Assistant Director, Customer Product Management (Digital Screens)

JOB TITLE:                  Assistant Director, Customer Product Management (Digital Screens)

SALARY RANGE:       $127,000 - $137,000

HAY POINTS:           755

DEPT/DIV:                  Customer Experience

SUPERVISOR:          Director, Systems and Data

LOCATION:            2 Broadway New York, NY 10004

HOURS OF WORK:     9:00am – 5:30pm (7 1/2 hours/day) with room for flexibility

DEADLINE:                   Open Until Filled

This position is eligible for telework which is currently one day per week. New hires are eligible to apply 30 days after their effective date of hire.                                         

SUMMARY:

The MTA is building a team of human-centered strategists, designers, writers, and technologists to reimagine the customer experience for the millions of people that we move through the region each day.

We are looking for an Assistant Director, Customer Product Management who can iteratively improve how the MTA meets customer needs through screens found in stations and onboard trains and buses.

The MTA has dozens of thousands of digital screens in stations, subways, trains, and buses across our network. You’ll oversee two major products:

• Screen templates - Lead the effort to evaluate and evolve our screen content strategy and digital templates, which display train location data, service alerts, and MTA communications. You’ll work with a front-end engineer and a UX designer to build templates that balance those competing priorities and show customers the information they need, when and where they need it.
• Mercury - The tool MTA communications teams use to manage screen inventory, schedule and publish service alerts, and schedule digital campaigns. The Mercury software platform manages 12,000+ digital screens in our system that are seen by millions of riders daily. You will drive product enhancements to streamline the process for creating and publishing service alerts and other content, better target service information to those customers who need to see it and ensure the data we put out is clear and documented. You’ll manage a contract with a product agency to define and manage the roadmap.
• You will also collaborate with the technical teams that support and enhance the several different systems that power the network of digital screens.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Define and prioritize the Mercury product roadmap and enhancement development efforts in coordination with MTA IT and the vendor, managing the project budget, and maintaining communications to stakeholders. Own the short- and long-term strategy for Mercury.
• Own the short- and long-term strategy for the multiple kinds of screens and digital templates that live across our system, seeking to improve consistency in content and quality across platforms.
• Work with the communications teams from each agency (40+ people) and with front line MTA employees to understand their needs and work processes, write or contribute to user stories and requirements, and as needed, work with the teams to evolve their business processes.
• Work with both internal and contracted technical teams responsible for the different in-station on onboard customer information systems to plan, design, and review enhancements to digital screen content providing real-time service information to our customers.
• Work with other stakeholders in all MTA agencies to identify product opportunities; support the building, prioritizing, and executing of your team’s roadmap and backlog; and communicate updates to key stakeholders.
• Set schedules, track deliverables, track customer/user feedback, ensure effective templates are developed, and report to various agency stakeholders on priorities and progress. 
• Day-to-day management of the contract with MTA’s vendor for the Mercury platform.
• Collaborate with a cross-functional team including front- and back-end developers, UX designers, and project managers in delivering quality products while balancing user experience, technical capabilities, and business goals.
• Set and monitor product KPIs and provide recommendations based on results, monitor, measure, and report on the performance and impact of product enhancements.
• Evangelize for user research and testing and customer-centric design. Identify research needs and implement or work with designers and researchers to implement.
• Document product requirements with clear feature specifications, and draft end-user documentation. Have capacity to understand and write documentation for legacy systems that might not already have it.
• Keep projects and product development on a set timeline towards meeting agreed-upon milestones and deliverables.
• Troubleshoot technical issues and work with product vendor and internal teams to see through to resolution. Document and prioritize bugs.
• Be an internal subject-matter expert on relevant digital products and drive digital transformation.
• Negotiate and manage relationships with current and potential vendors.
• Stay apprised of industry trends and best practices.
• Select, develop, and motivate personnel within the department. Provide career development for subordinates. Provide prompt and effective coaching and counseling. Create a professional environment that respects individual differences and enables all employees to develop and contribute to their full potential.
• Other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Curiosity and passion. Interested in the MTA, our products, our industry, and always trying to learn more and make the MTA better.

• Excellent interpersonal and written/verbal communication skills.
• Enjoys collaboration and working as part of a team.
• Able to build consensus and buy-in by effectively communicating strategic vision and value.
• Able to communicate technical, operational, and business requirements clearly and concisely.
• Bias toward action and delivering value. Able to work through ambiguity to create focus and executable tasks.
• Organized and able to manage many competing priorities simultaneously.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• A Bachelor’s degree in Digital Media, Design, Web Development, or a related field. An equivalent combination of education and experience, including bootcamps and certification programs, may be considered in lieu of a degree.
• 7+ years’ experience in a digital strategy, product, UX, content, or business role.
• Experience managing a CMS is preferred.
• Experience with technical issues, including building APIs, is helpful.
• Experience with agile frameworks.
• Experience in service design is a plus.
• Experience with public transportation customer information is a plus.
• Demonstrated supervisory and/or leadership abilities.

OTHER INFORMATION:

As an employee of MTA Headquarters, you may be required to complete an annual financial disclosure statement with the State of New York, if your position earns more than $108,638 (this figure is subject to change) per year or if the position is designated as a policy maker.

HOW TO APPLY:

MTA employees must apply via My MTA Portal. You can submit an online application by logging into My MTA Portal, clicking the My Job Search ribbon, and selecting the “Careers” link.

Logging in through My MTA Portal will link your BSC ID number to your job application to identify you as an internal applicant.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

MTA and its subsidiary and affiliated agencies are Equal Opportunity Employers, including with respect to veteran status and individuals with disabilities.

The MTA encourages qualified applicants from diverse backgrounds, experiences, and abilities, including military service members, to apply.