Director, Product Management

Director, Product Management

Department: Information Systems

Reports to: Head, Information Systems

FLSA Status: Exempt

The anticipated salary for this position starts at $136,500+ for the role. The final pay will be determined based on several factors, including qualifications, experience, education, and years within the job or industry, with a strong emphasis on maintaining internal equity. 

Who we are and what we’re about:

KU Endowment is an independent, nonprofit organization and the official fundraising foundation for the University of Kansas.  We partner with donors in providing philanthropic support to build a greater KU.
 

As an employee of KU Endowment, you’ll witness firsthand the power of our donors’ generosity.  You will join a talented and fun group of people who are inspired to help KU through the support of loyal alumni and friends.  This support fuels excellence, enabling students and faculty to develop innovative programs and research that distinguish the university.  We connect the philanthropic passions of donors with the needs of students, faculty and programs – and everyone benefits.
 

People are engaged. Purpose is ignited.  Lives are changed.

What we are looking for:

The Director, Product Management is responsible for the strategic direction, planning, and continuous improvement of KU Endowment’s advancement and donor technology platforms, including Salesforce and related systems. This role ensures that technology investments deliver meaningful operational value to fundraising teams, improve donor data quality, and modernize how donor operations function across the organization. 

This position works closely with fundraising leadership, advancement operations, finance, IT, and external implementation partners to align technology solutions with organizational priorities. 

The Director leads the advancement technology product function and champions adoption of new platform capabilities and workflows across KU Endowment, guiding Product Owners responsible for individual platforms and capability areas. The Director focuses on portfolio strategy, cross-platform alignment and organizational roadmaps, while supporting Product Owners managing platform roadmaps, stakeholder discovery, and backlog prioritization. 

The individual in this position is expected to embrace KU Endowment’s stated core values – collaboration, curiosity, empowerment, and excellence – and demonstrate support for them through professional interactions and activities. 

Hybrid Work Environment:

Following the initial training period, this position offers a hybrid work schedule, with the flexibility to work remotely for part of the week. However, the role requires multiple days per week on-site at our Lawrence, KS office to ensure effective collaboration, team engagement, and alignment with organizational goals. 

What’s a typical day look like?

• Define and maintain the advancement technology portfolio roadmap, ensuring alignment with institutional priorities, operational needs, and long-term platform sustainability.
• Partner with fundraising leadership, advancement operations, and finance to understand strategic priorities and ensure advancement technology capabilities evolve to support those needs.
• Collaborate with IT to ensure strategic vision and roadmap implementation. 
• Serve as the primary business strategist for Salesforce and related systems, working closely with internal technical teams and external vendors to ensure solutions align with organizational objectives.
• Ensure effective discovery practices across advancement platforms by supporting Product Owners responsible for stakeholder engagement and requirements discovery.
• Manage, coach and develop a newly established product team in a mission-driven organization.
• Provide leadership and guidance to the Product Team to ensure platform initiatives align with portfolio strategy and organizational practices.
• Evaluate platform performance, adoption trends, and operational outcomes to inform portfolio-level product strategy and roadmap decisions.
• Establish and evolve product management practices, governance frameworks, and prioritization processes that guide advancement technology development across platforms.
• Communicate progress, priorities, and outcomes to senior leadership and key stakeholders.
• Support change management efforts by helping teams adopt new tools and workflows.
• Regular and reliable attendance is essential for this position.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

What’s required to be considered:

• Bachelor’s degree required (or equivalent professional experience) 
• Five (5) or more years of experience in a Salesforce ecosystem. 
• Five (5) to Seven (7) years of experience in product management, business systems ownership, digital transformation, or related roles supporting operational teams 
• Prior experience leading cross-functional initiatives or managing Product Owners, project teams, or complex workstreams preferred 

What separates the best from the rest? 

• Demonstrated ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships across technical and non-technical teams, including fundraising, advancement operations, finance, IT, and external partners
• Strong ability to adapt to new technologies, platforms, and evolving business needs
• Demonstrated understanding of team dynamics, excellent interpersonal skills, and a commitment to building positive, collaborative working relationships
• Ability to collaborate effectively across departments and provide guidance and mentorship to colleagues involved in platform delivery and adoption
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills, with the ability to clearly articulate priorities, requirements, and outcomes
• Proven ability to independently initiate, organize, and follow through on complex initiatives
• Ability to work with minimal supervision while exercising strong judgment, discretion, and accountability.
• Ability to establish and maintain professional and effective working relationships inside and outside KU Endowment.
• Ability to adapt to new procedures and technology.

Outcome-Driven Thinker 

You focus on measurable impact — improved workflows, better data quality, higher adoption — not just completing tasks or delivering features. 

Strong Prioritization Judgment 

You are skilled at making tradeoffs in complex environments, balancing stakeholder needs, technical constraints, and organizational goals to determine what matters most. 

Systems Thinker 

You understand how people, processes, data, and technology interact. You design solutions that improve the entire donor ecosystem — not just individual tools.

Trusted Cross-Functional Partner 

You build credibility quickly with fundraising teams, operations staff, IT, leadership, and external vendors. You listen deeply, communicate clearly, and bring groups together around shared objectives. 

Change Leader 

You help teams successfully adopt new tools and workflows. You recognize that digital transformation is as much about people and behavior as it is about technology. 

Pragmatic Problem Solver 

You prioritize practical, high-impact improvements over perfection. You know when to move quickly and when to slow down to protect long-term system health. 

Data Stewardship Mindset 

You treat donor data as a strategic asset. You care deeply about accuracy, governance, and reporting reliability, and you design processes that build organizational trust in data. 

Comfortable With Ambiguity 

You thrive in evolving environments where problems are not clearly defined. You bring structure, clarity, and momentum to complex initiatives.

Physical Requirements:

• A valid driver’s license. 
• Must have access to reliable transportation to travel between multiple locations for training, donor meetings, networking, events and/or work-related activities.
• Must be able to respond quickly and effectively to directions and safety hazards.
• This job operates in a professional office environment. This role routinely uses standard office productivity machinery such as computers, keyboards and a mouse, laptops, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets and fax machines. 
• This is largely a sedentary role; however, some filing is required. This would require the ability to move files, open filing cabinets and bend or stand as necessary.
• The ability to observe details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Must be able to communicate with others effectively.
• Physical effort/lifting, such as sedentary- up to 10 pounds
• Travel requirements are rare and can include the following, evenings, weekends, and out of town overnights as a regular part of the job. 
• KU Endowment is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals to enable them to perform the essential functions of the job as regulated by ADA. If you require accommodation for any part of the application process or during employment, please contact humanresources@kuendowment.org to discuss your needs.

We’ve got you covered:

KU Endowment offers a competitive salary with an excellent benefit package including: 

• 100% employer-paid pension plan
• Health, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) and Roth 401(k) matching program
• Section 125 flexible benefits 
• Generous paid leave including holidays, personal and sick leave
• Volunteer and community engagement opportunities
• Paid Parental Leave
• Life, AD&D, short- and long-term disability insurance
• Legal & ID Theft protection
• Critical Illness
• Accident and Hospital Indemnity insurance 
• KU education assistance 
• Free parking

Sounds good, right? What’s next?

Please include your resume and cover letter when applying for this position on our website at https://www.kuendowment.org/careers.

Questions regarding this vacancy may be addressed to:
 

Human Resources
KU Endowment

PO Box 928
Lawrence, KS 66044-0928
Email: humanresources@kuendowment.org
 

Review of applications begins immediately and continues until the position is filled.  Because of the sensitive nature of KU Endowment business and the importance of our reputation with donors, KU Endowment conducts a comprehensive review of applicants.  By submitting your application, you authorize us to conduct reference checks and a review of available public information.  Employment is contingent upon background and reference checks that KU Endowment finds acceptable.