Principal, Product Owner

To be considered for this position, applications and resumes are accepted only through our careers site by directly applying to the posted job. We do not accept unsolicited resumes or sales solicitations from staffing agencies. Any OCC employee wishing to submit a referral must do so through their Workday account. Any resume submitted outside of an active job posting will not be considered for employment.

Summary

The Product Owner at the OCC will be responsible for maximizing the value of the Products delivered to our stakeholders by representing business interests, working with our technology teams to determine requirements, creating a product roadmap for development, and prioritizing the work. The Product Owner will work in a hybrid agile methodology collaborating with cross-functional teams. The Product Owner must ensure that the technology teams understand and are aligned with the Product vision and that OCC leadership is kept aware of Product progress and status.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each primary duty satisfactorily.

This person will work with key stakeholders to understand current systems and capabilities and participate in recommendations to enhancements needed to be at the leading edge of risk management solutions. The projects related to those enhancements would be led by this individual to ensure successful implementation and conclusion. This person will ensure that the OCC’s processes and controls are followed and consistently improved.

Stakeholder Engagement and Management

• •Act as a primary point of contact for Financial Risk Management and other stakeholders regarding the product backlog and product development
• •Interact with internal and external stakeholders to understand their needs and ensure that they are reflected in the product backlog
• •Elicit, Interpret, lead requirement workshops with vendors, stakeholders, and/ or product owners; assist in the development of backlog items and acceptance criteria
• •Maintain direct communications with senior and middle management
• •Coordinate preparation of materials for Management Committee, Board of Directors and Regulatory meetings as needed

Product Leadership

• •Maintain Product Vision and Roadmap
• •Understand regulatory requirements and drivers impacting development goals and plans
• •Evaluate product changes and recommend needed process and system changes
• •Collaborate with cross-functional teams to define and prioritize the product backlog
• •Refine the product backlog to ensure that it is ready for development
• •Seek to optimize product delivery in the most cost-effective manner

Product Delivery

• •Collaborate with technology partners and teams to drive strategic plans for OCC’s system development, integration and deployment
• •Work with the Project Owners/Managers, Technology Lead, and Scrum Master to ensure that the teams are following the hybrid agile methodology and that any issues are addressed in a timely manner
• •Collaborate with Model Risk Management and Quantitative Risk Management staff to ensure all models and methodologies are appropriately validated as part of any change management or annual validation activities

Product Integrity

• •Ensure that the product backlogs are transparent, visible, and understood by all stakeholders
• •Ensure there is a clear traceability of requirements to deliverables
• •Ensure the product complies with all non-functional requirements
• •Comply with all product delivery controls and procedures

Quality Management

• •Continuously monitor and evaluate the product backlog to ensure that it is meeting stakeholder needs and delivers value
• •Identify scope gaps and missing requirements by acquiring an in-depth understanding of current state capabilities (i.e., legacy system) and future state needs
• •Proactively identifies and escalates risks and issues to the leadership team
• •Monitor vendor performance (where applicable) against statements of work
• •Meet complex business needs in an efficient, flexible, and ever-improving manner

Team Leadership

• •Indirectly supervise product team members matrixed from across business and internal technology teams
• •Foster a diverse and inclusive workplace
• •Perform other duties as assigned
• •Light travel may be required

Supervisory Responsibilities:

N/A

Qualifications:

The requirements listed are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the primary functions.

• •Previous experience as a Product Owner in a hybrid agile methodology is required
• •Strong understanding of Agile product management methodologies and product development processes
• •Excellent communication, collaboration, and presentation skills
• •Ability to work effectively with and lead cross-functional teams
• •Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• •Demonstrated ability to gather, analyze, and evaluate facts, and prepare and present concise oral and written reports
• •Ability to prioritize and manage multiple tasks and projects simultaneously
• •Ability to work independently in a fast-paced, dynamic environment
• •Must be able to work under deadlines and manage multiple tasks
• •Self-directed; Ability to work both independently with minimal direction or oversight in a team-oriented, collaborative environment
• •Experience working in the financial services industry with deep understanding of Options and Derivatives markets
• •Solid understanding of Risk and P&L attribution; Margins processing; Referential Data; Market Data; Timeseries
• •Strong knowledge in multiple asset classes (equities, interest rates, volatility, commodities, foreign currencies, etc.)
• •Experience with central counterparty clearing & settlement of derivatives and regulated capital markets infrastructure
• •Willingness to roll up your sleeves and do whatever is necessary

Technical Skills:

• •Proficiency using Jira, Confluence, Tableau and Microsoft Office applications.
• •Strong data analysis skills using SQL and MS-Excel, coupled with familiarity in Data Modeling concepts
• •Ability to work closely with Quantitative Finance, Engineering (Software, Data, Quality, Platform), UX/UI teams
• •Strong in tech parlance to decompose complex Product requirements to Development team
• •Nice-to-have: Familiarity with programming, APIs, Systems Integration, Atomic UC4 skills

Education and/or Experience:

• •Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in relevant fields including Accounting, Finance, Computer Science, Management Information Systems, Engineering among others
• •MBA, MS or equivalent graduate degree in a relevant field preferred
• •10+ years of financial risk management experience leading teams and building robust business processes
• •2+ years of product management experience, preferably with Risk Management products and capabilities
• •Demonstrated experience with ensuring effective process change management
• •10+ year experience in financial services / regulated capital markets infrastructure. Experience with an exchange, regulator or clearing house preferred

Certificates or Licenses:

None Required

Who We Are

About Us

The Options Clearing Corporation (OCC) is the world's largest equity derivatives clearing organization. Founded in 1973, OCC is dedicated to promoting stability and market integrity by delivering clearing and settlement services for options, futures and securities lending transactions. As a Systemically Important Financial Market Utility (SIFMU), OCC operates under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. OCC has more than 100 clearing members and provides central counterparty (CCP) clearing and settlement services to 19 exchanges and trading platforms. More information about OCC is available at www.theocc.co