The Position.

Consumer behavior is nebulous. Occasionally, hints are dropped for entrepreneurs on how to create a better mousetrap. However, these hints are fleeting, often misguided, and seldom specific enough for a product manager, designer, or engineer to build an exact product that matches the consumer preference in the market. More often than not, this difficulty leads to consumer behavior being treated as a mythical creature - the understanding of which relegated to the realm of magic gifted at birth to a few lucky billionaires - a magic which can’t be learned. 

We don’t believe in magic or divine intervention that graces a few lucky entrepreneurs. We do, however, believe in leveraging structured, rigorous thinking guided by the scientific process to create products that customers love.

As Director of Product at Root, you’ll lead a team of product managers in pursuit of a more perfect experience. You’ll leverage data from disparate sources, the talent and insights of your product team as well as designers and engineers working across multiple projects in the effort of crafting that experience. You’ll be responsible for product performance, the growth and success of your product management team, development of a product roadmap, and execution of strategic initiatives. 

Reports to: Group Lead

What you’ll be doing.

• Work with VP of Product and your direct team of product managers to build and maintain a roadmap for your areas of responsibility.
• Maintain roadmap alignment with company strategic initiatives.
• Partner with leadership team to achieve organizational buy-in on key product efforts.
• Identify process and organizational bottlenecks and leverage these opportunities to constantly improve efficiency.
• Be an expert with respect to the competition and leverage that expertise to drive product innovation and capture market opportunities.

What we’re looking for.

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Mathematics, or another quantitative field.
• 6+ years of product experience, 2+ years of management experience.
• Exceptional leadership skills; naturally collaborative and able to work directly with a team as well as cross functionally without direct managerial authority.
• Product domain expertise spanning the customer discovery, planning, and product development process; deep understanding of customer-centric product practices; ability to mentor and develop expertise in others.
• Strong technology background, including understanding of technical capabilities on mobile and web platforms.
• Highly analytical; excel at leveraging customer research and analytics to drive product decisions.
• Superior problem-solving skills with ability to think strategically and innovatively.
• Detail oriented; ability to multitask and prioritize projects.
• Roll-up-the sleeves work ethic and “do-what-it takes” attitude to efficiently execute and drive for results in a fast-pace work environment.
• Proven ability to thrive in a results-driven, fast-pace work environment.

Who we are.

Root Insurance is the nation’s first licensed insurance carrier powered entirely by mobile. We were founded on the belief that the services you need for everyday life should serve you better. That’s why we base insurance coverage on you, not your demographic. It’s the way insurance should be. And it’s all conveniently in an app.

What draws people to Root.

We’re a venture-backed technology company. Our early success is in large part due to our unwavering standards in hiring. We recognize that our product is only as good as the people building and promoting it. We look for individuals who find solutions by going through the cycle of ideation to implementation with curiosity, rigor, and a highly analytical lens. Ask anyone who works here and you’ll hear similar reasons for why they joined:

Autonomy. For assertive self-starters, the opportunities to contribute are limitless.

Impact. By challenging the way it’s always been done, we solve problems that have a big impact on our business.

Collaboration. We encourage rich discussion and civil debate at every turn.

People. We are inspired by the collection of crazy-smart people around us.