Manager - Product Management - Costco Travel

As a member of the IT Management Team, you are responsible for managing, developing, and leading a team of employees. Your role includes leading the specific functional responsibilities of your team, which involves overseeing team performance and deliverables. However, your role as a leader within our organization requires more than the management of resources and day-to-day operations. As a steward of the company, you are charged with the development and execution of your team's strategic vision and plan and ensuring that your team's actions align with the larger goals of the company and the IT Division.
The Manager of Product Management will be responsible for leading a team of Product Managers, Product Owners, Delivery Managers, and Scrum Masters who define business problems that require technology solutions, then guides a group of development teams through the delivery of those solutions. The selected candidate will support the team in helping realize business benefits and defining a set of requirements that will translate into valuable business solutions and technology systems.
The Manager will support the team as they work closely with business users and IT Delivery stakeholders across multiple programs in all stages of the technology delivery lifecycle including discovery, design, construction, transition, and implementation. This individual should demonstrate the highest levels of customer service, communication, productivity, and professionalism. In addition, the candidate will have the ability and aptitude for leadership and self-motivation, possessing strong analytical skills and Costco business (or other retail) expertise.
As the primary conduit between your employees and upper leadership, your role in communicating and modeling the values and guiding principles of our company culture is of vital importance. All members of IT Management should strive to consciously and consistently foster a culture of engagement, trust, and "open door" communication.
Job Duties/Essential Functions
• INTEGRITY: When achieving benchmarks and goals, use methods/strategies that are consistent with the Code of Ethics and the Standard of Ethics for Managers and Supervisors. Always leads by example. Appropriately handles employee concerns and follows through to resolution.
• MEMBER SERVICE: Provides and ensures staff provides an exceptional member experience.
• ADMINISTRATION: Ensures proper department coverage (writing schedule and break aids if needed). Understands department budget, able to research and explain budget variances.
• MANAGING PERFORMANCE: Coaches and mentors' employees to provide support and guidance. Has regular open and honest conversations with employees to discuss work performance and career development. Identifies learning opportunities to strengthen employee knowledge, skill, and ability.
• COMMUNICATION: Regularly shares information with employees via meetings and one-on-one conversations. Successfully navigates difficult conversations with employees, members, and suppliers. Listens, expresses empathy, and adapts to get points across. Addresses issues immediately to ensure a timely resolution and to avoid escalating the situation. Consistently demonstrates business knowledge during interactions with senior management.
• SELF-MANAGEMENT: Demonstrates sound judgment, taking a partner when necessary. Ability to maintain self-control in the face of hostility or provocation or in intense, hectic situations.
• INCLUSION: Encourages different approaches and ideas to work and to accomplish goals. Seeks employee input. Takes the time to get to know or reach out to candidates who show potential that may not come forward on their own.
• COMPLIANCE AND SAFETY: Takes measures to ensure employee and member information is kept confidential and adheres to IS security policy.
• Provides training, encouragement, coaching, and feedback to employees.
• Observes employee performance, coaching as needed to ensure department, business, and company procedures and standards are met.
• Reviews work product, monitors workload, and sets standards for productivity and accuracy.
• Conducts yearly performance reviews and provides regular coaching and training to all staff.
• Responds to employee concerns using problem-solving skills, tact, and discretion in accordance with the Costco Employee Agreement and other applicable regulations.
• Develops and maintains a team atmosphere through communication and mentoring. Establishes new ways of acknowledging positive performance to support employee morale.
• Reviews applicant submissions for job postings, conducts interviews, and makes recommendations regarding hiring status.
• Builds, leads, and inspires a team of Product Owners and Product Owner leads, through strategic hiring, effective mentorship, and candid performance management.
• Utilizes internal tools and an iterative mindset to create a collaborative environment that fosters autonomy, transparency, mastery, innovation, and learning.
• Promotes continuous improvement in how the team identifies, defines, and delivers technology solutions that provide the most value to the goals of the program, Costco Travel, and Costco Wholesale.
• Develops trusted relationships with key business stakeholders and technical leaders to drive efficiencies in delivering technology solutions.
• Manages budgeting for the software, hardware, and training needs for the team.
• Participates in helping develop long-term technology strategies.
• Negotiates contracts and agreements with vendors as needed to support the delivery of technology solutions.
• Anticipates and aggressively removes obstacles that slow down or prevent programs from delivering on program objectives.
• Leads and successfully executes critical initiatives through strong collaboration and agile leadership.
• Observes procedures and practices, actively looking for process improvements and makes recommendations for changes that will provide labor and cost savings.
• Other duties as assigned.
• This is a full-time management/leadership position (45 hours per week).
• Regular and reliable workplace attendance at your assigned location.
Ability to operate vehicles, equipment or machinery
• Computer, phone, printer, copier, fax
Non-Essential Functions
• Assists in other areas of the department as necessary.
• Assists in other areas of the company as necessary.
Ability to operate vehicles, equipment or machinery
• Same as Essential Functions
Experience, Skills, Education & Licenses/Certifications
Required:
• 3 years supervisory experience in information technology and the ability to direct technical work teams.
• 5 years experience in information technology operations, including leading teams in systems analysis or infrastructure engineering.
• 3 years leadership experience in agile software development.
• 5 years' experience planning, organizing, and directing software development projects.
• Proficient at mentoring teams in the methodologies, standards, procedures, and organization that contribute to the success of technology solutions.
• Ability to mentor experts in requirements elicitation, authoring, and software delivery in an agile environment.
• Ability to achieve alignment when partnering with individuals from all departments, who possess a diverse set of opinions and perspectives.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to handle multiple tasks and respond quickly to critical issues.
• Excellent analytical skills and demonstrated ability to effectively troubleshoot and provide solutions.
• Excellent written/verbal communication skills and ability to engage with individuals at all levels of the organization.
• Ability to convey important and/or complex information in a clear and compelling manner.
• Ability to develop loyalty and commitment in others by communicating clear expectations and leading by example.
• Thorough understanding of technologies and products required to bring travel solutions to market at scale.
• Outstanding organizational, communication, interpersonal, relationship building skills conducive to collaboration; able to work well in a cross-functional, matrix management environment.
• HIPAA Training and Supervisors Orientation (within 30 days of hire); Leadership Development 101 (within one year); Costco Pay Policies (within 90 days of promotion).
Recommended:
• Bachelor's degree in computer science or engineering, or equivalent training and experience.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with a history of hands-on, detail orientation.
• Applied knowledge of Scaled Agile Framework.
• Ability to establish credibility and rapport with technical and non-technical team members alike.
• Ability to successfully collaborate with multiple technical functions in the areas of infrastructure operations, engineering, and design.
• Experience in implementing large-scale (enterprise-level) initiatives.
• Proficient in Google Workspace applications, including Sheets, Docs, Slides, and Gmail.
• Successful internal candidates will have spent one year or more on their current team.
• Successful internal individual contributor candidates will have been marked as "YES" to "ready/qualified to manage team(s) in Costco IT" on the Manager Readiness Survey by a member of their leadership within the last 12 months.
Other Conditions
• Management will review the Job Analysis for this position prior to a job offer.
Required Documents
• Cover Letter
• Resume
• Last two performance reviews
• Attendance records for current year (Do not include absences covered by paid sick/personal time,
FMLA or other protected absences.)
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