and write user stories that convey value to the end user.
• Ensure appropriate stakeholders are involved in the Sprint Review.
• Ensure team members understand the stories in the backlog and the business value they deliver.
• Collaborate with technical leadership in and outside the team to help define the technical roadmap for the Product (several sprints ahead of them).
• Engage with customers and stakeholders on a regular basis to gather feedback and refine the future of the Product as a result (including continuous process improvement) and adjust the backlog as needed.
• Raise dependencies and roadblocks both internal and external to the team, with support of the Scrum Master and help resolve them if needed.
• Scope minimum viable products, considering existing resource constraints and sustained development of the Product
• Accountable to the team Working Agreements and evolving processes developed and adopted by the team.
• May perform duties that are typically performed by other job types/role.
• Participate in sprint ceremonies when needed and work to support the team on a daily basis.

Job Specifications:

Education:

• High School Diploma or equivalent.
• Bachelor’s degree preferred.

Certifications/Designations:

• Employees are expected to participate in continuing education throughout their careers specifically including Agile training.
• Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), Certified Scrum Practitioner (CSP) preferred. Any persons in this role will receive formal Product Owner training for certification

Experience:

• 3 years’ experience working in or with the business unit the product is serving or comparable experience within the
  insurance industry.
• Experience in backlog development (e.g., prioritization and grooming, writing stories) preferred.
• Product Management or similar work experience preferred.
• Experience working in an iterative delivery environment (Agile, Scrum, etc.) preferred.
• Experience with business analysis and requirements writing preferred.
• Experience with basic development and technology concepts preferred.

Knowledge:

• Knowledgeable in the business side of the product that they are supporting; the customers, users and how the product
  brings value to the users.
• Proven knowledge of standard concepts, practices, and procedures within the relevant business function.
• Understanding and knowledge of various internal roles (both business and technology) and how they interact with their product.

Working Conditions:

• General office environment

Pay Transparency Statement:

UFG Insurance is committed to fair and equitable compensation practices. The base salary range for this position is $120,000, - $130,000 annually, which represents the typical range for new hires in this role. Individual pay within this range will be determined based on a variety of factors, including relevant experience, education, certifications, skills, internal equity, geography and market data. 

In addition to base salary, UFG Insurance offers a comprehensive total rewards package that includes:

• Annual incentive compensation
• Medical, dental, vision & life insurance
• Accident, critical Illness & short-term disability insurance
• Retirement plans with employer contributions
• Generous time-off program
• Programs designed to support the employee well-being and financial security.

This pay range disclosure is provided in accordance with applicable state and local pay transparency laws.