Senior Director, Digital and AI Tech Product Management

Risepoint is an education technology company that provides world-class support and trusted expertise to more than 100 universities and colleges. They are seeking a strategic and highly motivated Senior Director of Digital Product & AI Strategy to lead the discovery, definition, and development of technology solutions that enhance the online university program lifecycle.

Responsibilities:

• Conduct deep discovery to identify pain points, inefficiencies, and unmet needs across the online program lifecycle, including marketing, recruitment, admissions, onboarding, student support, and academic progression
• Analyze partner processes, systems, personas, and workflows to uncover opportunities for innovation and digital transformation
• Work with cross-functional owners to own the tech transformation roadmap (AI/Digital): intake, prioritization, and sequencing of a focused set of high-impact initiatives across functions
• Identify and prioritize a small number of high-value opportunities tied to measurable outcomes (conversion, cost-to-serve, speed, quality)
• Evaluate build vs. buy decisions and assess AI/digital tools, vendors, and solution approaches with a rigorous, ROI-first lens
• Develop a measurement framework to baseline performance before AI/digital interventions and track impact post-deployment
• Redesign workflows end-to-end using a problem-led, future-back approach (not just layering AI or digital tools onto existing processes)
• Define how roles, tasks, and decision-making shift with AI embedded
• Partner with functions to move from insight → pilot → scaled workflow changes
• Ensure solutions are durable, repeatable, and embedded into day-to-day operations
• Develop and maintain a clear product vision, strategy, and multi-quarter roadmap that aligns with business goals, partner needs, and the student experience
• Define success metrics and use experiments, insights, and analytics to drive continuous improvement
• Translate university painpoints into solutions
• Build strong relationships with university partners to understand their operational models, technical ecosystems, decision structures, and growth goals
• Collaborate with partnerships, engineering, operations, marketing, and student success teams to shape product requirements and deliver scalable solutions
• Own the end-to-end product development lifecycle—from discovery and prioritization through launch and iteration
• Ensure proper documentation, communication, and change management to support adoption across partners and internal teams
• Lead requirement definition, including user stories, acceptance criteria, systems integration needs, and user flows
• Work closely with technical teams to ensure product delivery meets scope, timeline, quality, and performance expectations
• Operate autonomously with minimal oversight; proactively identify issues and drive solutions
• Influence decisions across the organization using data-driven reasoning, storytelling, and a strong executive presence

Requirements:

• 8+ years of tech product management experience, with significant time spent in digital product leadership roles
• Strong knowledge of university systems, processes, and online program operations (e.g., CRM, SIS, LMS, admissions workflows, student support models, marketing funnels). Either via experience with EdTech firms or with universities
• Proven experience (within the last 2–4 years) driving AI-led product development and workflow transformation inside an organization, not just deploying tools or running pilots. You can point to workflows that changed and outcomes achieved, not just pilots that launched
• Demonstrated ability to thrive in a fast-paced, evolving environment with a builder mentality, strong ownership mindset, and growth-oriented approach to problem solving. Comfortable operating with ambiguity, establishing new processes and capabilities, and driving organizational transformation through innovation, adaptability, and continuous improvement
• Prior consulting experience with top-tier consulting firms will be a plus
• Proven track record of owning product strategy, roadmaps, and cross-functional execution for complex, multi-stakeholder systems
• Exceptional communication, stakeholder management, and executive-level presentation skills
• Ability to independently lead discovery, build requirements, and translate business needs into technical solutions
• Strong analytical mindset; able to structure ambiguous problems and make data-driven decisions
• Experience working with or for higher education institutions
• Familiarity with integrations, APIs, middleware, and data pipelines in university ecosystems