Product Owner

At Equitable, we realize that your work life is not just about performing a job; it's about being part of a workplace that helps you grow and reach your full potential. Within our friendly and collaborative work environment, we recognize that the key to our growth and success is a dedicated, motivated and client-responsive staff. Join Equitable today.
**Position Title**: Product Owner - Group Digital Experience
**Reports To**: Director, Operations and Digital Experience
**Department**: Group
**Term**: Permanent Full Time
**Work Arrangements**: This is a hybrid role. You will work in our office in Waterloo, ON a minimum of two (2) assigned, consecutive days every other week, plus a fifth (5th) assigned day per month. You are welcome to work from the office more than the minimum requirement and there may be some roles that are required to work in our office more than the minimum requirement.
**The Opportunity**: Equitable is growing We are looking to add a Product Owner - Group Digital Experience to our Group team
This role is responsible for the Group web/mobile experience. You’ll continuously make choices about what to build and what not to build. To do so, the Product Owner is also responsible for the product vision and for managing the product backlog and stakeholders.
Now is an exciting time to join one of the Waterloo Area’s Top Employer for 2025 and Southwestern Ontario’s Top Employers for 2024
**What you will be doing**:

- Build the North Star vision
- Articulate a future experience that is compelling
- Understand how to evaluate backlog items using value creation criteria
- Promote strategic alignment and operational efficiency by connecting their product group back to the product line or portfolio vision
- Use the product vision and road map to accept or reject new work requests
- Set expectations with business stakeholders for delivery of new capabilities
- Focus on continuous value creation each increment and stakeholder collaboration
- Define client-centric measures and increase client satisfaction
- Establish client research panels, question development, and identify pain points
- Gather client research to build current journeys and empathy maps
- Assess pain points and 'wow' moments for each persona
- Identify and describe client/partner value of the product item to the team to build a shared understanding with the squad
- Seek out frequent and ongoing conversations with clients/partners, especially during road map and key validation points
- Be an expert in defining capabilities that support the user journey
- Work with a development team to ideate and build the right solutions for the clients
- Draw the relationship from a backlog item and its value to an overarching product feature and business outcome
- Collaborate with the team on their objectives for each iteration

**What you will bring**:

- Ability to negotiate with squads/teams, peers, and stakeholders to continually deliver value
- Ability to analyze a problem from 360-degree perspective rather than a tunnel vision effect. Able to be creative to deliver strategy in effective increments
- Comfortable working with a set of complex and unique problems and challenges and be able to articulate and provide solutions
- Able to work with limited information to help articulate proof of concepts or high-level concepts for new ideas
- Works with all levels of the organization, manages various opinions and differing analysis
- Self-driven individual with professional level conflict resolution skills
- Understands key voices in developing the backlog and setting priorities and brokers the conversations so developers can speak directly with the experts
- Evaluates a product's business performance
- Takes accountability for outcomes
- Flexible, adaptable, and open to organizational guidance
- Respectfully listens and engages in open thinking and applies learning
- Takes initiative and ensures decisive and swift decision-making
- Excellent communication skills and the ability to present persuasively
- Develops and maintains advisor and client relationships
- Experience with Facilitation and Client Journey Mapping and associated software (e.g., Miro) an asset

**What’s in it for you**:

- A healthy work-life balance with employee wellness top of mind
- Annual bonus program, annual vacation allowance, and company-paid benefits program
- An additional paid volunteer day each year so you can spend time giving back to the community
- Immediate enrollment in the company’s pension program with employer matching
- Employee resource groups that support an inclusive work environment
- Tuition support and specialized program assistance
- An onsite full-service cafeteria with a variety of daily options
- Discounts on company products and services, and access to exclusive employee perks
- Regular EQ Together events focused on company togetherness and collaboration

As part of the recruitment/offer process you will be required to:

- Provide two professional