The VP Product Management position is being recruited as a key succession planning and bench strengthening exercise for the technology and product leadership team. This role will provide the vision, leadership, and strategy for developing and implementing key product initiatives in a complex global retail and online environment. They will be responsible for ensuring that FTD has a robust and innovative digital product roadmap that will enable long-term growth and scalability for both current and future businesses. This includes specifically developing a world-class customer experience and overseeing cutting-edge visual product design. 

With the digital revolution changing retail in virtually every dimension imaginable, every retailer must evolve to win in pricing, merchandising, supply chain, marketing, brand, infrastructure, experience design, and in the way that information is understood and used. This person will sit at the forefront of this transformation for FTD, leading the team of product managers, user experience and creative leaders that will design and deliver world-class, pragmatic and business-focused product solutions to support the corporation's diverse business units and functions in achieving these goals.

The management team is pivoting the business and forming a new culture which is rooted in digital innovation, customer experience, ambition and courage. He wants to create an environment in technology where no one is scared to fail and where there is no pride of ownership and people feel they can be positively disruptive. Altering the DNA of a company is like giving it a transfusion of change, and the leadership team at FTD are committed to finding people who are positively disruptive, do not accept the status quo and who want to delight customers.

As one of the first "new leaders" in a technology organization driving to completely reinvent itself from the ground up this VP Product Management will yield significant influence. They will help drive an exciting new way of building and integrating solutions to make differentiated experiences in a market typically known for poor and lackluster experiences. A hands-on leader, this person will help build out the product management organization from scratch, hiring at all level and inheriting a blank canvas upon which to express yourself. This will of course mean that this leader will have to roll their sleeves up, drive change from the grass roots and to inspire change around them. This person will have end-to-end discretion and responsibility for all digital product development and therefore will help to deliver focused innovation and near-autonomous roadmap development.

FTD is creating new products and services from the ground-up. All new team members can make their mark firmly and directly contribute to, if not drive, FTD's success. Mistakes of the past, legacy bottlenecks, politics and hierarchy will be eschewed as they create a world-class digital commerce environment.

KEY OBJECTIVES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Work closely with the CTO, CDO and business leaders across the organization from creative services through merchandising and from supply chain through the ERP groups and everyone in between.

Plan, execute and innovate a cutting-edge product strategy that delivers against the company's key strategic goals and growth objectives. You will be one of 3-4 key executives "at the table" within the technology department but also one of a dozen or so across the entire business and therefore strategic contribution is imperative.

Lead, develop and optimize a team of product managers, product owners, UX, and visual product designers that are the key hubs for product design, promotional design, web development and research. Develop and retain a world-class, nimble team that will take center stage in helping FTD realize its goal of being the world leader in floral gifting.

Use data to drive your decision-making process and measure the success of every innovation, update, feature and function released to the market. You will be key in helping FTD create a culture focused on dramatically improving the customer experience while maximizing the contributions to the Company's financials.

Interpret business requirements and architect new initiatives that meet current and future needs while delivering rapid improvements across the entire breadth of e-commerce (B2B and B2C) products.

Drive innovative client-facing products and customer experience concepts working with the extended team of business managers, designers, technicians, and cross-functional teams that will support products post-launch.

Write and present top-notch product story and requirements documentation, driven by user insights, with input from internal stakeholders and at times external clients. Ability to pivot quickly based on new data and dynamic requirements is critical.

Analyze and present hard data and metrics to back up assumptions and feature concepts and to set targets and measure key performance indicators.

Track product bugs and poor experience points to define areas for constant enhancement and optimization within the customer experience.

Act as an internal evangelist for the assigned product(s). Collaborate with internal stakeholders to develop and optimize messaging and supporting collateral to enable marketing, selling, and support for feature areas.

Understand and discuss technical concepts, and propose new product ideas with non-technical and technical employees.

Bring the digital strategy to life by creating engaging and data-driven prototypes and beta experiences that make the overall mission and strategy increasingly "real" for our consumers and the company.

Define and implement metrics and process improvements to ensure effective and efficient design and delivery of all types of information services.

Question the status quo: firm grasp of retail fundamentals but willing and able to take risks and try new and innovative solutions, setting the standard in industry.

Work effectively with external vendors, ensuring the appropriate measures and controls are in place to drive optimum performance in the delivery of all product development activities. Develop relationships with key business customers to streamline requirements gathering, engaging in rapid prototyping, and to conceive, create, and design unique experiences. Directly engage with these partners to help them understand the potential and limitations of the technology stack and to ensure that FTD takes full advantage of the opportunities available to it as well as pragmatically setting strategy in step with technical capability.

Effectively articulate the product design strategy for the feature areas to the immediate team and upper management.

Educate and inspire your team members to be a part of a progressive, innovative, and positive culture, acting as enablers to your business partners to continue delivering results as a successful public company.

Hire, lead and mentor all engineering staff creating a best-of-class team and culture within FTD. Be the reason people want to work at the company and actively promote the team as top product and technology employer.

REQUIRED EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

Bachelor's degree from a four-year college or university in the field of computer science or engineering.

Master's degree in one of these fields preferred or applicable technical certification and extended work experience or equivalent combination of education and experience.

Minimum ten years of experience in Product Ownership or Product Management.

Experience working with / leading Visual Product Design and UX teams.

Strong strategic thinker with demonstrated business acumen.

Track record of managing product lines and achieving financial results.

Demonstrated ability to hire and lead high-performance Product Management teams.

Proven success in defining and delivering software product that drives customer satisfaction and business results

Strong execution and project management skills.

Strong skills in data analysis and interpretation.

Proven leadership excellence; leads by example, and models a passion for the company as well as demonstrating a proactive and solution-oriented style, tackling problems head-on and not relying on others for technology solutions.

Experience championing staff development, performance management, and talent management as well as the forecasting of skill needed to support the strategic direction of the business.

Effectively motivates others in a team-oriented, collaborative environment. Excellent negotiation and interpersonal skills. Proven ability to present ideas in business-friendly and user-friendly language.

Exceptionally self-motivated and directed.

Keen attention to detail as well as to the big picture.

Exceptional service orientation. Demonstrated ability to work across an organization to influence and coordinate resources and achieve project completion.

Communication Skills

Exceptionally effective and influential spoken, written, electronic, and presentation skills are required. Emotional intelligence demonstrated should be superior, reflecting consistently appropriate management of the emotions of self and others. Communication should be constructive and professional with employees at all levels, as well as with any external individuals. Can communicate technology jargon in a simple manner to get executive buy-in and support. Willing to engage in super fun and positive conflict to get to the best answer--from anyone.

Decision Making and Problem-Solving Skills

Able to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions. Decisions of significance may need to be made where not all facts are available, and the incumbent must appropriately assess risk and act. Must possess extensive and excellent financial acumen and analytical skills. Problem solving should be completed in a timely manner, taking priorities into consideration.

Compensation and Benefits

This role offers a competitive base salary, sign-on bonus, annual bonus, 401k with Match, RSU package, and health package through Aetna. 

Apply today!!

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